Recap: True Blood 301 “Bad Blood”

Arlene: “I’m sorry you fell in love with a serial killer, all right? But honestly, who here hasn’t?”

Definitely fast-moving and fun to watch, and I wasn’t bored for a moment. In fact, there was so much going on that I almost couldn’t track it. Maybe I should watch the episode a few more times, paying close attention to a couple of scenes in particular. Was there a lot of male nudity in this episode, or what?

Seriously (or comedically, if you prefer) I’m all for non-stop action (and male nudity), but I hope the entire season isn’t this chaotic.

This episode was basically a ton of season three set-up. Tara is seriously suicidal. Arlene is pregnant, which is never good when you’ve been blacking out at orgies. Jessica played with her food and wound up a murderer. Andy and Jason were busily and rather stupidly covering up what happened to Eggs. (What a homicidal group of characters we have.) How long will Jason be able to keep his mouth shut about Eggs? He can’t keep it mouth shut about anything.

And Eric was naked. I may have mentioned that already.

I was surprised that Bill was taken by drainers, not Lorena. And he’s already gotten himself loose. He’s not out of the woods yet, though, so to speak, since there appear to be werewolves in Mississippi. What was Eric planning to do with Bill? Were his intentions violent, or was he just planning to talk to Bill about the situation with the Queen? Who is seriously broke, and probably about to get Eric into huge trouble with the Magister. I bet the Queen would throw Eric under the bus in a heartbeat, if she had one. (Either a bus or a heartbeat.) How much power does the Magister have? Is the Queen subject to his justice? Would Eric throw the Queen under the bus? Of course he would.

The blood exchange sex dreams might be a big season three theme. I have to admit that Sam’s sex dream about Bill was pretty darned funny. (“I hear the water in Arkansas is… very hard.”) How many male cast members did we see naked in this episode?

And speaking of Eric naked, the way he confronted Sookie mid-coitus and calmly carried on a conversation with her was so funny. How did she manage to keep her eyes on his face?

Bits and pieces:

— The episode began at pretty much the moment it left off, just like last season. The cast is pretty much the same, with the subtraction of Mehcad Brooks (Eggs) and Michelle Forbes (Maryann), and addition of Kristin Bauer van Straten (Pam) and Marshall Allman (Tommy Mickens).

— Several sources listed this episode’s title as “Pack of Wolves.” What’s with that?

— This is the second season opener in which Bill was attacked by drainers.

— I didn’t once think about the books. Good for you, Alan Ball. I don’t *want* to think about the books. I want the books and the series to be two separate experiences.

— Sookie hasn’t had the chance yet to get the Maryann crap out of her house. Tara is clearly not equipped to help, what with the suicide attempt and hating Sookie and all.

— Jason used the word “dogma” correctly in a sentence. That’s not like Jason. Maybe it had something to do with canine psychology. Yes, I’m kidding.

— If Pam wasn’t just putting Lafayette on, she was once a lady of the evening.

— The scene with Bill and the elderly Olivia was actually rather sweet.

— In this season’s hair report, Hoyt managed to get a haircut pretty quickly. Oddly enough, so did Eric, whose hair is even shorter this season than last.

— Six hours of sex? Are you kidding me?

— Forget vampires and werewolves. The real horror was Tara being held by her mother.

Quotes:

Andy: “Conscience off, dick on, and everything’s gonna be all right.”
Jason: “Fine.”
Andy: “Say it with me. Conscience off.”
Jason: “Conscience off.”
Andy: “Dick what?
Jason: “Dick on.”
Andy: “And everything’s…”
Jason: “Gonna be all right.”

Pam: “Now, I don’t remember telling you that lavender was my favorite color.”
Sookie: “I’m in no mood for lesbian weirdness tonight, Pam.”

Pam: (obviously faking) “Sookie, stop. Don’t. Come back.” Loved this
scene, really. I’m so glad we’re going to get more of Pam.

Sam: “Remind me never to mess with the Magnolia Chamber of Commerce.”

Lettie Mae: “I’m sorry about shooting your gun at you.”
Lafayette: “Bitch, you, me, bridge, it ain’t gonna muthafuckin happen.”

Great fun, but not terribly cohesive. Three out of four naked guys,

Billie Doux

Reviews by Billie Doux
http://www.billiedoux.com/

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