'Penny Dreadful: City Of Angels' Trailer: Nazis, Murder, And Shape-Shifting Natalie Dormer Plague 1930s Los Angeles

Victorian England is out and 1930s LA is in here in the trailer for Penny Dreadful: City of Angels. The new series isn't so much a sequel to the previous Penny Dreadful, but rather something of a spiritual successor. The new show deals with grisly murders in 1938 Los Angeles, and how they tie into plots involving Nazis and a shape-shifting demon played by Natalie Dormer. Watch the Penny Dreadful: City of Angels trailer below.

I was a big fan of Penny Dreadful. The stylish, gothic Showtime series drew on classic horror literature like Frankenstein, Dracula, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and more to create a horror show worth paying attention to. So of course, very few people paid attention to it. While the series managed to hang on for three seasons, it failed to generate a big audience. Which is a huge shame because the series featured a killer performance from Eva Green – one that deserved more praise.

Now here comes Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, a series I'm conflicted about. While original creator John Logan is back, transporting Penny Dreadful out of the Victorian era for 1930s Los Angeles just doesn't interest me as much. And while it's clear Natalie Dormer is having fun here, I have a hard time accepting a new Penny Dreadful title without Eva Green. But I'll certainly give it a chance.

City of Angels "opens in 1938 Los Angeles, a time and place deeply infused with social and political tension. When a grisly murder shocks the city, Detective Tiago Vega (Daniel Zovatto) and his partner Lewis Michener (Nathan Lane) become embroiled in an epic story that reflects the rich history of Los Angeles: from the building of the city's first freeways and its deep traditions of Mexican-American folklore, to the dangerous espionage actions of the Third Reich and the rise of radio evangelism. Before long, Tiago and his family are grappling with powerful forces that threaten to tear them apart."

Logan told EW that the new series "is about the social and personal cost that goes into making a great modern metropolis and how the various forces at play in 1938 are the very forces that are playing now. One hundred years before our show, Los Angeles was Mexico. I wanted to tell a story about a Latino family under pressure because of all the forces at play—not only in freeway building but also in crime, law enforcement, and immigration policy."

Penny Dreadful: City of Angels premieres April 26 on Showtime.