True Blood: “Frenzy” Lacked Luster

Was it just me, or was this penultimate Season Two True Blood episode a little bit of a disappointment? Now, don’t be mad at me. Please, put the stake down and back away. I swear I’m only a temporary defector. It’s just that, overall, this season has been so fantastic yet the build-up to Maryann’s take-down so sluggish, I just expected a little bit more excitement and a few more AHA! moments than we got. Don’t get me wrong. The writers are really on the ball in terms of the humorous aspects of the show, and there were some dramatic gems as well. But come on! The pacing during this final push really needs a little jolt. I’m picturing way more loose ends for this finale than last season’s because there’s absolutely no way everything can be resolved in the 45 minutes (Hopefully, closer to an hour.) that’s left.

QUEEN OF THE DAMNED

My first let down came with the introduction of Sophie-Ann, vampire queen of Louisiana. Evan Rachel Wood looked incredible, but I didn’t gravitate towards her character like I have to other vamps introduced in the past like Godric, Eric, Pam and Lorena. Sure she was fashionable (very Chanel chic!), and her humble abode was gorgeous and, well, not so humble. Basically, the look was there and the backdrop was there but a real character I could hold onto just wasn’t.

When Bill arrived, Sophie-Ann is sucking on the femoral artery of a beautiful lady and not very interested in the comings and goings of Bon Temps. She’s polite and chatty, and would rather sunbathe and play Yahtzee (you know she’s old if she loves that game!) than discuss Maenads. The few times I really enjoyed Wood were the scenes where she asked Bill in that sweet, honey voice of hers not to go and to play games with her, but you could tell by the look in her eyes that it wasn’t so much a question as an order.

The one thing that she does manage to offer Bill is some information on Maryann’s weakness. The conversation was completely one-sided, stilted and just odd, but I assume that was the most convenient way to answer all of our questions about how to kill someone who’s apparently immortal. In short, Maryann is waiting for her God to appear and kill her. All this is pretty stupid in my opinion, but thank her God for her stupidity because it is in this moment of sacrifice that she is weakest. Basically wait for her to make her sacrifice and believe that her God is coming, and she will let her immortal guard down both physically and metaphorically.

THE CRAZY BUNCH

While Bill is doing some reconnaissance, Sookie, Lafayette and Lettie Mae hold Tara hostage. All she wants to do is save her man, and she’s spitting venom at anyone who’s in her way, no matter how harsh. She says Lafayette’s holding her back because he’ll never find love like she has. She questions why Sookie can always act the heroine to save her man, but she can’t. And in the most devious act of all, she baits her own mother with forgiveness. Let her go, and she’d forgive her mom for all that she’d put her through. And it worked!

So Tara rushes off to save her first love in one of the stupidest moves ever on True Blood, and that’s saying a lot. Of course, I know that it’ll take Maryann 1.5 seconds before she’s got Tara back under her spell, but Tara HAS to be the hero. And as Maryann predicated, she brought her friends back with her, leading Sookie into a scary situation and Lafayette all black-eyed as well. And what is up with that big, nesting egg? It looked ominous. No baby Maryanns please!

THE TALE OF TWO RENEGADES

Our renegades are ready for battle. Jason saying, “Guys, I read a book about this. This is Armageddon. This is the oral history of the zombie war. We need weapons. Lots of ‘em.” Pretty much sets the tone of this shoddy team. Jason basically spends his time rambling about how cool it is that Sam’s a shape shifter. (I wish he hadn’t clued them in off screen because that would have been one funny scene.) But the aftermath is still hysterical. Though Jason and Andy never got along, they bond over the fact that they may be the only two people who can rescue Bon Temps. (Lord, save us all!)

LET’S MAKE A DEAL

Sam starts to realize that he has to do something, but going after Maryann with guns cocked and ready to go isn’t the best option. When Arlene’s kids find their way to mom’s place of employment, he’s the one to take care of them. (Can I get a collective AW for Sam Merlotte, the greatest guy ever? He’s being hunted by one badass creature, and he can still make these kids sandwiches.

He heads to Fangtasia to see what Eric can do. Of course, Eric will do nothing without compensation, so he offers his “future” help. Hopefully, he’ll be around. This had to be one of my favorite scenes. Pam’s completely disgusted with human children, while Eric is fascinated and, most definitely, attracted calling them tasty “teacup human.” Alexander Skarsgard, you amaze me with the fact that you could say that line with a straight face. He, then, flies off to Queen Sophie-Ann, and I get a flashback of Nathan Petrelli. Where did that power come from? And how?

Another fantastic moment is Eric’s dismissal of the ever-pissy Bill when he arrives as he fixes his wind blown hair. (As we saw earlier in the season, Eric loves his hair.) Bill threatens that if he doesn’t stay away from Sookie, he’ll tell the queen that he’s been peddling V and that shut him up pretty fast. At least for now.

STAR-CROSSED LOVERS

And I feel for our poor, star-crossed lovers. Hoyt managed to get Jessica’s fangs from out of his mother’s neck, but the damage had already been done at that point. His mama could have died, and all he can think about it how he should never have trusted Jessica to be one of those good and controlled vampires. I feel bad for her seeing as she really didn’t have anything to eat in a long time, and Hoyt’s mom really is a hateful wench, but you just can’t go snacking on your boyfriend’s family. Etiquette, ladies! He gets him mom out of there to safety, and all Jessica can do is cry blood and scream bloody murder.

WRAP IT UP

So there was a lot I loved and some things I really didn’t. The writers threw a lot at us and expected an audience, who wants to see the story wrapping up, to just be okay believing and digesting all this new information. I’m not too happy about that, especially when the plot progresses a millimeter in the process.

I loved Jason and Andy’s scenes and Sam and Eric’s. I liked that good dramatic work put in by Nelsan Ellis when he was having torture flashbacks as Lettie Mae held a gun in his face. I appreciated seeing that both Lafayette and Sookie are having dirty dreams about Eric, so she’s not really that special. But what’s the egg about? And why can some vamps fly and others can’t? Will we even see Sookie’s new power again this season? And I’m supposed to believe that some immortal beings become immortal just because they think they are? And if Tara was the one who summoned Maryann with her fake exorcism last season, why’d Maryann come? Because fake spiritual callings have to happen pretty often in the world, right? And the whole “save the town/Sam” arc is going to happen over one episode? I don’t know. That’s a lot of questions to have pop up after seeing the second to last episode of the season.

Phew! So you see, yes, I was a little peeved at the end. Alright that might be an understatement. I wanted to throw my laptop at my TV, but I love those things almost as much as I love my family so that didn’t happen. And I’m laid back. I can go with the flow. Alan Ball and crew, you’ve done well by me all season, so you better bring it on in two weeks!

Season 2, Episode 11: Frenzy (originally aired August 30, 2009)

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