| Warning Spoilers ahoy.If you are new to the series then may I suggest you catch up with our look backs of the previous seasons. If you have seen the first episode or are just curious what all the fuss is about then read on McDuff. |
The show seems to be suggesting throughout the episode that the reasoning’s for staying are far more built round the idea of resilience and determination. Sookie despite her faults has always strove to do what is right in her eyes, her moral compass though tends to point back to the love of her life Bill. It seems odd that such a person like Sookie should be so blind when it comes to the affairs of the heart but if you were unsure this episode is the one that really tells you how clueless she really is. 
From there the melodrama comes thick and fast as we are taken through a number of encounters that show who is left to fight the Hep V band. With a force that feels somewhat undercooked we receive our salvation in the form of a diseased Eric. His appearance although shown in the show in a surprise for our resistance and Sookie especially. As always with the big Viking his entrance changes the mood of the mood of the entire place although it is tinged with sadness as we realise this is the end for Eric. His embrace with Sookie feels honest from his point of view however Sookie’s reaction does feel a little over cooked as she cannot contain her sense of loss. 
| The gravity of the losses the folks of Bon Temps have had to endure would cripple most people but still the residents stay. You have to ask yourself why? There seems to be some kind of loyalty to the area but much like the Hellmouth from Buffy the Vampire Slayer I still cannot fathom why people would stay here, the life expectancy (once the Vampires are taken out of the equation) must be well below the national average. It feels odd that dirt and building materials can have such a hold but then again I’m not sure I would want to give away my home for anything. 
First there is the matter of the death of Alcide; we open with Sookie calling the Wolf’s Dad letting him know of his son’s passing. It is an interesting scene as at the same time Jason is calling a glamoured Hoyt telling him of his mother’s passing. Of the two phone calls Jason’s is certainly more touching as you have the issue the joint positions of the horrendous news mixed with the normally clueless Deputy Stackhouse realising his friend has no memory of him. His occasional attempts to try to instigate a response are well timed and do strike a chord. 
Of course all this background is really just the starter for the main course that is the final showdown at Fangtasia. Thanks to some rather convenient background storytelling we discover that the Club was once a video shop complete with an old underground railway tunnel from the civil war days*. From there you can guess what’s coming with the battle between the infected and the non-infected it is just as stylised as the first battle of the season except now we get to see Bill and co in top form with a slightly below par Eric still able to pull out all the stops. |
I’m getting a little worried about this season with the Bill and Sookie love story seemingly back in play it seems we are supposed to forgive him for his indiscretions because he has had a blood and so soul transfusion. Obviously I cannot tell how this will end but part of me will feel betrayed if Bill and Sookie walk off into the sunset. Despite the shows flaws I have watched each season and been thoroughly entertained so even if the ending I dread does occur it will not tarnish my journey just the final destination.
| * Giving Ginger her dueThe slightly lost Barmaid has been an ever present in the show and in this episode we finally get to find out why. The way she is portrayed as a clever student desperate to learn is an almost polar opposite to her current form. Her demise was Pam’s fault but it plays out well and does give her a great leaving plot, it would have just been better if she would have been made more of in earlier series. 
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By Paul Fiander
Pictures Courtesy of Fox and HBO
Pictures Courtesy of Fox and HBO
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