On the Bookshelf

Vampires have come "out of the coffin" and are now living among us. Surviving on synthetic blood, they no longer need human blood to survive. Or so it seems...

The small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana boats a wide array of colourful locals. Meet Sookie Stackhouse, a sweet and innocent waitress who hides her powerful ability to read minds; Bill Compton, a 173-year-old vampire who's just moved back to town; Sookie's brother Jason, a ladies' man who can't seem to stay out of trouble; tough-as-nails Tara, Sookie's loyal best friend; Sam, the owner of Merlotte's who tries to keep his feelings for Sookie to himself; Lafayette, a man about town who's always cooking up a something illicit and "off the menu" and a quirky cast of characters who each hide their dark secrets in the shadows of night in this series that's like no other.

Ages ago, I said that once I had the chance to watch the season through with the commentaries then I would post my thoughts on True Blood. I finally did get the chance to do so and was glad to find that I enjoyed the show a second time through just as much as I did the first.

For those who are possibly not in the know, True Blood is based on a series of novels by Charlaine Harris called The Southern Vampire Mysteries, or sometimes simply refered to as the Sookie Stackhouse series. There are currently ten books in the series with the eleventh expected to be released later this year. Season one of True Blood follows the story of the first of these books, Dead Until Dark, where telepathic waitress Sookie (Anna Paquin) meets the vampire Bill (Stephen Moyer) and realises that she cannot hear his thoughts. The two form a romantic relationship (and interestingly enough are in fact married in real life) but Sookie comes under threat when a murderer begins to target women who have been involved with vampires.

At times the acting did need to be stronger. At one instance my mother walked in and complained about Anna Paquin's underdone reaction to something instead of complaining that I was "watching more vampire rubbish" as she normally would. Nelsan Ellis, however, is consistently fantastic in the role of Lafayette. I also really enjoyed Alexander Skarsgård as Eric.

The show is faithful enough to the books to please fans while at the same time creating original material and throwing in enough twists to keep those of us who are familiar with the books guessing. On the television screen the lives of characters who only existed in the background on the page are now fleshed out and become their own fully developed plot lines that are just as enjoyable to follow as that of Sookie and Bill. Tara, for example, now becomes an African-American and cousin to Lafayette. An entirely new twist is placed on her character and it works to the strength of the show.

Full of mystery, sex, blood, and fun True Blood is a must watch. Keep in mind that it is pretty graphic in terms of both sex and gore so make sure any little ones are out of the room before you put this one on.

I will be reviewing season two whenever the DVD happens to come out in Australia. *Sigh*

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Terra