Truly, Madly, Deadly_ The Unofficial True Blood Companion - Becca Wilcott [112]
Michelle Forbes was consistently fantastic throughout the entire season. Not one misstep, and hers was a supremely good death scene. Unlike Godric, who gave himself over to the possibility of a god and punishment if there was one, Maryann’s last words are pitiable. To see herself as merely human would have been humbling, so it wouldn’t have been out of character to expect some degree of bargaining. Then again, she had just been harpooned by a bull’s horn, so it may not have been a top priority. Even if Sophie-Anne’s convicton that Maryann is just a mortal guided by a delusional sense of purpose is still unconvincing, the idea alone of a kind of self-curated supernatural experience is incredible. To think that Maryann would be capable with only sheer force of will, of controlling the deepest urges of an entire town.
To wrap up the season by having half the town wander in a stupor, with no memory, is a leap, if only because we’ve been spoiled by writing that takes a hard look at humanity. There’s so much material to work with. Then again, Rene’s arc at the end of season 1 drew to a swift close too, so having the second half of this series finale left open to set the scene for the mysteries of season 3 is perfectly in keeping with the pace Alan Ball set in motion from the very beginning. Every episode ends with a cliffhanger that forces the audience to ask even more questions of what’s to come.
Risk accompanied by consequence is one of the most prevalent themes of the series, so it’s unclear for now how, or if, the people of Bon Temps will ever reconcile what they did to themselves and one another. But it’s, again, in perfect keeping with Hitchcock’s philosophy that “There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it.” Whereas Maryann’s death didn’t come with a huge bang, everything leading up to the moment kept us on our toes. It’s also what makes Eggs such a passionate and unlikely dissenter. After all this time, he wants to accept responsibility? It makes his death even harder to accept, because it took something so horrible to make him the man Tara could be proud of.
One obvious consequence of all the baby-making will be a baby. Money’s on Arlene and Terry, the one truly hopeful relationship that came out of Maryann’s destruction. Carrie Preston and Todd Lowe were consistent highlights this season, even though it was hard to accept their devotion to Maryann. It did give Terry a chance to play toy soldiers though, which was quite heartwarming, and amnesia is the only safe place to leave those memories.
One final disappointment is that we didn’t get to see Jason and Andy save the day. It was a good ending for Sam, however tortured. But like Lafayette being taken over by Maryann, it seemed like a writers’ device to reduce the number of characters to write for. It made sense for Tara and Eggs, less for Lafayette, but not for Andy and Jason, who had spent a good chunk of the show prepping for their big invasion.
The greatest evolution of the season, funnily enough, was our shifter, Sam. Has he finally learned how to accept his own body? (Can shifters suffer from body dysmorphic disorder?) Sam puts all his faith in Bill, essentially risking his life with no certainty that he’ll survive on the other side. Is this another allusion to Godric, who chose a peaceful death over a violent world? In this case, Sam chose a violent death in hope of a more peaceful world. The moment where he contemplates a doe, his pain and exhaustion forming in tears, is a breaking point. There’s simply no other direction for Sam to go but home. When he visits his foster parents, he truly is risen, left for dead, and back from the war. Whereas Godric died hoping for answers, Sam came back to insist on some. In season 3, we hope to get those answers too.
After Maryann’s death, Sookie sees Bill limping down the road