Reaper Season One (DVD)

When I first heard about the TV series Reaper, I thought it sounded bad. It's a story of a young man named Sam (Bret Harrison) whose parents sold his soul to the Devil (Ray Wise) and now, as comedy ensues, the Devil makes him do His bidding.

I knew it had a lot going for it: Kevin Smith's blessing (he's so talented and knows horror and comedy), actors whose work I like (in addition to Wise and Harrison, I love Tyler Labine and Rick Gonzalez), and an awesome premise (I'm a sucka for the whole devil/soul deal).

Why was I so resistant? Because it was yet another CW/WB geared toward young males? Because it followed Beauty and the Geek, and I was afraid of catching even a whiff of that show? Because I thought maybe it would be a Supernatural clone? I really can't remember. At any rate, one night a few months back I was channel surfing and I happened upon Reaper. It was partway through the season, and even though I had missed a ton of important plot points, I was instantly hooked and tuned it every week thereafter.

Now Season One is on DVD and I have eagerly plowed through the first few episodes. And I've got to say… they're not terribly strong. I guess the show must have hit its stride halfway through its run. At any rate, it's well worth watching if you haven't seen it yet so you can catch up before Season Two begins (sometime in January of '09). The cool thing about Reaper is that it just keeps getting better and better. As it ramps up, Season One ends on a hair-raising cliffhanger!

In the pilot episode, we quickly learn of Sam's parents' deal with the Devil… but not all the details (those unfold as the show progresses). He gets the bad news on his 21st birthday, and his slacker lifestyle takes an unpleasant left turn when the Devil comes to collect his due. Sam is still allowed to live and function in the real world, keep his workaday dead-end job at the Work Bench, and live off his parents… but now, he must also moonlight as a bounty hunter of satanic souls who've made the great escape from the tortures Hell's fiery depths. Let's just say they're not keen to return.

Wise is a dapper devil, pansexual, and quite seductive with his charming grin and clever, silver-tongued repartee… until you cross him. Then watch out! Hapless, sweet Sam's got no choice but to do as he's told. He deputizes his two best friends to assist him, and while each episode can pretty much stand alone ("the elusive soul of the week" is the formula), the creators/executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters, definitely had a plan as the series continued to build and grow denser with the addition of new characters.

The best supplementary regular characters include  the gay demon couple Tony (Ken Marino) and Steve (Michael Ian Black), who are so sublime; the green-card seeking tramp Sara, played by Lucy David; and Gladys (Christine Willies, who was so amazing as Geirge's boss on "Dead Like Me"), a demon who works at the DMV… which also just happens to be a portal to Hell.

The DVD does not offer a whole lot in the way of extras, but that's OK. It's well worth the price for just the commercial-free TV show in its entirety.

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Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson