Why "True Blood" Doesn't Suck. (Heh.)

(N.B. This was originally posted on my Twilight blog.)

If you're anything like me, you are experiencing some serious Twilight-withdrawal symptoms, what with Breaking Dawn having been read twice, Midnight Sun put on indefinite hold by Ms. Meyer, and the film still two months away. Yeah, I've got the shakes. It ain't pretty, folks.

But I heard rumblings of a new vampire show on TV, something called "True Blood." For some reason, I kept calling it "Tru Blood" in my head, which was probably why I didn't get around to seeing it right away. There's nothing I hate more than deliberate misspelling, especially in film or show titles. Inevitably, I get the dimwit in class that insists, "N'uh uh! That's not how you spell true, teacher! It's not written like that on the show!"

And so on.

Back to "True Blood." So I am flipping through the On Demand channels to see what's new, and I notice that HBO has all of the latest episodes of "True Blood" available. I am pleased that the title is spelled correctly, silly though it may be. I decide to watch the first episode, prepare to make fun of it after I hear the pseudo-twang of the actors (it takes place in Louisianna), but somewhere in between the opening and closing credits, I fall in like with it.

Don't get me wrong - it's not perfect. There's so much sex in the show, I would not feel comfortable watching it with my mom in the room, and they drop f-bombs left and right (it is on HBO), but the story is somehow compelling, and the actors are better than they have any right to be.

Anna Paquin plays Sookie Stackhouse (and every time I hear her name, I cannot help but be reminded of this Sookie). Sookie is a waitress who just happens to be able to read minds. She lives with her grandmother and slutty older brother Jason, their parents having died in a flash flood years ago. Her best friend is a young black woman named Tara who can't hold a job down because of her threadbare temper. Tara happens to have a crush on Jason, but for some reason he's not interested in her (despite the fact that he'll sleep with anything in a skirt). Rounding out the cast is Sookie's boss Sam, who has a so-obvious-it's-painful crush on her, but Sookie is not interested in any men. At least not any human men (In the second episode, we realize why she doesn't date - her ability to read minds leads to often offensive, sometimes hilarious intimations about the guys she's dating).

Enter Bill The Vampire. Yes, his name is Bill. As in Clinton. As in of Rights. As in, oh my Dog, what writers were in charge of coming up with the character names for this show?! Sookie? Bill? Seriously, people, I know there was a strike less than a year ago, but there's no excuse for "Sookie" and "Bill The Vampire."

At least Bill is of the handsome, brooding variety of vampire, not the white trash or scary-punk types shown before he arrives on the scene. Oh yeah, and there's an Ann Coulter-esque vampire who's even scarier than the scary-punk vamp. *Shudders*

So Bill the Vampire enters the diner where Sookie works and she knows instantly what he is. Why? Because she can't...read...his...mind. Dun, dun, DUN!

Of course, Sookie floats his way and begins a conversation, sparks fly, violins reach their crescendo, and I am going to end it there because I want you to watch the show, and I've just wasted a half hour writing about this show on my Twilight blog. No, I will not be making a True Blood blog. At least not yet. :D

Why should you watch "True Blood"? Because there are glimmers of Twilight in it, as in the fact that Sookie is a mind-reader (an interesting twist after reading about Edward's mind-reading ability in Midnight Sun). Because Bill (sigh) The Vampire's Heathcliff-esque brooding reminds me of Edward. Because "True Blood" reinvents the vampire myth and even throws in some clever new twists - in the world of the show, vampires have come "out of the coffin" due to the Japanese invention of "Tru Blood," synthethic blood that is sold everywhere in six-packs as if they were beer. (Check out the slick website HBO created to "market" this so-called product.) Oh yeah, and the vamps in this show have retractable fangs. No sparkling as of yet, though.

I don't know what Twi-hards will make of the show - already on YouTube there is mass hysteria abounding by fans who swear up and down that "True Blood" steals from Twilight. Whatev, dude. Stephenie Meyer didn't invent the vampire - she just created her own version of the myth. Who's to say no one else can do likewise.

To visit the HBO site for "True Blood," click here. To watch the trailer for "True Blood," click on the video below.

2 comment(s):

ElshaHawk said...

Interesting! I have mixed feeling about this, definitely NOT going to let the kids watch mommy's computer. I don't get HBO, so I'm left with Youtube and pirated copies., IF i do decide to tune in. I liked Moonlight! Where is it now?

Unknown said...

Moonlight? Hmm, never heard of that. But I'm pretty sure you can see "True Blood" on YouTube, at least most of the first episode. At least try the first episode - you might like it! But yeah, keep the kids out of the room.