Truly, Madly, Deadly_ The Unofficial True Blood Companion - Becca Wilcott [87]
However, yet again Sookie’s acceptance forgives Bill’s completely out-of-check anger earlier in the episode when he accused her of undermining his authority by taking Jessica to see her parents. It was a mistake, but in that moment, Sookie had every good reason to get out of the car — although leaving an enraged Bill alone with Jessica wasn’t very nice — where, of course, she gets attacked. It seems that any time Sookie decides what’s good for herself she gets attacked or, at the very least, makes herself vulnerable. The Rattrays, Rene, now this. The writers risk sending the message to young women that if they’re planning to return to their men after a fight, then best not to bother making a fuss in the first place because they’ll just get beaten, battered, or scratched. And Bill calling Sookie a child combined with the reality that she practically is one compared to his 173 years, not to mention how he’s had to feed her a few times now to keep her alive, comes dangerously close to infantilization. Sookie has grown up so much, and it’s time we should be seeing her as flawed without being reduced to an adolescent.
Now that the Greek mythology is dropping like nymphs (Daphne), Terry is starting to resemble Cassandra the prophet whose gift is also accompanied by a great deal of pain and frustration. She could see the future, but was cursed in that no one would believe a word she said, something that’s echoed in Terry’s post traumatic stress disorder. He’s seen things, and a result appears to be even more sensitive to those around him, a cross he bears with a lot of discomfort. In one version of the myth, Cassandra has a deeper understanding of animal behavior rather than an ability to see the future, a trait that would make Terry’s relationship with Sam so much more compelling. It’s like he can smell the fear on Sam when it appears he’s packing up to leave town. “Remind me never to get stuck in a foxhole with ya. Coward.” Like most prophets, Terry isn’t appreciated in his own town. And what a perfect character to inhabit this trait, a human for whom the line between good and evil is already supremely shaky.
As for Sam, his coat has lost some of its sheen. But Daphne, who got a whole lot more interesting this episode, managing to approach Sam without his detection, looks to shake things up. When we see the scratches on her back, we have to wonder how she healed. If she’d been saved by vampires, there’d be no trace of the wounds. Does the creature kill only some victims, and save others? If so, for what purpose? Also, Daphne’s likeness to Sookie of yore is striking, so it seems all but certain that Sam will give her more than a passing glance. After both Tara and Sookie rejected him, he could use some fun, and Daphne seems willing to provide it.
The scene in which Jessica and Hoyt meet for the first time is a highlight. Sometimes, it’s like the universe plops people down in front of us for all right reasons. For the first time, we feel worthy and desirable. That’s the PG-rated version, anyway. When Hoyt asks if Jessica is “hungry,” his question piques a host of possibilities while she swoons over the pumping jugular in his neck, his blood coursing to a tipping point. Earlier, Eggs told Tara he’s always felt that if he was good at something it must be a waste of time. For Hoyt (and Jessica while she was human), being nice is the thing he does best, yet it hasn’t won him any girlfriends and his mother talks down to him. He spends most of his time apologizing. But it would take a truly nice guy to see Jessica for who she is and not try to change her. It’s been inferred that Hoyt might be a virgin, so if in fact he’s been holding out for the right girl, he may have been waiting a long time, but it won’t have been a waste.
Back at the Compton compound, Jessica pops fang, a wonderful comment on how women get turned on too, and Hoyt says exactly the right thing, that it’s natural.