Truly, Madly, Deadly_ The Unofficial True Blood Companion - Becca Wilcott [92]
In fact, most of the colorful traits of our most treasured characters have been muted, or mutated. We wouldn’t expect Lafayette to bounce back quickly from what he’s been through, but he’s infused with Eric’s blood. Sookie waxed poetic about sausage after she’d gotten a taste of Bill. Showing the effects of Eric on Lafayette would have been both organic to the storyline and a forgivable way to help Lafayette move past his hostage experience, knowing that at any moment Eric can haunt Lafayette like one of Terry’s insurgents.
Eric has no choice but to stay on his best behavior or Sookie won’t help him find Godric. We know now that Godric is his maker, but we hope his agreeability (if that’s what we can call it) won’t come at the sacrifice of never seeing him tear a human limb-from-limb again, a completely shock-and-awe spectacle. In his human life, he was clearly a hero, a lover of food, wine, and women. As a vampire, he’s offered more of life, but he’s physically incapable of savoring it. He’s a businessman but he appears to be going gooey for Sookie. He wanted to feed her when she needed healing after her attack. And he’s got his eye on her via Lafayette. But if Sookie isn’t with Bill, it would be nice to see her on her own. Eric and Sookie are far more interesting right now as sparring mates. To add another vampire-human union into the mix (other than Jessica and Hoyt, who are adorable) would be to turn every vehicle in a race film into a hybrid, a wise choice for the environment but you can’t go off-roading in an electric car. Leave our bad boys alone for a bit.
Sam has found his Alpha male, and a playmate! No more whiny puppy! Part of Sam’s lonesomeness stems from the fact that he’s never been able to ask anyone about their shifting experience. Acceptance is nice, but it’s not the same as connecting with someone you don’t have to explain yourself to. For every gay or lesbian who comes out of the closet, there are as many stories of what it feels like to think they are “the only one” until they meet someone else who’s like them. Once that euphoria subsides, we’re all just people again, no more or less the same as Bill and Eric. But that initial contact confirms everything you’d hoped for up until that moment: that you’re normal.
Sookie experiences the same liberation with Barry the Bellboy, but comes up against a roadblock when Barry doesn’t want anything to do with her. It’s like seeing someone in a gay bar, then having them deny the whole thing the next day. Sookie says they need to stay together. Do we come out for ourselves, or for others? Vampires coming out of the coffin has shown there’s no certainty of safety in numbers. But without visibility progress can’t be made. The writers continue to find convincing and interesting ways to interweave these politics into the storylines.
Jessica and Jason remain two of the only characters to evolve in interesting ways alongside their storylines. While the vamps and humans decide between annihilating one another a little or a lot, it’s Jessica’s and Jason’s subtle expressions of joy and hesitation that are the most revolutionary. Their sexuality is innocent — Jessica as a virgin, and Jason as a born-again virgin. Jason’s leadership camp, in particular, has brought out the best his character has to offer: heart, brawn, humor, and a child-like sense of wonder. When Steve Newlin shows him the church’s weapons stockpile, we can see Jason struggling between the implications of the church endorsing violence and the excitement of a young boy on Christmas morning.
As for our bad girls, let’s see Maryann’s cards on the table. Even her exotic spreads are starting to pale. She’s consumed every saucy bit of Tara, replacing her with a quivering mess of gelatin. Sitting outside Merlotte’s, Maryann