Thursday, September 18, 2008

TV Revue: True Blood

With the fall comes a new TV season. Along with some returning favorites (Heroes returns next week! Pushing Daisies comes back in October!!) there are a couple new shows that I'm excited about. The amazing Joss Whedon has a new show (Dollhouse) that starts in January, and HBO has a vampire drama called True Blood.

"True Blood" is based on a series of books by Charlaine Harris (the first one is called Dead Until Dark) and takes place in a world where everyone knows that vampires exist. The vampires have revealed themselves to the world, and now the humans need to deal with the supernatural creatures in their midst. The ethical and political issues that arise (should vampires have rights? Can they be put on trial? Can they be baptized?) are all part of the background. Oh, and vampires aren't supposed to be dangerous, thanks to the invention of synthetic blood that allows the vampires to survive without biting people. Whether they actually are dangerous or not is another story. "True Blood" is set in a small town in Louisiana called Bon Temps, and follows the adventures of a telepathic barmaid named Sookie Stackhouse. Sookie has always been able to read people's minds, and she's always hated it. One night, a vampire walks into the bar, and Sookie discovers that she can't hear his thoughts at all. She saves his life; he returns the favor. I don't want to go into the plot anymore, because the series is staying pretty true to the books, so I know what's going to happen for at least the rest of the season.

Pros:
-Original concept (set in Louisiana, in a world where vampires are not a secret)
-Terrific acting
-HBO stands behind their shows, unlike some networks (coughCBScough)

Cons:
-The vampires' fangs are too close together. They look like Bunnicula.
-Softcore porn scenes. Probably par for the course on HBO, but I think the show would be better off without it.

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