Comments on: “True Blood” Sucker Punch: Season 3, Ep. 6

By: Alf

Alf — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:52:51 +0000

Is my obsession, I just adore Lorena, or did she says to Bill “Sookie me!”
That says it all.

By: April

April — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:12:25 +0000

Mark, I agree with your take on Lorena – remember she is the one who has said to Bill on more than one occasion that Vampire’s only hurt humans and that Bill needed to stay away from Sookie (and his wife in that flashback). It did not seem to be out of anger – it seemed to me she was recalling something from her own past. I think she envies Bill for his ability and desire to keep his human side because something happened to her that forced it out of her. This would explain her reaction when he made the comment about how he wishes he could have seen the “light” in her eyes before she was turned. Why would a comment like that affect her if she were a purely evil monster?

By: torpedama

torpedama — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:56:37 +0000

@ Gridou: I think Bill has never really embraced that dark side as Lorena (and the other vampires) did. I think his behavior during the first half of this season was more of a desperate attempt to protect Sookie by keeping her away of all the pain (both physical and emotional) that he knows the vampires can inflict her…

By: kaspi

kaspi — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 18:53:49 +0000

In reading various recaps and talking to friends, I know that a lot of people have been put off by the multitude of story lines and characters but I knew to trust Ball and company. Boy howdy has it been worth it. True Blood is one of those great shows where you can be completely shallow and enjoy the sex and violence yet also have wonderful conversations like the ones here. I’m with Fran, after reading Mark’s observations and everyone’s comments, I need to see the episode again.

By: Mark Blankenship

Mark Blankenship — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 18:11:32 +0000

Hi Gridou… thanks for joining the conversation and for the kind words!

Michael… lovely analysis. As a Southerner (but you know that), a lot of what you said resonates with me. And I was wrestling with how to incorporate the mention of the slave quarters into my analysis. Your take on it makes a lot of sense.

And I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree about Lorena. To me, her desire to prevail comes across as a defense against centuries of abuse. I still believe that somewhere, she still has a small spark of desire to be like Bill… to keep the human part of herself alive. But hey: More power to the series for giving us so many options for interpretation.

By: Gridou

Gridou — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 17:31:54 +0000

First time I read your blog and I have to say : I’m quiet impressed ! I don’t know about the southern culture a reader was referring to (I’m a French living in France so…) but I know for sure that this is a great analyse of last week show ! I especially like the part where you talk about Lorena. I really, really don’t like her but watching the show I feel so sad for her. She’s so damaged. Bill’ sentences are so terrible for her.
He is actually the one I can’t figure out in this season. How can you go from goodness to darkness to goodness again the way he does. Very strange and I don’t think it will end very well for him and Sookie.
All others stories are great too, especially the one with Eric. How will this end end ?

By: cinders23

cinders23 — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 15:17:03 +0000

Michael, good call on the southern thing. I was a “Yankee” in a small town in South Carolina for 2 years and I felt like a fish out of water. There is no way to describe southern culture unless you live it. You are correct, this episode is covered in “South”. It’s been 3 days & I can’t stop thinking about all that transpired Sunday night. So many strings to tie up, and I don’t think it will be in a pretty, little package!

By: Michael

Michael — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 12:18:28 +0000

If this note seems a little heavy, blame a powerfully disturbing episode. Part of what fascinated me about this dark, dark episode was also how deeply Southern the show is feeling to me now (remembering that Alan Ball is from the Marietta suburb of Atlanta): this episode was a fantasy re-imagining of so many strands of current Southern culture, including the undertow of meth and of dog-fighting (now made newly strange and horrible through horror/fantasy), the unquestioned presence of weapons in homes, the aristocratic (and gay-aristocratic at that) mansions where inconceivable energy has gone into the accumulation of antiques (in a culture so determined to forget or rewrite its past), the easy masculine objectifying and controlling of a beautiful black woman, the basic conviction that one is part of a “master race,” with all the accompanying cold contempt for others, the pettiness of disempowerment where it feels ridiculously important how the peas are prepared or which waitress gets tips, the cluelessness and aimlessness of the law in the face of all this, and above all the haunting presence of slave quarters (never mentioned on the show before, I believe), the marker of what really distinguishes the region, where Bill and Lorena’s opposed allegiances to human sympathy and to vampire cruelty are played out as forms of enslavement. It’s a culture deeply wounded by its own past, its own historic contempt for human equality, and that legacy of inequality spins itself out now in fantastic, troubled ways that give great material to a Gothic imagination. This episode (with its title reflecting the blues, the music of the slave inheritance) seemed deeply immersed in the way Southerners–especially, it must be said, white Southerners–consciously or unconsciously play out the violent inequality of their past. (By the way, Mark, Lorena may be pitiable in the misery of her submission to the vampire values and culture that will never reward her, and her love for the vampire who by definition will hate her for these defining values–but to say that she wants to be good? Hardly. She wants to prevail, untroubled by conscience or opposition, in the vampire culture–and she wants Bill to affirm that choice by joining her.) Fantasy has roots in real experience–and this was disturbingly resonant.

By: Fran

Fran — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 03:21:11 +0000

I need to watch that episode again. What did we do before DVRs? When the preview of next week’s episode aired at the end of this week’s, I was (I think) yelling “ALL of THAT is happening next week????” I will pass out. It is not normal to like a show this much.

I wonder if Crystal and her clan are wrapped up not only in meth, but also the dog fighting that Sam’s family is into. That might bring some storylines together in a satisfactory way.

By: Gonzalo

Gonzalo — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 22:59:08 +0000

Damn right. Between last episode and this one, the show is on a roll. I thought Tara stole the episode (character redeemed!), but you’re right that Lorena’s plight was full of pathos (character redeemed #2!).

A few other moments that I really enjoyed:
- Between the cute awkwardness of Jesus asking Lafayette for a kiss, and then the super-sexy making out that happened, I’m totally on board with this relationship. And I like that they brought Lafayette’s drug-dealing down to reality by having Jesus be adamantly against it (cause I’m pretty sure “take me to my car” is exactly how I’d react in real life).
- Jessica and Arlene make a great comic team (”Please don’t kill me. I’m pregnant. That probably just makes you want to eat me even more. This is why people hate y’all.”). I could watch a whole sitcom centered around them working at Merlotte’s.
- Jason using a total cliche line (”Here’s the difference between you and me”), and then being too dimwitted to follow through.

Just about the only thing I’m not digging is this whole Crystal thing. I hope there’s something more to that story, because the drug-dealer-fiance/not-quite-a-cop romance issues seem a bit too mundane for this show.