Cheap Kindred the Embraced - The Complete Vampire Collection (DVD) (Peter Medak, John Harrison, Kenneth Fink, James L. Conway, Ralph Hemecker) Price

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Customer Reviews of Kindred the Embraced - The Complete Vampire Collection

A cool concept
I can't understand why there are so many Vampire fans that hate Kindred. I love Vampires and I think Kindred portrays them very well. I read a lot of bad reviews before I bought this DVD so I was expecting it to be lousy. To my surprise it was very very good. The DVD collects all eight episodes of the short-lived series. The series tells the story of five different Vampire clans in San Francisco. The clans battle one another for power like mobs. They are united by Julian (the much missed Mark Frankel) the "prince" of all of the clans. Julian is faced with the task of uniting the clans in a truce over the course of the eight episodes. As the series moves forward the Clans attempts at peace are threatened more and more by the Brujah clan and its thug leader Eddie Fiori (Brian Thompson from "Buffy" and the X-Files). As the series draws to a close the Clans have a final battle with Fiori and his thugs in "The Rise and Fall of Eddie Fiori" and many issues are resolved.

Kindred the Embraced is really great because it is the first show to really have mafia clan Vampires. I think the concept of Vampire Clans fighting a mafia-like war is really great. It pputs a new twist on the Vampire mythology and it makes the show really cool. I really can't understand why people didn't like the show more. If you love Vampires you should buy this DVD. It is really great. I think they should re-release it in a couple of years with all kinds of extra features. I also think they should put it back on TV. We really need a cool Vampire show since Buffy is really becoming lousy.

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Bram Stoker meets Mario Puzo!
This is definitely a series which any true gothic, vampire mythos afficionado would love! I bought the VHS set of this series from AMAZON, and needless to say I was truly impressed! It was everything I expected it to be, albeit for some rather dragging moments where more action would have been in order (e.g. the pilot). Still, this set is obviously well worth the price, since it contains all aired episodes plus a bonus one.

Kindred: The Embraced is based on the Vampire: The Masquerade rpg. The late Mark Frankel steals the show as the charismatic Julian Luna, San Francisco's vampire Prince of the City - cool clothes, too! The rival vampire gang Bruja is headed by the vicious Eddie Fiore, played by Brian Thompson (who reprises his vampire role in shows such as Fright Night II and Buffy!). A somewhat irritating and ultimately predictable role is played by C. Thomas Howell as detective Frank Kohanek.

As stated earlier, the series does have its dull moments, but I think the premise and overall story is very original and fascinating, which primarily explains the 5 stars. As I said in my original review of the VHS, other vampire-themed shows such as Buffy, Forever Knight and Dark Shadows pale in comparison. I hope they eventually revive this series; I think its cult following is sufficiently large enough to justify it!

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Vampire Drama
First of all, the series is loosely based on a series of books AND the rpg's that are so popular. (Yes, there were actually novels that didn't involve how to convert rpg characters)I say "loosely" because although the clan names and characters are similar, the tv series has it's differences. Those that enjoy watching Buffy will enjoy watching this mini-series. It's got some action, drama and romance all mixed together. It can be a bit gruesome at times, but it is tolerable. The cliffhanger at the end still bugs me, but in all honesty, it would have been hard to continue production without Mark Frankel(?) aka Julian Luna, the main character, who had died unexpectedly in a motorcycle crash. It's a shame really, because I believe this series could have really taken off with a little more work. Nonetheless, the story is good and is a beautiful tribute to his memory.