Given the recent discussions here on Werewolves.com and the fact that True Blood is returning tonight (June 10), I thought we’d have a real chat about HBO’s hit show. There are a whole lot of opinions out there on True Blood and they range from “YAY SEX! SEX SEX SEX BOOBS SEX WOOOO!” to “Bleh! It’s all sex!” There are many other thoughts as well and I am asking you to share yours. What do you think of True Blood? Do you love it, hate it or do you have mixed feelings?
I am one of those people with mixed feelings. True Blood is like that ex you can’t let go, they fuck up and instead of saying goodbye you cling on to those happy moments and hope that they won’t disappoint you again. One moment I absolutely love True Blood and the next I despise it. It totally has its pros and cons.
Its cons include a shit ton of totally unnecessary and pointless characters. Every time you get used to the cast, they throw in another newbie to an already crowded sea of one-dimensional characters. And what do they do with all of these characters? They create a storyline for EVERY SINGLE ONE! Ugh! That’s my big issue with True Blood – the story. They need to focus on one main plot line instead of a couple dozen random ones. Take Season 3 for example, did that even have a main plot? Did anything move forward in that season? No. It sucked. If the show cut down on the horrible subplots and had a real direction I would be much happier.
Also, not only do I hate the random plot lines, but what they often entitle make them even worse. I have absolutely NO desire to watch horrific rape scenes or creepy incest scenes. That actually forced me to stop watching the show for a while, I hated it SO much.
A pro and con in one are the sex scenes. I love me some steamy sex scenes, I am all for sexy times. But, there’s a time and place for it. There are episodes of True Blood that have more sex than story and that’s just ridiculous. There are also those pointless sex scenes that True Blood throws in just to get a reaction, just to be taboo. It’s like “Hey! Look at me look at me look at me!” I’d rather they put more effort into a solid story rather than shock value.
Something I love about the show is the base story – the fact that vampires are known to the world and that we have all of these other beasties out there. I love that general idea right there. I just wish HBO wouldn’t muddy it. There are moments here and there when the show is brilliant, the story is enthralling and the characters are entertaining. We need more of those moments and less of the duds.
I have a lot of issue with True Blood, but I continue to desperately cling onto the hope that it will improve and that it won’t disappoint me again. It has the potential to be all kinds of awesome.
What are your thoughts on True Blood?
– Moonlight
About the Author
Moonlight (aka Amanda) loves to write about, read about and learn about everything pertaining to werewolves and other supernatural beasties. She writes for top genre sites like Vampires.com and Werewolves.com. You will most likely find her huddled over a book of folklore with coffee in hand. Touch her coffee and you may lose a limb. You can stalk her via her Twitter.
My problem with True Blood is that while it disses Twilight (a pro, in my book) it does the same crap (but with less romance, another pro): sissy sex-object vamps and prissy werewolves. It’s just a slightly more grown-up serialized Twilight.
@Rhio2K – I sort of agree, but to quote Extra Credits…
“Blood, Guts, Drugs, and Nudity, for that matter, do not equal Maturity…When they’re used to convey meaning, or to shock us into a different understanding of what’s going on, Violence, Drugs, and Sexuality are all powerful tools in the writer’s belt. But, simply including them gratuitously, or for their own sake, doesn’t automatically make something mature.”
HBO is a paid-for channel, and most of what ends up on there, in my opinion, is soft-core porn, with few exceptions like Breaking Bad. True Blood uses that quite a bit, and more often the further into the series you go, but often without any reason other than, “You paid for it. You get it.” So, right there, the show doesn’t interest me.
Then, take what Moonlight said about the incest/rape scenes. If you saw that on daytime TV, like CSI or Grimm, it was hinted at. In True Blood, you see it in more detail. Why? Does it add anything? No. It’s just to shock the watchers, and nothing more. At least I could say that if they didn’t linger in the scenes. Plus, as any writer/filmmaker will tell you, try to say more with less. Don’t shock your viewers unless you have a purpose.
I did try and watch a few episodes long before, but the whole series bores me. Most of the characters are outright unlikeable, and that doesn’t make a good show; certainly the werewolves in this regard.
Ultra serious shows like 24 I can handle because the characters are fun to watch change over time, and you actually feel tension as you watch the show. Here? Sometimes, I want to wipe characters from the show entirely and switch them out with characters I come up with in my own head. Never a good sign.
Anyway, we’ll see where things go from here, but this show isn’t one I’d recommend to anyone else.
It takes a lot to put me off, I’m not saying that’s a good thing. It’s just what it is. As such nothing True Blood has ever done has been so shocking as to make me want to stop watching. But it certainly has caused an unflattering number of eyerolls and generated increasing levels of indifference in recent seasons. For me Moonlight hit the nail on the head complaining about the sprawling cast and countless B-plots. Throw in some “are you really doing this HBO?” moments and you know you’ve got a problem. I was groaning over the introduction of fairies (their supernatural quota already makes the place too much like fairytale land), but was willing to cut them a break when said fairies turned out to a pack of creepy bastards. And then they completely wasted what little they had gained with me with the most insipid witchcraft storyline I’ve ever had the misfortune to watch. Fie on you True Blood!
Like you Moonlight I was underwhelmed by season 3, but I gave it the benefit of the doubt and watched season 4. I think I’m finally ready to say the amount of things I enjoy about the show has gotten to be so grossly out weighed by indifference and irritation that I’m not going to watch anymore. At least not live. Maybe if at the end season 5 I’ve heard good things I’ll give it another shot.
I’ll sum it up with a lyric:
“Blood and guts and boobs and butts and I just wanna make your head explode”
True Blood is smart trash. I love all the sex scenes and the gory parts (and I say that as someone who generally hates gore) but the best part of the show is the character development. I really like all of the characters, even Sookie and *even Tara*, who everyone else seems to hate. No matter what craziness is happening in the show, the characters feel real and relatable. They’re fun people to watch. Does the show need all the blood and sex. Honestly, no, it doesn’t. But, in this case, it’s a fun extra and I don’t think they go too-too far with the nastiness.
However, one thing I should point out is that the werewolves are boring in general. Sometimes they turn into wolves for a little bit but that part doesn’t seem special. They’re just people who turn into doggies for a bit and then change back after five minutes with no repercussions or fatigue. The full-on shapeshifter, Sam, seems to be more interesting as far as magical creatures go, thus making the other werewolves dull in comparison.
On thing I will absolutely say is that True Blood the TV show is far superior to the insipid writing Charlane Harris gives to the source of TB, the Southern Vampire Mysteries. I gave up on the first novel about 30 pages in and, reading another short from her, I wanted to tear my hair out all through reading it. It’s almost sad that such bad books have become such good–albeit trashy–TV.