Review of Episode Three of Season Three of "True Blood

It was an intense night on True Blood, as emotions ran high and vampire politics continue to become ever more convoluted, with the additional spicy ingredient of the vicious and vampire-blood-loving werewolves. In many ways, this was the most emotionally intense episode of the show that we've seen since the first season, and a great deal of time was spent in close intimate encounters between various characters. What's more, it also allowed us to see some intimate views of Bill and his past life with Lorena which, the annoying presence of the latter notwithstanding, were some of the strongest points of the episode.

One of the things that continues to be surprising about this season is the deftness with which the writers have managed to weave together a substantial number of plot threads. After all, there are several more characters to manage than in previous seasons, but everything seems to come together nicely so that one doesn't get confused about what's going on. Of course, part of this no doubt stems from the fact that so many of the characters are filled in so completely that you cannot help but feel a great deal of involvement with them. Although this is especially true of the main characters from earlier seasons, it's equally true for some of the more minor characters, such as Jessica, who has been blessed with more screen time this season than before.

One of the most interesting aspects of this episode, however, was the continuing conflict that vampire Bill Compton feels over his continuing love for Sookie. Tormented by visions of his past life and his unfortunate last meeting with his human wife (and his deceased son, taken away by smallpox,) Bill eventually realizes that he can bring nothing but pain to Sookie, and there remains little doubt that, at least for a while, he will let her go, so that she can live her life without his interference.

As I said before, what really sets this episode of True Blood apart was the level of intimacy that was present throughout, which serves as an ideal follow-up to the previous episode (and is in marked contrast to last season, where the adrenaline, especially in the form of the maenad and the Fellowship of the Sun, never seemed to let up.) Throughout this episode, we got to see some intimate personal details about almost every character, with the result that we get some unique views into what makes them tick. Although Jason continues to be a bit of a male ditz, we nevertheless feel strongly for him as he struggles to come to terms with the fact that he is responsible for the murder of Eggs, something that still haunts him in almost every waking moment.

Finally, it is worth noting that the excellent supporting cast does a great deal to add some spice to True Blood. Although we didn't get to see that much of the dashing King of Mississippi and his petulant and catty partner, their brief appearances were, as always, enlivening and humorous. Lorena, of course, continues to elicit our hatred and yet also our admiration for her tenacity (to say nothing of her ability to withstand being almost burnt to a crisp.) All in all, it was an superb episode, and a satisfying infusion of true blood. The excitement will no doubt continue on next week's episode of True Blood.