True Blood by OPPYH

I LOVE TRUE BLOOD. In a way, I actually prefer it over BUFFY/ANGEL. Alan Ball actually surpasses Joss as one of my favorite writers working in the industry today. He's written one of my top ten films (AMERICAN BEAUTY) and one of my top ten TV shows (SIX FEET UNDER), so he's one of the few writer's I'm willing to follow to the ends of the earth in terms of what they write. And with a pedigree like that, you know that this isn't going to ride the coattails of an inferior product *coughtwilightcough*

The following is something I copied from my blog. It's late, so here you go.

After seeing the trifecta of BUFFY/ANGEL/FIREFLY, I am as much a Joss Whedon fan as the next guy or girl. I love his distinct characterizations, the universes he creates out of thin air, and the genre subversion and sense of humor. But he is not a perfect writer as so many people on the internet would claim he is. His stubborn atheism that hinders the worlds he created, the obvious daddy issues, his random killing off of beloved characters for shock value and the occasional overboard feminism are things that I see as major problems in the Whedonverse (“Oh, wow. You actually use the phrase Whedonverse in real life.”) And one detail that always bugged the shit out of me in BUFFY and to a lesser degree ANGEL, was the fact that an entire town was built on a Hellmouth, and yet outside of our cast members, the entire town was oblivious to the high death toll and things that go bump in the night that vastly outnumbered the humans. And I couldn’t buy the “oh they forget easily” excuse in the pilot.

TRUE BLOOD, on the other hand, bases its entire concept on the notion of vampires being out in the open and of people dealing with the fact that the stuff of legend is actually real. That I find a far more interesting and fascinating twist on the vampire mythos than the typical vampire love story that seems to have taken root. While the relationship between Sookie and Bill is a through line, it’s only a minor aspect to the far more fascinating “vampire as minority” metaphor that runs throughout the series and influences all the various sub-plots. If you need more convincing on how great the show can be, watch episode 5 “Sparks Fly Out”, where Bill is invited by Grams to speak at the local church to the town about him fighting in the Civil War and the various reactions the different townspeople have. The moment when the shell shocked soldier from Iraq comes up to Bill and hugs him because he’s finally met someone who truly knows what he’s gone through (“They don’t understand.”) was to me the moment when the show finally found it’s voice. Where it’s goal of having fantasy interacting with harsh reality finally came to fruition.

Also, while vampires may be what get’s people to tune in, it’s the human characters and their glorious contradictions that keep us coming back week after week. While some people claim that subtlety is not one of Ball’s strengths as a writer, I think what puts him far and above so many other writers is how he is able to have his characters full of contradictions and make wrong decisions that us viewers find painfully obvious not to do, and yet still have us care for them and find aspects of them that we can identify in ourselves. I just find that more interesting a direct than 11 ½ seasons of “demons as metaphor for real life struggles” that after a while can get a bit boring.

Just as an extra thing, I loved the vampire played by Stephen Root later on in the series. You would NEVER see a vampire like that on either BUFFY or ANGEL. A middle aged, overweight gay vampire who watches HEROES who manages to teach Jason about being a man. It's character's like that that make me love Alan's work even more than Joss's. I guess it helps that Alan is approaching this from an outsiders point of view. He's not a genre tv show guy like Joss or Ronald D. Moore. If you listen to the commentary track of he pilot, he talks about the rules he established for the show of things he did NOT want to do, like no opera music, no contact lenses on the vampires and no cold metallic blue lighting. And how the show is more about the terror of intimacy than about vampires. It's stuff like this and guys like him or Tim Kring on HEROES that really bring new stuff to the table.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Monday, June 1, 2009 8:01 PM

CALHOUN

Enjoyable enough.

High-larious when

Select to view spoiler:

Jason overdosed on "V" and had a huge erection that wouldnt go down

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Thursday, June 4, 2009 1:40 AM

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

Quote:
And one detail that always bugged the shit out of me in BUFFY and to a lesser degree ANGEL, was the fact that an entire town was built on a Hellmouth, and yet outside of our cast members, the entire town was oblivious to the high death toll and things that go bump in the night that vastly outnumbered the humans. And I couldn’t buy the “oh they forget easily” excuse in the pilot.

Okay, I so don't want to threadjack here, but I wanted to make a rebuttal to this. On one level, it's a bit of an inside joke - you see it more than a couple times - in that it's somewhat played down or laughed off ("Gang-related. PCP. The usual.")

At the same time, have you ever lived in a really bad neighborhood? If so, what did you tell your family and friends about it? "Oh, it's not that bad." or "Hey, the rent's cheap!" and the like. I know this from personal experience.

So even if you ARE living on a hellmouth, it's still where you're living, so you tend to rationalize and just deal with it - at least I do. You know something's wrong, but this is the life you've got, so you just try to make the best of it.

Now, having said all that, back to True Blood. I only ever saw the pilot episode when Blockbuster was giving it out as a free rental. I wasn't *hooked*, but I was definitely interested, and want to see more. While I may not necessarily agree with some of the "canon" material Alan Ball is using, I definitely applaud his bringing new ideas and concepts to the table. His vampires seem to be much more human than most - more human than us, in many cases.

I loved listening to his interview on NPR's Fresh Air, too. It peaked my interest further, and True Blood is definitely on my shopping list.

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

"You're a idiot." -AuRaptor, RWED, May 27, 2009.

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Thursday, June 4, 2009 8:23 AM

OPPYH

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
I loved listening to his interview on NPR's Fresh Air, too. It peaked my interest further, and True Blood is definitely on my shopping list.

Mike

It really is fantastic.

My second favorite show right behind "Dexter".

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Thursday, June 4, 2009 11:32 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by OPPYH:
Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
I loved listening to his interview on NPR's Fresh Air, too. It peaked my interest further, and True Blood is definitely on my shopping list.

Mike

It really is fantastic.

My second favorite show right behind "Dexter".

Yeah, it seems my "summer TV" schedule is dominated by premium-cable shows - Dexter, Weeds, The Tudors, True Blood, The Wire... Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't just pay for the damned service instead of buying the DVD sets!

Naaaaaahhhh - If I buy the DVDs, I get to watch 'em whenever I want!

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

"You're a idiot." -AuRaptor, RWED, May 27, 2009.

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Sunday, June 7, 2009 8:28 AM

CAMPHILLPAWHEDONITE1956

hey all i just got the season 1 dvd set and watched it over 2 days also. i want to see more but dont get HBO so i hve to wait for next dvd. the acting was very good, liked when Bill talked at civil war gathering at the church, and at the vamp trial as he stood up for himself about turning the girl, that went bad, was fun to see eric and ladybitchvamp unconfortible as they dumped her back to bill. i have read 2 of the stackhouse books, so i knew the show would be good. i like sam and jason and tara is real sassy and i hope to see more of her and the shifter in season 2.

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Sunday, June 14, 2009 6:54 PM

OK. Just saw the premiere for season 2. That was just freaking AWESOME. Here are just some bullet points, and of course spoilers for the premiere.

Select to view spoiler:

The body in the car was the fake voodoo priestess. And as gruesome as the hole where her heart should have been, it was the look of pure horror that sold it to me.

The entire arc with Bill and Sookie and how dark it went before getting pretty damn sexy. Yay Anna Paquin nude.

Jason is still an unrepentant moron. Not a question of if he'll bang the Fellowship of the Sun's leaders wife, but when. I'm betting if not next weeks ep, then by episode three.

Lafayette in the basement of Fangtasia chained to a Conan the Barbarian style wheel. WTF.

Maryanne and how she keeps getting more mysterious and "Holy Shit." Her verbal smackdown of Tara's mom was just great.

Sookie going through Gran's room and not knowing what to get rid of. Emotional highlight followed by her confronting Bill about him killing her pederast uncle.

Oh and the sheriff is a prize winning square dancer. Cool.

All in all, great characters, interesting plots, deepening mysteries and more sex and violence than Joss would allow on BUFFY. Can't wait for more.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Monday, June 15, 2009 10:39 AM

Target has True Blood Season One on sale for $24.99 this week. Only problem is, I haven't been able to find a store near me that has it in stock! I went to 3 different stores yesterday (when the sale started), and all were sold out. So no True Blood for me. Not yet, anyway.

:(

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Monday, June 15, 2009 1:07 PM

OPPYH

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Target has True Blood Season One on sale for $24.99 this week. Only problem is, I haven't been able to find a store near me that has it in stock! I went to 3 different stores yesterday (when the sale started), and all were sold out. So no True Blood for me. Not yet, anyway.

:(

Mike

Wal-Mart price matches if you have the ad.
I don't know if they carry it though.

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Monday, June 15, 2009 2:03 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by OPPYH:
Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Target has True Blood Season One on sale for $24.99 this week. Only problem is, I haven't been able to find a store near me that has it in stock! I went to 3 different stores yesterday (when the sale started), and all were sold out. So no True Blood for me. Not yet, anyway.

:(

Mike

Wal-Mart price matches if you have the ad.
I don't know if they carry it though.

Oooh - good to know. Unfortunately, I don't have the ad. I should've grabbed their flyer at Target.

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Tuesday, June 16, 2009 4:32 PM

MOOSE

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Target has True Blood Season One on sale for $24.99 this week. Only problem is, I haven't been able to find a store near me that has it in stock! I went to 3 different stores yesterday (when the sale started), and all were sold out. So no True Blood for me. Not yet, anyway.
:(

Can you get a raincheck for it?

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 9:36 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

Quote:
Originally posted by Moose:
Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Target has True Blood Season One on sale for $24.99 this week. Only problem is, I haven't been able to find a store near me that has it in stock! I went to 3 different stores yesterday (when the sale started), and all were sold out. So no True Blood for me. Not yet, anyway.
:(

Can you get a raincheck for it?

Most definitely. On two different occasions I got rain checks for Firefly when it was on sale but not in stock. I think they are good for 60 days.

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 9:39 AM

AVERYFINECOMPANION

I'm surprised no one mentioned how awesome the theme song is.

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 9:43 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

I recently finished watching the first season on dvd rented from Netflix, then my cable company had a free HBO preview this past weekend so I was able to DVR the second season premiere.

I do like it, but I have a few quibbles. First off, I can't tell if Stephen Moyer is channeling Elvis or whether it is Bruce Campbell doing Elvis. Secondly, I think the Sookie/Bill romance was consummated too quickly, especially how soon she relented and let him feed on her. I suppose they can't afford to dawdle with plot lines with just 12 episode seasons though.

As for any comparisons to Buffy/Angel, I don't think they are fair. Joss' creation was a definite satire, turning the usual horror tropes upside down, but mainly they were used as metaphors for real life situations. True Blood is simply a creepy, sexy good time.

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 9:49 AM

PIZMOBEACH

... fully loaded, safety off...

Quote:
Originally posted by averyfinecompanion:
I'm surprised no one mentioned how awesome the theme song is.

I think the theme song is awesome!

AND I love the opening montage that goes with it as well - the way it's cut together, the timing and the clips - creepy and sexy and funny just like the show.

The season 2 premiere was grt, everything ReginaRoadie said, especially the part about the wheel - what the eff indeed!

Scifi movie music + Firefly dialogue clips, 24 hours a day - http://www.scifiradio.com Now available on your iPhone

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 2:29 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Moose:
Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Target has True Blood Season One on sale for $24.99 this week. Only problem is, I haven't been able to find a store near me that has it in stock! I went to 3 different stores yesterday (when the sale started), and all were sold out. So no True Blood for me. Not yet, anyway.
:(

Can you get a raincheck for it?

Oh, I did.

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 2:54 PM

DEEPGIRL187

Quote:
Originally posted by averyfinecompanion:
I'm surprised no one mentioned how awesome the theme song is.

I'm actually listening to it right now.

I'm just happy

Select to view spoiler:

Lafayette survived.

I've been sitting on pins and needles for months on that one.

****************************************************

"This is my timey-wimey detector. It goes ding when there's stuff. Also, it can boil an egg at 30 paces, whether you want it to or not, actually, so I've learned to stay away from hens. It's not pretty when they blow."

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 2:59 PM

AVERYFINECOMPANION

I love it! His voice is so damn sexy.

While I just skimmed through the threads you might want to put a spoiler on that.

I love Lafayette. He's why I say "fren fries"

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Thursday, June 18, 2009 9:07 PM

RHYIANAN

I've been sitting on the fence wondering if True Blood is something that I should watch, or if I should just pass on it and enjoy the books instead. Has anyone read more than just the first two books? If so, would you still recommend the show to someone who has read all of the books and enjoyed them?

I guess what I'm asking is if the show is faithful enough to the books that I would enjoy it, yet deviates just enough to keep it interesting to those that know what is coming.

I'm a leaf on the wind

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Friday, June 19, 2009 5:25 AM

Finally got it - found it last night in stock. They had the price marked at $34.99 ("TEMPORARY Price Cut" it said). Fortunately for me, I had my rain check out and ready, so got it for $24.99.

I'm sitting down with it this weekend, so I'll be avoiding this semi-spoilery thread for a while!

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Friday, June 19, 2009 1:34 PM

That's strange. I didn't get any hints of Elvis or Bruce Campbell at all with Bill. I got just a regular Southern gentleman type whose trying his best to be human and to integrate into society but has all these different forces pulling him in different directions.

And as for consummating their relationship quickly, I didn't mind it. I just like how that scene went from comedic with Bill figuring out the right mixture of Tru Blood for Jessica and how Sookie could do what all the other vampires couldn't in actually getting her to shut up and behave to air sucked out of the room tense with Sookie asking point blank if he killed her uncle to a truly erotic scene. And the fact that Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin are an actual couple just gives it that extra dimension of voyeuristic intensity.

I love how with premium cable shows how because of their short season runs and true creative freedom that the best ones can pack so much stuff into a short amount of time so that you're never bored, whereas network tv can get really repetitive at times. Even with the metaphor rich BUFFY (which at times was heavy handed), it did get repetitious at times in that the Big Bad was always going to be taken down by the season finale, that Buffy would always end up alone one way or another, that the dynamic between the characters never really changed and that every single character has daddy issues.

And I wouldn't say that there isn't depth to TRUE BLOOD. The vampires in this series are a metaphor for minorities (a little heavy handed at times and more leaning towards the gay community, but you could fit any minority within the context), and Alan Ball said in the pilot commentary track that the series is really about the terror of intimacy. Yes he also said that after the deep, existential experience that was SIX FEET UNDER that he just wanted to cut loose and have a good time, but there is way more going on in the show under the surface.

And I see plenty of parallels between BUFFY/ANGEL and TRUE BLOOD. Both of their pilots have opening scenes that are separate from the main plot but set the tone for the show and do the "you think this guy's the vampire, but it's really the other guy" twist.

As much as I would love to see Joss Whedon do a SModcast with Kevin Smith, I'd also like to put Joss and Alan Ball in a room and see them compare notes and talk about the similarities and differences into their work. Like I think "The Body"/"Forever" is all of SIX FEET UNDER compacted into two episodes.

Also, I think "Bad Things" by Jace Everett is infinitely better than the BUFFY theme tune.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Friday, June 19, 2009 2:00 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

When I said what I did about their getting together too quickly, I wasn't talking about the second season premiere, which had them getting back together after having been separated when Bill went to the vampire council. I was talking about their first encounter back in episode six of the first season.

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Friday, June 19, 2009 5:51 PM

My bad. Sorry.

Still didn't mind it too much. With the intensity of their relationship from the beginning, it didn't bother me nearly as much.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Saturday, June 20, 2009 4:21 AM

DEEPGIRL187

Quote:
Originally posted by reginaroadie:
That's strange. I didn't get any hints of Elvis or Bruce Campbell at all with Bill. I got just a regular Southern gentleman type whose trying his best to be human and to integrate into society but has all these different forces pulling him in different directions.

Going off of that, I think what I like most about Bill is his real attempt to try and fit into a society he doesn't always understand. To me this is an improvement in comparison to the novels, where his only real point of interest was Sookie. Bill is a great deal more likable (and easier to relate to) than he ever was in the books. That being said, I wonder how faithful to the source material they're going to be later on in the series...

***********************************************

"This is my timey-wimey detector. It goes ding when there's stuff. Also, it can boil an egg at 30 paces, whether you want it to or not, actually, so I've learned to stay away from hens. It's not pretty when they blow."

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Saturday, June 20, 2009 9:24 AM

STOWEAWAY

Quote:
Originally posted by Rhyianan:
I've been sitting on the fence wondering if True Blood is something that I should watch, or if I should just pass on it and enjoy the books instead. Has anyone read more than just the first two books? If so, would you still recommend the show to someone who has read all of the books and enjoyed them?

I guess what I'm asking is if the show is faithful enough to the books that I would enjoy it, yet deviates just enough to keep it interesting to those that know what is coming.

I can't answer your question with first-hand knowledge. But several members of our Browncoats group have read the books & watched the show. Everyone agreed they enjoyed both. And at least one person said they enjoyed the show even more.
From what I understand, the show doesn't necessarily stick to the storyline of the books. But it has the approval of Charlaine Harris because it stays with the spirit of the stories.

=============================================================
Check out http://www.americasfunniesttshirts.com for hilarious shirts at a great price.

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Saturday, June 20, 2009 1:16 PM

Picked up True Blood today at Target on your recommendation. I can't wait to put it in the Blu-Ray player this evening.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Saturday, June 20, 2009 4:11 PM

Just about finished with episode 2. Boy, this is a wonderful series. I think I may be up all night.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Sunday, June 21, 2009 3:03 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by ncbrowncoat:
Just about finished with episode 2. Boy, this is a wonderful series. I think I may be up all night.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

I'm just done with Episode 2 myself. I'm *TRYING* to ration them out a bit, but I know myself too well. I'm already hooked, and I know soon I'll be doing 2 or 3 episodes a night, and all too quickly it will all be over.

But yeah, I'm lovin' it.

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Sunday, June 21, 2009 6:01 PM

Just saw tonight's episode. Will get into it later, but this ep has my new fave line from the series with Luke calling Jason a "jihad Buffy with a dick." I burst out laughing with that line.

**************************************************
"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Saturday, July 25, 2009 9:08 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by averyfinecompanion:
I'm surprised no one mentioned how awesome the theme song is.

I agree. It's sexy, but more importantly, it points out that Trueblood is all about the relationships. Plus it's a GOOD country song, which IMO is hard to find.

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Saturday, July 25, 2009 10:31 AM

Love the song. It's on my iPod.

Just finished the first season and the 2nd book. Both the books and the series are good in their own way.

The series goes in a bit different direction and expands a lot of characters and even adds a few.

The books are good, but lack a bit IMHO due to being Sookie's POV only. But they are fun and a good summer read.

And the first book does have Elvis in it. He's a vampire, a morgue attendant turned him and he's rather brain dead due to drugs. I started to LOL when he showed up.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Saturday, July 25, 2009 1:59 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by ncbrowncoat:
The books are good, but lack a bit IMHO due to being Sookie's POV only. But they are fun and a good summer read.

And the first book does have Elvis in it. He's a vampire, a morgue attendant turned him and he's rather brain dead due to drugs. I started to LOL when he showed up.

I talked to someone who said that they do a book a season, roughly, even with changes. She told me about the brain-damaged Elvis vamp, I think he was named Bubba?

I like that the series has other POVs, since Sookie's is so strong, it could be overwhelming if you're reading a lot at one time, which I'd do, addict that I am. It's good to see other character's thought processes, since they add SO much of the wonderful Louisiana color. I just love that it's set in the American south. Great idea.

I think at this point my favorite character is Lafayette. Of course I haven't seen season two yet.

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Saturday, July 25, 2009 2:48 PM

I agree, they did a wonderful job with the accents. Especially considering Stephen Moyer (Bill) is a Brit (saw him on a talk show) and Anna Paquin (Sookie) is Canadian by way of New Zealand and Alexander Skarrsgard (Eric)is from Sweden.

I love Lafayette too. Nelsan Ellis does a wonderful job with the character. He's slimy, a hustler and not a good person but you can't help liking him. A bit like Jayne huh?

And Bill is more than a bit like Mal. "A man of honor in a den of thieves" was the first thing that crossed my mind about him.

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Monday, July 27, 2009 8:07 PM

Quote:
I agree, they did a wonderful job with the accents. Especially considering Stephen Moyer (Bill) is a Brit (saw him on a talk show) and Anna Paquin (Sookie) is Canadian by way of New Zealand and Alexander Skarrsgard (Eric)is from Sweden.

I didn't know it was such an international cast. I knew something was up with Alexander Skarrsgard but I thought his odd enunciation was a character choice. Now it makes more sense. Now that I realize the diversity of the countries represented in the cast, I'm also impressed with their mastery of the accents.

I remember a young Anna Paquin and Jeff Daniels in the Canadian movie "Fly Away Home" only that was what it was called here. In Canada it was "Flying Wild." She adopts orphaned Canada geese and teaches them to migrate by flying with them in a glider, based on a true story. Always one for interesting premises, that Anna. Fun little film.

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Monday, August 3, 2009 7:21 AM

I had to bump this, this show blows me away, is anyone else still watching?

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Monday, August 3, 2009 12:19 PM

CHARLIEBZ

I am! Although, I missed last night's episode, this show is sucking me in big time.

I'm looking forward to more Eric and more Michelle Forbes - does this woman ever do anything crappy???

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Monday, August 3, 2009 1:06 PM

I won't spoil it for you, but last night's episode was truly a mind blowing experience. I can't even come close to any predictions, at this point, as the show doesn't exactly follow the books.

Consider me sucked in, too.

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Tuesday, August 4, 2009 6:57 AM

As I don't have HBO, I'll have to wait until the DVD. Any ideas when? How much of season two has happened, and how long after a season is over does one have to wait until the DVDs?

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Tuesday, August 4, 2009 7:31 AM

Season One is already available (in Blueray, also) Season Two is on preorder

You can watch and read synopses of Season One on HBO.com

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Tuesday, August 4, 2009 2:58 PM

Sunday's episode was episode 7 of season 2. I think they'll be done by the first Sunday of Sept, which is actually the 1 year anniversary of when season 1 premiered. Which for a cable series is lightning fast turnaround.

Usually the wait between seasons of HBO shows range from just a year to even longer. In the case of David Chase with THE SOPRANOS and Larry David for CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM, the deciding factor of if they wanted to go another year was completely dependent on their mood. But with TRUE BLOOD, season 1 ended in November and season 2 started in June, so there was only a seven month wait between the two seasons. Probably because TRUE BLOOD has been the first real hit show HBO has had in years. After the end of THE SOPRANOS, they were really struggling to find another hit series in light of AMC with MAD MEN and BREAKING BAD, Showtime with THE TUDORS, DEXTER, WEEDS, etc and FX with THE SHIELD, NIP/TUCK and RESCUE ME. But TRUE BLOOD averages about 4 million viewers every Sunday night and 10 million in total with repeats over the week. While those numbers would be decent for regular tv, for pay cable those are fantastic numbers. Joss would potentially kill for those numbers.

Season 3 probably won't be until next summer, but that should be long enough for people to catch up on the show.

As for the show right now, just fantastic. I can't wait to see what'll happen when Jason and Sookie finally run into each other. And I think next Sunday's ep will be the all out war episode. It'll be cool to see the show which rightfully focuses on the characters and their dynamics to just go all out in an epic clash you'd normally see in a summer blockbuster.

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"And it starts with a sentence that might last a lifetime, or it all might just go down in flames. If I let you know me, then why would you want me? Each day I don't is a shame. Each day I don't is a great shame."

Loudon Wainwright III - "Strange Weirdos" off the "Knocked Up" soundtrack

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Saturday, August 8, 2009 3:22 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Platonist:
Season One is already available (in Blueray, also) Season Two is on preorder

You can watch and read synopses of Season One on HBO.com

I've rented all of One, but where and how do you preorder Two?

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Saturday, August 8, 2009 4:14 PM