Its thrilling to see that True Blood is getting back to its vampire roots in season five, after three seasons of casting a wide net across the supernatural spectrum. The intricacies and depth of vampire relationships, both personal and political, make for an endless amount of facets to explore. And with two freshly created vampires, plus the introduction of the species highest-ranking bloodsuckers, the storytelling remains captivating and entertaining. If there were a single lesson to be learned in this weeks True Blood, itd be dont fight Authority. Things definitely wont go your way if you try to resist the higher power, whether or not youre a vampire.
Vampires
First up: What to do about Tara? You cant leave, youre her maker! Sookieshouts atPam after being tossed around the backyard by Tara. And I made her. Shes your problem now, Pam retorts, but orders Tara not to bite Lafayette and Sookie, and Tara to stay in the house and then peaces off to Fangtasia, leaving a positively pissed Tara behind. Taras still on a rampage 30 minutes before sun up, so Sookie masterminds a sneak attack that involves Lafayette giving Tara his blood while Sookie silvers her to get her into the cubby. Its traumatic for everyone, and leaves Lafayette questioning if he and Sookie did the right thing when they played God. He is this close to staking Tara while she sleeps when Sookie stops him. Itll get better, Eternal Optimist Sookie Stackhouse promises, citing Jessicas evolution as hope. Tara is in there. The first sign of that is Taras pledge when she emerges later that night. I will never forgive either of you, she vows venomously, running out of the house, Sookies newly bought silver mister and Pams orders be damned.
One could argue the theory that Pams maker issues can be attributed to her current daddy issues. That is, the rift that developed between her and Eric before he was taken by the Authority and the fact that she actually has no idea where he is or whats happening to him, despite their hundred-year relationship. We get to see the start of that relationship, as Pam flashed back to her first meeting with Eric, when she lived as a tough-as-nails brothel owner in 1900s San Francisco. After discovering one of her girls dead at the hands of a vampire, Pam was approached by a lecherous man while walking home only to be saved by a vampire, Eric in appropriately dashing period garb. Youre not afraid, he marvels, as he finger licks the blood from the man whose heart he ripped out and gives Pam money to buy a new dress before dashing off. The memory causes her to wake in her coffin with tears in her eyes.
Elsewhere, Rev. Steve Newlin has turned into Nan 2.0, preaching peaceful coexistence between vampires and mortals. I used to think I had found the light, but now I have found it . . . in the darkness, he explains. Hes also still every bit in love with Jason as he was last week, and goes so far as to crash Jessicas house party to offer her $10,000 for Mr. Stackhouse. Let me ask you a question, Steve. Have you seen Jasons butt? she inquires, getting him to turn into a quivering mess and go up to $20,000 before flipping the switch. You are pathetic. Jason is my friend. I do not sell my friends, she says, and Steve initiates a fast-paced, drag-out, hair-pulling fight. My dads the king, she warns him. Not anymore! he declares gleefully, his scalp still in her hands. Authority Pawn Steve is every bit as maniacal as Fellowship of the Sun Steve, and he leaves Jessica in a pissed-off mood.
Speaking of the King, the time has come to meet the Guardian, played by Law and Order: SVUs Christopher Meloni in a turn reminiscentof the Godfather. The Authority itself is part fantasy creation (the building itself is like the vampire version of Harry Potters Ministry of Magic: instead of flushing yourself down to your desired location, you share a blood prick to clear through security) and part social commentary: Phase one of the interrogation is a group questioning over the loudspeaker from an anonymous individual. Bill begs for Nora and Eric to be released; the voice says noble gesture, but a lie we both know, and the lights dim. Awww, you just FUCKED US! fellow prisoner Nigel cries. Theres no waterboarding here; its bouts of harsh UV light when youre in vampire prison.
Phase two involves individual interrogations in which the prisoners are tied up to an IV of a solution containing electrolitically refined silver. Every time the answer is unsatisfactory, the IV gets turned on and the silver goes straight to the bloodstream. Chancellors Salome and Peter handle the questioning of Eric and Bill, respectively, and each tries to convince the subject that the other has come clean. At the crux of all of this is the religious foundation of vampires. The original bible the vampire bible states that before God created Adam and Eve, he created Lilith, who was a vampire. We were created in Gods image, not humans, Peter underlines, then recites Adam and Eves true purpose: And their flesh shall nourish yours, their blood shall flow within you, for as the beetle nourishes the lark, so shall human nourish vampire. The main issue at hand is the division between the vampires who want to mainstream and the fundamentalists who hold the vampire bibles word as the absolute truth.
The Guardians introduction comes by way of a religious ceremony that blesses Lilith and the Lord, first, last, eternal, from whom we were born, and shares his blood with his fellow Authority members, which, if youre sticking to current vampire pop culture references, recallTwilights Volturri and Vampire Diaries original family. Melonis Guardian is a ruthless leader, who deems a threat to mainstreaming is a threat to us. Fundamentalism is a dead end, and I wont fucking have it! Bill and Erics future seems to hang in a perilous balance, until Bill offers an exchange: their lives for the newly rediscovered Russell Edgington. Despite his declaring I feel like staking you so fucking much right now! upon learning that Bill and Eric didnt kill Russell back when they were ordered to, Guardian is intrigued. Unlike the two of you, I understand there are a great many things more important than my personal desires. A deal is struck, and the episodes last image is a bloodied, scaly Russell, coming back to life in a way not unlike Voldemort.
Werewolves and Shifters
As expected, Alcide is refusing to take on the leadership role that is now his after he killed Marcus. He thusly refuses to partake in the custom of eating the dead packmasters flesh, to which Marcus mom reminds him, What you are interested in is irrelevant. There are laws.
Marcus mom is quite intent on telling everyone whats best for them: Luna is taking care of Sam when Marcus mom shows up, begging to let her care for Emma. What happens when Emma turns? Shell need a pack. Blood is blood, she protests as Luna shoves her out, adamant that her daughter will be a shifter, not a were. Her anger extends to Sam, who tries to make her be compassionate towards Marcus moms demands. She reminds him that Luna is her charge, not his at which point he leaves, and she goes to see whats keeping Emma awake. Turns out Marcus moms request was right on cue, because theres a very cute wolf cub in pajamas staring back at Luna from the floor of Emmas bedroom.
The wrath of the lady wolf isnt finished: Jason and Andy discover an abandoned vehicle that turns out to be Debbie Pelts van, and Jason knows enough to piece together that she was Alcides girlfriend but cant work out the details past that just yet.
Humans
Terrys behavior has only gotten more erratic, in a way that seems to indicate that his PTSD is coming back with a vengeance.Arlene wakes to see him hovering above her, saying, Were all gonna die, hes coming for us, and later, at Merlottes, he shoves her across the kitchen when she interrupts a flashback. Both times, we see glimpses of Terrys frantic war memories, but nothing is clear enough to glean whats happening. When he refuses to tell her, Arlene shows up at Patricks motel room to get some answers; she doesnt have any luck, and then Terry shows up. I have kids, Patrick, and I have too much invested in this man to watch him lose his mind, you hear me? You two fix this, she orders as she leaves at their request. Turns out that missing unit member mentioned last week is alive, and Patrick and Terry must find him. Again, the attention to Terrys war past has been intriguing; I hope the payoff in finding out whats going on is worth the time its dragging out.
Meanwhile, Andy and Jason are turning into quite the romantic confidants, with Andy confessing to his work partner that Holly hasnt talked to him since last weeks awkward kid encounter. Jason tries to convince Andy that playing it cool is the best way, and that hes OK with that approach to his and Jessicas relationship. But playing it casual catches up to him when the son of a woman Jason slept with shows up at the sheriffs office and punches Jason for ruining his life. His dad is now divorcing his mom, and its all Jasons fault. Jesus, Stackhouse, have you slept with every woman in this town? Andy wonders. I dont know. Im close, I guess, Jason says sheepishly. Though hes emotionally matured significantly since season one, you cant help but recall how Jasons womanizingways conveniently gave Renee a way to frame Jason for the town murders. Somethings going to give, and it wont be something Jason can charm his way out of.
But Jason does try and improve his relations with Hoyt, who still wants nothing to do with Jason and kicks him out of his mamas house. In one of the more lighthearted moments of the episode, Maxine Fortenberry kicks Jason out of her house, pretend-screaming at him the entire way, but then whispers Thank you for breaking up Hoyt and that red-headed slut. Im gonna bake you a pie! Good to know some things never change.
Favorite Couple: Jessica and Steve.The power struggle between these two vampires with a love for the same human is two for two in spirited exchanges.
Winning Species: Again, the vampires in particular, the Authority, thanks to our finally getting an inside look at its infrastructure.
Losing Species: Humans, because even though their reduced numbers make it hard to create a solely human story line, the richness of their stories cant compare to the supes.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar