“Peaches and cream, baby!”
Upon first look, True Blood seems so cliche it should be a guilty pleasure; human girl falls in love with broody vampire, and they must decide if their forbidden love is worth the prejudice and pain that comes with it. What True Blood does that rises above the classic story is embrace the ridiculous with both hands, and further explore the underlining themes that get at the heart of humanity. This is not about monsters that drink blood … this show is about the monster creeping inside of each human being and the prejudice and hatred which draws it out to the surface. True Blood is about love, sex, violence, racism, religion, suppression, hatred, drugs, euphoria, and jealousy. It’s a murder mystery based in the South with a supernatural twist, and a heroine you can get behind. It’s no wonder this show shot to the top of HBO’s most watched list and won various awards. And I promise, it’s not just because of the gorgeous actors and regular nudity … well not only because of that.
Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin – X-Men 1-3) is just an ordinary waitress in Lousiana, except for the pesky fact that she can read the thoughts of everyone around her. Everything in her ordinary life changes when a vampire named Bill (Stephen Moyer – Highlander: The Raven, 88 Minutes) moves into town. A Japanese scientist invented synthetic blood and it caused vampires to come out into the open for the first time, causing widespread panic and fear. Bill’s appearance causes the same suspicion and wariness from the people of Bon Temps, but Sookie is drawn to the quiet, handsome vampire. The first season also involves the investigation of a serial killer in town who keeps murdering women who get involved with vampires. Sookie’s brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten – Tru Calling, Summerland) is the primary suspect, but she knows he didn’t do it. What Sookie has to do is find out who did before the killer goes after her, and find a way to deal with the love triangle developing between her, Bill, and her boss Sam (Sam Trammell – House, Bones, Dexter, Medium). Defeat a killer, pick between two handsome men, and accept her special powers; it’s all just another day for Sookie Stackhouse!
Created and produced by Alan Ball (Six Feet Under), True Blood is based off a popular series of books by Charlaine Harris. It happily embraces a world where anything supernatural can happen, and moves past cheesy into genuinely horrifying and bizarre. This show has graphic violence, gore, and sex, so it is not suitable for younger audiences. The cast is superb, the writing tight, and the story is deliciously vicious. On the DVD set you get all twelve season one episodes and several commentaries starring Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Alan Ball, and a few of the episode writers. The very first commentary with Ball about the premiere episode is probably the best of the lot, and he gets very detailed about what his expectations of the show were from the beginning.
Other extras include most of the impressive viral ads that the show ran before HBO premiered it. For months beforehand they started showing True Blood Beverage Ads (with vampires joining humans for a drink), vampire dating services and lawyers, and PSA’s about Pro and Anti Vampire rights. This got viewers into the show before they even knew what it was about. The most in-depth extra is the “In Focus: Vampires in America” documentary which is based in the TV show itself as they explain how vampires came out to the world and what the consequences were. This is all really interesting to watch and will make you laugh a few times, but I could have used a few real extras about the making of the show and the cast and crew. The extras do help set the mood for the DVD set, but it doesn’t exactly offer much to a fan who wants more about the actual process of the show.
The Blu-ray edition contains all of the above but also includes even more extras in the form of picture-in-picture asides from Lafayette, where he’ll pop up for short periods and give you the low-down on what’s really going on the scene. While they’re sometimes intrusive over the dialogue on episodes you haven’t yet seen, keep in mind that it’s very easy to listen to the back-story he delivers, then turn off enhanced viewing, watch the scene in normal mode, then put him back on. While enhanced mode also beats you over the head with clues and maps of the town, the Lafayette parts are really worth watching, as his gossip adds quite a bit to the story. Of course, getting the Blu-ray edition also means you’re getting the show at 1080p resolution and Dolby Digital 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio for the best home theatre experience possible. The production value on this show is sharp and clearly mindful that it’s being put out in HD.
True Blood is vicious and cruel and dirty and petty. It’s also sweet and twisted and a loving tribute to the best/worst of humanity. Plus for vampire lovers, this is probably the first time you’ll see them as bloody, sexual, and dangerous as you dreamed. These are not the sparkly vampires of Twilight, or even the brooding whiny vampires of Interview With the Vampire. If you didn’t get a chance to see the show on HBO, the DVD set is a great place to start before the second season begins. If you’re already a fan, what the hell are you waiting for? True Blood Season 1 comes out on DVD and Blu-ray May 19th.
ComicsOnline gives True Blood: The Complete First Season 4 1/2 out of 5 sexy bloodsuckers.
