Ooof…I’d forgotten how hot this show was. Erotically, of course, but also in terms of action, and hitting the emotional nail on the head with the exploration of human complexity and darkness.
Before the vampire Angel ever drove his convertible through the noir city streets, righting the wrongs of Los Angeles in order to redeem for centuries of evil, Nicholas Knight drove his convertible through the noir city streets, righting the wrongs of Toronto in order to redeem for centuries of evil.
I remember complaining when “Angel” first aired about the similarities. But they were superficial. Angel wasn’t a cop (and could never be one with that invitation problem), Darla wasn’t La Croix, Natalie wasn’t Cordelia, Janette wasn’t Buffy (or Darla), the Raven wasn’t Caritas, and the whole tone and emphasis of the shows were very different.
I love both.
Author Nancy E. Shaffer 
I’ve never really watched FK, but I remember reading a post once that compared Forever Knight and Angel, saying the former was lyric poetry and the latter was an opera.
You could make the exact opposite claim as well, IMO. Forever Knight had its share of high drama and sweeping story lines. Both had their share of intimacy and subtle moments, too–just in very different ways.
In FK, there was less “arcyness”, but not in Nick’s quest to be human or the changes in his relationships with his vampire family or his human friends. Those continually evolved.
And if Angel had stuck to his season 1 premise in later seasons–the “agency” where he and his buds helped the helpless–it would have been very similar to FK.
The difference is really one of tone. It’s so hard to explain. Angel is dark-lit and filmed a lot at night, but FK “feels” darker. Kinkier–and not just sexual kink. Each episode features a non-regular character who is dealing (in a very human way) with some aspect of human frailty, sin, or struggle. Nick is drawn into their struggle as a police officer but then reflects on his own life and similar situations he was in and he helps the person deal with their struggles, often in a non-cop way. It’s much more self-conscious of its social message.
The vampire characters are certainly more well-rounded and human than Jossverse vampires.
Angel, on the other hand, has a huge mythology that FK just doesn’t have–not just vampires and humans, but Slayers and demons and PTBs. It’s more about exploring human foibles through metaphor with demons than through actual humans themselves.
Apples and oranges, both with fangs. Superficially similar premises, but then you get to see how two different producers with two different visions take a premise and make it their own.
I did enjoy this show a lot. Did you ever see the original movie? I quite enjoyed that too
Was that the one with Rick Springfield? I missed that one. Didn’t even come into the show itself until season 3.
Yes that’s the one with Rick who was well unbelievably hot in it and acted better than I was expecting. I started with S1 and quit since it just didn’t have the same feel as the movie. I came back when it hit syndication
I caught the original season 3, then went back and got the others on tape as well when it was in Syndication.
I just can’t imagine Rick Springfield in the role. But then, I’ve always thought of him as a bit of a joke.
when I first hear it was Rick I had the same reaction then I thought you know it was better than I expected