In the aftermath of last episode‘s final showdown with the H-vamps at Fangtasia, Eric continues his quest to destroy Sarah Newlin before meeting his own death. He releases Willa and spurns Ginger to get what he wants, but will the Yokahoma Corporation get to her before our favorite Viking? Hopefully the answer, and my thoughts on “Lost Cause,” after the jump.
Post Blood Work
The big news this week is that one member of the “True Blood” cast won’t be heading directly to the unemployment line when this is over. Our dear red headed Jessica AKA Deborah Ann Woll has just been cast as Karen Page, Matt Murdock’s doomed (aren’t they all?) girlfriend in the upcoming Netflix series “Daredevil.”
Speaking of other live action Marvel Comics affiliated with “True Blood,” Sookie Stackhouse, I mean Anna Paquin, should have her Rogue outtakes put back in for the DVD/Blu-Ray release of X-Men: Days of Future Past. And maybe, just maybe Rogue will be asked back for X-Men: Apocalypse whenever that starts shooting. No more “True Blood” does mean no more scheduling conflicts.
It’s My Party and I’ll Cry If I Want To
Remember, just like in the last episode where strands of what made “True Blood” good back in the beginning started to sneak in little by little? This episode starts early with an exceedingly likable and smart Lafayette. He comes to Sookie’s side to comfort her after the Fangtasia fight, and Alcide’s death… and throws a party… for the whole town.
As is Sookie’s place, she is ever the party pooper. A house full of friends, food for all, party music, and she wants to be sad and do Leslie Gore. Everybody is having fun, except for poopy Sookie, and Bill, who inexplicably has a Civil War flashback. Sookie must be contagious, because first Alcide’s father, then Tara’s mother follow suit as wet tags.
I Like Her
Before being released, Willa gave up a juicy detail about Sarah Newlin. She has a vampire sister in Dallas, which is the next stop on Eric and Pam’s revenge tour. The sister, hep-v infected Amber, wants a piece of Sarah too, and joins the cause. In a throwaway piece of dialogue where Pam says she likes her, we get a taste if why we liked Pam in the first place.
As Eric and Pam prepare to attend a fancy party the parade continues in showing us why we loved these characters seasons ago. The smartass remarks, the subtle caring, and what is shown through simple facial expressions. We know Alexander Skarsgard is good, but I think, in recent seasons, Kristin Bauer van Straten has become a parody of Pam, and I’ve forgotten how good she really is. She’s flying colors here, and deserves props.
As the V-World Turns
In the midst of the Sookie’s sad/mad/glad party, a tender interlude manifests. Andy gets it into his head to ask Holly to marry him. She says yes of course. Sookie and Arlene have a heart to heart about losing loved ones, admittedly a bit creepier on Arlene’s side. Arlene and Keith, the vampire who saved her last time flirt like teenagers.
And Lafayette and James take a plunge, as if we didn’t see that coming four episodes back. Jessica, of course, catches them in the carnal act. Jessica slides into Jason’s arms after some overwrought (even for “True Blood”) trauma. What will Violet think? This is all very soap opera, and bizarrely surreal. Yes, it’s true, “True Blood” has gone so far over the top that even the most mundane soap opera subplots seem lame.
Return to Oz
The alternate title of this episode is “Return to Oz,” and symbolized by the nostalgia for the better earlier seasons it makes quite a bit of sense. It is a return to normalcy for Bon Temps and its people, an epilogue to worldwide weirdness. We see a nice party with normal people getting on with their lives for good or bad. And, more importantly, it’s a return to normalcy for the Bill and Sookie relationship. Things are almost status quo.
And it should be remembered, as this episode reaches its final moments, that status quo for “True Blood” is chaos. After Tara’s momma stabs Willa (she gets better, Willa, that is), Sam’s girlfriend Nicole loses it and sets the houseful of partiers straight – that this ain’t normal, and they allll crazy. Yeah, welcome back to Oz…
Until next week, we are left with some very interesting questions to ponder. Will Jessica be leaving for “Daredevil” sooner than we thought? Who’s going to help Sookie clean up after that party? And what kind of a world is it where people fear the Yakuza more than supernatural vampire predators? And then there’s those last few seconds…
#TrueToTheEnd
