HBO is proving its commitment to raising the bar of quality television shows once again with its new series True Blood. Now, that’s not because this show is all that good. It’s not really. We aren’t looking at the next Sopranos here, and not just because it isn’t likely to become the next water cooler “must know.”
It is, however, a show with pushing NC-17 sex scenes, by the creator of Six Feet Under, based on Charlaine Harris’ novels, that might just have something to say at some point. None of that necessarily makes this show a worthwhile effort, but it wasn’t going to get made by anyone else, and I’m willing to listen to even the mediocre efforts of those who are trying to do something. Then again, the show isn’t all that bad either. It’s only two shows in, and it’s good enough that I’m going to stick around for awhile.
Anna Paquin stars as, naturally, Sookie Stackhouse, a waitress in a dive bar apparently somewhere amongst the swamps of Louisiana. Sookie, in order to put some spin on things, can read people’s minds, and has some degree of control over it. The tale gets rolling when a vampire comes in one night, and eventually winds up being rescued by Sookie. In our vampiric realm here, vampires are “out,” and even fighting for equal rights, now that some pseudo-blood is being manufactured which can sustain them sans-maxillary assault. The actual nature of the vampires in this world is not completely clear, though they do have retractable fangs, drink blood, and do not react well to silver.
Our main vampire is Bill Compton, and yes, Sookie mocks the fact that he is “Vampire Bill.” It is probably not far wrong to say that the main story is that of Sookie and Bill, and their potential relationship, wherever that may lead. But, even after only two episodes there are countless angles opening, and a variety of supporting characters lending their perspectives to our view of whatever world we may be watching.
We can expect good things from series creator Alan Ball, who also gave us Six Feet Under. It’s a legitimate expectation, because whether you love or hate Six Feet Under, it was a whole new kind of show. It didn’t really have a cubbyhole it fit in, and it talked about a variety of issues in ways no one else dared. To some degree we have the same game going on here. It has sex, sure, but it doesn’t just have it there on titillating and/or unnerving display. It has it on such display, but it doesn’t just have it. It’s talking about it.
What does this sex, in this situation, really mean, and if it means that, what does that mean to you in the real world? It may sound like putting a good spin on getting to see people rather naked, but the show has a lot of ground it wants to cover, and the general idea that people have sex is not its main concern. It just sort of turns out that people do, in fact, have sex.
There are potentially (and remember I’m projecting off only two episodes) a lot of interesting discussions this show seems to want to have. What are relationships really? Is there even any real possibility of equality between two people in a relationship? Aren’t people actually such a conglomeration of unrelated qualities and abilities that any one person is too unique to be thought of as truly “equal” to any other person… much less everyone equal with everyone else? What is “justice” really, when you talk about masses of individuals who are grouped according to some trait? And, what is the idea of justice when I could rip your head off without the slightest effort? Do I care what you think justice is? Do I only care because a bunch of you might get together and rip my head off?
Or, I think too much, and there’s just a bunch of cool vampires and hot chicks in the dark, sultry bayou who get at least semi-naked with some regularity.
Hard to make that call… yet.
Here’s a trailer… it talks about sex.
Are You Screening?
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About Marc Eastman
Marc Eastman is the owner and operator of Are You Screening? and has been writing film reviews for over a decade, and several branches of the internet's film review world have seen his name. His reviews have brought him personal praise from the director of a major motion picture, and have been used as required reading in a course at a major University. These priceless rewards, along with just bags of cash, keep him from straying from freelance writing. He is also a member of The Broadcast Film Critics Association and The Broadcast Television Journalists Association.
[...] feed for updates on this topic. // It’s no surprise that I’m a pretty big fan of True Blood, even if I consider myself a fan in rather an odd sense. Early on I was a huge supporter, but as [...]