Truly, Madly, Deadly_ The Unofficial True Blood Companion - Becca Wilcott [94]
Encore: “Never Let Me Go,” performed by Katie Webster, plays during the end credits. Born in 1936, Katie Webster is widely accepted as one of the most important blues artists of her generation. A boogie-woogie pianist and regular session musician, she played with Otis Redding until his death in 1967. She found fame of her own in the ’80s when she recorded “The Swamp Boogie Queen,” with featured performances by Bonnie Raitt and Robert Cray. She was also known for her blend of swamp-pop, bayou blues, and gospel soul. “Webster can say more about the pain of betrayal with one low, sad growl and more about the joy of fighting back against cruel life with one teasing roll of her eyes, than most could write in a book,” wrote a reporter in the Boston Globe. In 1993, Webster suffered a stroke, leaving her with only partial use of her left hand and almost blind. She continued to play until she was forced to call it a day. She died in 1999 from heart failure. “Never Let Me Go” plays as a strange and voluptuous vampire approaches Bill and Sookie’s hotel room. The song talks about a couple having just one last night in each other’s embrace, knowing that the end of their relationship is inevitable. The singer urges her lover not to think of tomorrow, and to just hold her instead. In this episode, the characters give themselves over to new possibilities, relinquishing power and trust to virtual strangers in the hope that it will pay out in answers, security, and even love. In doing so they make themselves vulnerable, especially in the case of Sookie, who has found someone she can open up to about her telepathy in Barry the Bellboy. Sam flirts with Daphne, signaling a willingness to move past his feelings for Sookie. Tara is tempted to accept Eggs and Maryann as her new family. And Jason, whose actions come with the most obvious consequences, gives in to Sarah Newlin, who convinces him that his hard spiritual work deserves a reward. It’s as if each character had been working to a future they can no longer see because nothing is as it once was. So if only just for now, they’re forgetting about tomorrow to focus on the moment. Nothing seems to come without consequence, but for a few brief moments we believe as the characters do that it might be worth the risk.
Nelsan Ellis, Carrie Preston, and Alexander Skarsgård contemplate whether Rutina Wesley’s dress would fit Lafayette. (B. Henderson www.alexander-skarsgardfans.com)
2.06 ~ Hard-Hearted Hannah
Original air date: July 26, 2009; Written by: Brian Buckner; Directed by: Michael Lehmann
Sookie [to Hugo]: I don’t just hear the hateful things that people say, I hear the things that are so hateful that hateful people don’t even want to say them out loud. Don’t you worry about me, I have plenty of material to work with.
Sookie infiltrates the Fellowship of the Sun to find Godric. Bill’s past with his maker is revealed. And Jason falls further under Sarah Newlin’s influence.
The last episode closed with Bill in bed with Sookie. He called her a “girl,” and she corrected him: “woman.” This episode begins with a lady of the sanguineous night calling Eric “baby.” He tosses her aside, saying he’s over a thousand years old. He’s extremely bored. Why waste the effort after all this time if results can’t be guaranteed? Meanwhile, Sookie is still entranced by what makes Bill different — from other men, and other vampires. But will goodness (his and hers) sustain her once they know all there is about one another? Bill has already lived many lifetimes