I'm almost caught up....



True Blood Episode Three Thoughts

GOOD THINGS

* I found the opening sequence at Bill's house MUCH stronger than how it started at the end of episode two. I could actually take the threat seriously in this one whereas before I was distracted by the camp vamping out. Anna Paquin played her fear well and it was the kinky/freaky side of two vampire hungers pervading the atmosphere hit the right note this time. Being surrounded by that while Bill called Sookie 'his' and seeing just what threat lust from a vampire could pose, is a frightening reality and I think the atmosphere was suitably tense. I didn't find it funny or awkward like I had other times they made vampires kinky and I think it works better in real time rather than seeing a vampire fucking a woman on video.

* Oh and love that vampires can get Hepatitis, that they have their own mutation of the disease. I think I enjoy the vampire genre best when it starts to get grounded in reality, when the magic of their immortal existence is a little less magical. I think I am responding better to the gritty texture of this series than the gloss of Moonlight that's for sure.

* On comparisons with Moonlight: FAR stronger characters in just three episodes. I don't like all of them but there are differences and different types of relationships between all of them. That's useful and I didn't think Moonlight had that ability to shift between lots of complex characters and fiddle with the dynamics because most of the characters were flat staples that weren't very three dimensional.

* My favourite scene of the season was the scene between Tara and Sam. Two of the stronger characters that are juxtaposed in spirit, having a simple conversation about loneliness. It established their characters well without being too heavy and I loved Sam's embarassment with Tara's frankness. They stayed in character and that shows the markings of strong script work. After all when you have two characters who are so different from each other, it's easier to right them having a civil conversation if one of them slips out of character.

* Plus, I felt the friends with benefits 'oh what the hell, why not?' conversation was very realistic and amusing. Plus their kiss on the couch was far hotter to me because of that lead up than all the crap Jason gets up to.

* Although I did crack up laughing during the bendy sex when Jason hallucinated the vampire underneath him. "What's wrong?" Bwah! I do like Jason when he is tossed out on his ass, he's fun to laugh at. I found myself asking myself who this "best sex she ever had" was? Was it Eric? Please be Eric....*wishes*

* I like Sookie much more in the TV series than I did in the first book. It's actually why I decided to skip ahead and read the later books because I found her kind of annoying in the first book.

* Another thing that earned a snigger: Sookie pulling her hand away from naughty places when she woke to see her cat watching her getting frisky. "Stop that!" I think it's bit unfair to blame the kitty for enjoying a free floorshow. Poor frustrated Sookie.

* Sam making dog noises while he slept. And Tara's face. Heh.

* SQUEE! Eric was mentioned. Eric will be here! Exxxcccellent. Seriously - what had me most excited the whole episode was the possibility of Eric being suitably snarky and awesome in the future. Bill is so sober in comparison.

* I loved the dialogue between Sookie and her grandmother over trusting her head or her.... The gigantic awkward pause before her grandmother said heart was different to what it would be on most shows. You can tell Sookie wasn't so sure that it was her heart in opposition to her brain so much as other parts of her anatomy. Nicely acted dialogue.

* Awww, Sam wished for Buffy. But knowing her track record, she'd probably want to make out with Bill too.

BAD THINGS

* I can't help it, every time Bill says 'Sookie', I laugh a little. Maybe because a 'sook' is a whiny little girl and it doesn't sound complementary, or the way he says it? I don't know. I have been reading the books and I always pronounce the name differently in my head so it's less amusing.

* Ah, darn it. I really liked Dawn. Knew it was coming, still pouting.



ON THE BOOKS (DON'T READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN"T READ THEM, MAY CONTAIN UNINTENTIONAL SHOW SPOILERS)

* I have read a couple of them in the last couple of days. I intentionally started in the middle because I wasn't worried about being spoiled and I was right - it's written like Harry Potter, it doesn't much matter if you read it out of order. I don't want to know too much in detail about the first book though since that's probably what the first season is based on. Besides, the authors always inserts any necessary knowledge by explaining the same facts in the books over and over again (what characters look like, who they are to Sookie, what happened to them in the last book etc.).

* My favourite character in the books I've read is Eric. I hope he'll be in the TV series but I don't suppose we'll see him for a while. I hope he's cast as well as Bill is because the actor plays Bill EXACTLY like I imagined him, very straight, very sober, very blank featured whatever the sitaution (and that's not an insult to his acting).

* I don't like Bill that much although he's interesting enough and I like how he introduces Sookie to this world. I really like that he isn't exactly her true love in the books because that means it's not as forced and I can still appreciate what he does for her without having to swallow a match that isn't perfect in my mind throughout the series. She has options and he's a bit of a dick sometimes. I hope this means we'll have none of that true love stuff like we did on Moonlight on the show, at least not for a while. Granted, the aisle scene from the first episode worried me - the cheesy way the world slowed down when they saw each other. It's been much better in subsequent episodes and the books have calmed those fears in me somewhat.

* So glad I was right about Sam, that he does shift shapes. Hopefully we get to meet werewolves and a lot of other were-creatures throughout the series so that I can enjoy this as a fantasy piece not just a genre vampire piece.

* I am starting to really enjoy slipping into the world. There are some things that still irk - mainly around Jason and fucking Ryan Kwanten - but I gather he's meant to be slightly annoying because of his selfishness etc. I read the book where Jason got turned into a werepanther and I LOVE panthers so hopefully that happens on the show because then I'll probably like the character if he hasn't grown on me by then.



Okay, I don't want to be spoiled at all for this series - what's coming up in episodes I haven't seen as compared to the books etc. I want to be anti-bitter or laissez faire. Whatever. But I couldn't help myself, once Eric was mentioned I had to find out when he was appearing. And it's episode four! Yay! Next on my catch up list. *dances*