We Don’t Go Down – The show begins with Tyson Walker (Rob Collins) and Shanika “Neeks” (Shantae Barnes) arriving home to battle bloodsuckers. Immediately out of the car, Tyson encounters bloodsuckers. He kills a vampire with his boomerang and orders Shanika to get Jalingbiri. He lures the bloodsuckers into a shack and pretends to sob and plead for his life. The remainder of the bloodsuckers is killed with a chainsaw, power drill, and wooden stakes. Shanika finds Jalingbiri, what is left of him. His head is missing.

In an underground tunnel, bloodsuckers are celebrating the death of blood hunter, Jalingbiri (Kelton Pell.) His head is tossed in the direction of the King Vampire (Callan Mulvey) who looks at it and walks away.

Tyson is gathering the bloodsuckers while Shanika is digging a hole for Jalinbiri. He replicates Jalingbirir’s last vampire battle and says, “You nearly had him, old man, silly old blood hunter.” Kitty sends a text. He joins Shanika outside as she continues to dig Jalingbiri’s grave. He asks if she is digging to China. She ignores him and continues to dig. He gives her a photo of her mother. They need to relocate because the bloodsuckers know their location. She demands to know if her mother is dead. He didn’t see her die, she may be a bleeder. He helps her out of the hold and asks if they are good. She kids him in the groin. He winces in pain on the ground.

Kitty (Ngaire Pigram) visits the local clinic. She immediately sees a puddle of blood on the floor and Joseph (Greg Tait) sitting with his head down. Two police officers are investigating the crime scene. An officer says, “Smokey says bad spirits did this, well, rum is a particularly bad spirit, it’s made me do some awful things.” Kitty overhears the comment and demands to know what the officer said. She calls him a “racist dickhead.”

Tyson prepares to bury Jalingbiri. Shanika gathers liquor bottles and her dolls for target practice. Tyson is making Shanika’s hole larger to accommodate Jalingbiri’s body when he hears a gunshot. He tells her to be smart. She mockingly asks, “Smart like you, did you even pass first grade.” She needs to know if her mum is alive. He tells her to look at what happened to Jalingbiri. At least he tried. She asks if he is a failed blood hunter before walking away. After burying Jalingbiri, Tyson sits down with a bottle of booze. The rain is going to excite the bloodsuckers. He tells her about the King Vampire. They know where they live. She needs to be sure if they are going to go underground.

Aunty Marie (Tessa Rose) apologies to Joseph about the loss of Carolee. Sorry, will not bring her or his brother back. She was told not to tell anyone about the bloodsuckers. He suggests they leave right now. She will go down fighting.

At the local bar, bartender Eleona (Yael Stone) demonstrates pouring beer from the tap. The bar has a new female bartender, Carly (Molly Ferguson). The King Vampire walks through the bar, keeping his eye on the new bartender.

Shanika and Tyson are staking out the police impound lot, where Jalingbiri’s 18-wheeler is stored.  She shoots out the streetlight with a slingshot.

Aunty Marie takes a seat at the bar. Carly takes her order. She spots the King Vampire, pulls out her weapon, and gradually walks in his direction. He disappears as she swings her weapon.

Tyson and Shanika inspect Jalingbiri’s truck, with a bat cave. Dead kangaroos are hanging from in the trailer as a disguise. The bat cave is filled with handmade weapons, a missing person board, and safety gear. The stuff will not fit in their car, so they take the truck and park it in a tunnel. They test Jalingbiri’s weapons and read his book. The King Vampire is permitted to create new bloodsuckers.

The bloodsuckers test the dialysis machine recently stolen from the clinic. The King Vampire orders new tunnels to be built and a pit for young bloodsuckers. They start growing their numbers tonight.

Tyson assesses the missing person’s board. He has a flashback of a man saying he is being weak and another of Jalingbiri saying he is being weak. He anxiously throws Jalingbiri’s boomerang, waking Shanika. They need to relocate to another town. Shanika arguably asks about saving her mum. Raising his voice, he orders Shanika to shut up. She is a child and if her mum is alive, she will wish she wasn’t. Shanika grabs her gear and heads out on her motorcycle. He heads to the bar.

Eleona pours him a whiskey. Kitty finds him at a table with his head down. He Shanika can take care of herself and Jalingbiri left town. The bloodsuckers found out he was staying with them. She denies telling anyone. He sings her a song about a “black boy.” Eleona climbs upon the bar to get a better view. He walks over to her, and they sing together. Kitty angrily leaves the bar. Eleona gets Carly to cover for her.

Shanika lures bloodsuckers out the tunnel by crying.

Eleona and Tyson are making out in his car.

A bloodsucker lunges toward Shanika and hits a wire instead. She asks if they feed on people in the tunnel. She kills him.

Tyson cannot perform. She tells him to not worry about it when he apologizes.

The King Vampire walks up behind Carly at a pool. They talk about the water. She asks him to help her up. He grabs her hand and bites her forearm. She starts to transform into a bloodsucker.

Shanika finds Tyson passed out on the ground. He startles awake and asks where she has been. He angrily asks do you know how dumb it is to go hunting alone. He is the boss and the closest thing to a blood hunter. Disagreeing, she says blood hunters are warriors, he is a drunk.

The King Vampire watches Carly transform into a vampire.

Tyson follows Shanika into the truck. When she doesn’t answer the door. He wanted to be a blood hunter, but that all changed when he found her. The blood hunters wanted to leave her. He is scared of losing her. He calls himself a “shit dad.” He opens the door to find Shanika gone.

Shanika propels down into the bloodsucker tunnel as the episode comes to an end.

 

Firebite Review

Only one word is needed to describe the episode, dreadful. The horrific, seizure-triggering bright camera flashes, poorly visible night scenes, and robotic fighting are unbearable. Even worse, Shanika’s continuous whining.

It is impossible to like any of the main characters. Tyson is an unemployed drunken man child and Shanika is a selfish, ungrateful brat. It makes more sense to relate to the bloodthirsty King Vampire.

How is it, an innocent comment about the ill effects of rum becomes a racial slur?

The dozens of whiskey bottles does not make a good impression on the Australian Indigenous community. This is not to mention, many of the scenes, excluding the bar, show alcohol use in some way.

Nearly halfway in, the show is spiraling into a pit of shite. The episode deserves a 5.

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