Recap 5.2 True Blood: Authority Always Wins

“Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Sanguinista movement?”

Puppy werewolf in jammies! Sooo cute!

But Lord and Lilith, the original vampires, hidden behind doors? The council itself? The child vampire? Someone has been reading a whole lot of Anne Rice. Doesn’t mean it won’t be fun. But it did mean that there was this uncomfortable feeling of familiarity for me when I was expecting something more original. At least the Vampire Authority Council was chock full of good character actors. I was especially happy to see Christopher Heyerdahl, who turns up in all my favorite shows, each time with a different accent. I’m not a fan of Christopher Meloni as boss vamp (whatever he’s in that has made him a star, I don’t watch it) and to be honest, he didn’t seem all that vampire-like. Not yet, anyway. We shall see.

I did like the idea of a vampire Bible (the Original Testament) and the communion scene. If their testament said Adam and Eve were created to feed vampires, though, then isn’t mainstreaming antithetical to the holy book that the Authority reveres? It doesn’t make sense that they’ve prioritized mainstreaming to the point of executing any vampire who strays. Oh, well. Maybe it’ll make more sense as the season progresses.

We finally got a glimpse of Russell, who is running through victims and still not looking his best. I’m just happy he’s back. And I’m assuming he’s going to be the poster child of the Sanguinista movement, the vamps who are anti-mainstreaming? I’m also enjoying Steve Newlin as a gay vampire so very, very much. Especially his scenes with Jessica. Steve trying to buy Jason from Jessica was way funny. I also thought it was interesting that Steve knew something about what was going on in New Orleans. Somebody we haven’t seen let Russell out, and somebody is feeding him. Is it Steve? Too obvious?

Gee. Do you think Tara may be having adjustment issues? I wonder if it’s just too late for me to truly like Tara again. At least I can definitely say that this might be the most interesting thing they’ve done with her character, and I want her to figure out how to handle it, mostly for Lafayette’s sake.

I am definitely enjoying Bill and Eric as best buds, and I’m glad Authority wasn’t
able to turn them against each other, even with ultraviolet and silver IV torture. (The IV was reminiscent of lethal injection, which I’m sure was deliberate.) Bill was actually acting like a king should, taking responsibility for everything (Eric looked shocked). His final Russell Edgington gambit is obviously what is going to get them out of there. I think.

Also really loved the Pam flashbacks. 1905 San Francisco! Even though they were so not what we got about Pam’s past in the books, seeing Pam as a human and meeting Eric for the first time (when he saved her from the local Jack the Ripper, no less) was great fun with period costumes. That red dress of hers was something special, and I’m not really into clothes.

And Alcide continued to be cool. I’m actually liking him more as the series progresses, and I was never a fan of book Alcide. He’d make a great packmaster. But Grandma Martha creeps me the heck out. She wants to see Emma? Where was she when her son Marcus was terrorizing his family? And Luna really ticked me off by dumping Sam, right after he went off to endure torture and die for her and her daughter. Bad Luna, no biscuit. Especially since Sam turned out to be correct. Emma’s a puppy werewolf. Sooooo cute!

Bits and pieces:

— Absolutely loved the “Stake House” with the anti-vampire weapons. I especially loved the silver nail polish.

— What ancient language was the script on the wall? Who was in the painting?

— Why didn’t the Authority prisoners get under their beds to shield themselves from the UV rays?

— Andy found Debbie Pelt’s car. Not good. But he managed to resist the V. Very good. Maybe Holly is good for him. Jason obviously is.

— Hoyt moved back in with Mama. His attitude has adjusted radically, though. And Maxine was so thrilled that Jason took Jessica away from Hoyt that she was ready to bake Jason a pie.

— I don’t know what’s going on with Terry and the veteran/fire subplot, and I still don’t care. Although I like Arlene’s loyalty to Terry, and her determination to figure out what was going on.

Quotes:

Lafayette: “Do something!”
Pam: “I am. I’m laughing.”

Jason: “That’s getting to eat the pie without paying for the cow. Win win.”

Steve: (on camera) “I’m here to tell ya, Jesus loves vampires.”

Eric: “A lady should be more careful.”
Pam: “If I meet a lady, I’ll let her know.”

Salome: “It’s wonderful to be a vampire, isn’t it?”
Eric: “Generally, yes. Right now? Not so much.”

Girl: “Can I say, before you became a vampire, you were a massive dick.”
Steve: “I know!”

I certainly enjoyed it, although a couple of times I felt like there was too much going on (a common reaction I have to True Blood). Three out of four bottles of silver nail polish,

Billie

(Billie Doux and her contributing writers review science fiction, fantasy and cult television shows at BillieDoux.com.)