True Blood Episode Commentary: Dead Meat

You won’t like Eric Northman when he’s sad.

His bloody tears = your blood.

Eric, played by Alexander Skarsgård is now slightly deranged after the loss of his sister, Nora Gainesborough (Lucy Griffith). Who can blame him? After all, she was the love of his life for over three centuries.

Eric leaves the Compton Estate after a brief confrontation with Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer). He is once again on his own, but now with a vendetta.

With only two episodes left this season, this was a great “rising action” episode. Although nothing too drastic happens, the story is built well and sets up for all hell that is soon to break loose.

Although it would be great as always to see the two team up and kick-ass, at this point in Bill and Eric’s character development this season — one as a self-claiming vampire prophet and the other a vamp, virulent with vengeance, respectively — a more promising plot is promised as they go their separate ways.

Since their ultimate goal will lead both to Vamp Camp, the fans are likely to see what they have waited for — a reign of carnage on the camp by Eric and Bill.

At the camp, Sarah Newlin (Anna Camp) is ruthless as ever. The blonde little monster that Camp so vivaciously plays is more vicious in this episode than the audience have ever witnessed before. Nevertheless, for every fan of the show that had ever wanted to see Sarah get what’s coming to her, they are sure to get a glimpse of the satisfaction they have long awaited.

As situations become more dangerous at Vamp Camp, a little posse of girls have formed in Gen. Pop. 1 in the episode. Pam De Beaufort (Kristin Bauer van Straten), Tara Thornton (Rutina Wesley), Jessica Hamby (Deborah Ann Woll) and Willa Burell (Amelia Rose Blaire) all unite under the whole “don’t drink the cool-aid” banner — or in this case, the True Blood. Bill’s vision unfolds as the girls find themselves closer to “meeting the sun.”

The interest of watching Sookie, the “vampire-magnet,” hook up and get into a new mess with another supernatural-being has dwindled dramatically over the past season. Although that is one of the main attractions or perks of the show, too much of a good thing has surely worn itself out.

The new fairy on fairy-vamp (literally — if you’ve watched the last two episodes) love story that has bloomed has gotten tiring, if not irritating. Although Sookie’s self-reflection in this episode was one of the more appealing parts of her character in a long time, someone needs to tell the creators, “Hey, this is getting redundant.”

At this rate, the show will probably have to end because they will run out of new “kinds” for Sookie to sleep with. What’s next for her? A ghost? A genie? Maybe she’ll be a zombie-magnet next.

As usual, Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten) and Andy Belllefleur (Chris Bauer) upheld the lighter mood and at times the more humorous aspects of the episode. Through solid delivery of quirky and cute lines with in that awkward child-like fashion, the two keeps a balance against the violence and sex.

One of the best part of the episode was the brief heart to heart between Alcide Herveaux (Joe Manganiello) and Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell) over a few drinks. A little detail in their conversation reveals a shimmer of hope after all the recent chaos.

Director Michael Lehmann sheds light on two things for the fans in Episode 8 — first off, at the end of this, Eric and Bill are sure to leave behind a trail of “dead meat” in the coming episodes; secondly, sometime, perhaps in the next thousand years, Eric might actually make a good father.