What I’m Watching: True Blood

True Blood: Season 2, Episode 8 “Timebomb” (B+)

Last week, I thought the vampires on this show couldn’t possibly be cooler. This week, however, they were. Godric’s appreciation for peace between humans and vampires is incredibly surprising but his way of governing his territory is masterfully powerful. Eric’s allegiance to him is very striking to see, especially because he’s usually been the one in charge. His willingness to sacrifice his own life in exchange for Sookie’s freedom was also moving, and it’s great that he’s taking a much more active role in the show’s major plotlines. My favorite line was Eric’s double-hitter of “Don’t use words you don’t understand” and “Don’t use words I don’t understand” in response to Sookie’s attempts to appeal to his softer side. And then of course the appearance of all the vampires, coming to defend their kind against the Brotherhood, was incredibly awesome. Steve’s determination not to compromise with the vampires made for one truly fantastic, gripping sequence. Jason’s return to his senses is a long time coming, and the way he did it via the paintball gun was amusing. It’s good that Lorena is out of the picture – it was good to have her while she was there, but her time is up, and it’s best for Bill to focus only on Sookie. The one moment of the episode I didn’t like was the forced staging when Bill and Sookie were standing and talking, interrupted by Jason’s bizarre need to apologize to Bill. Luckily, it was all made good by the ensuing confrontation between Sookie and Lorena, and the decisively incredible intervention by Godric. Maryann cooking up the heart and feeding it to her hypnotized puppets was immensely disturbing, and her setting up of Sam feels a lot like Jason last year. Of course, it’s the stuff involving the vampires that’s far more interesting. It’s also about time someone starts believing Andy Bellefleur, and that will be great when it finally happens. The most intense moment of the episode came in the closing moments, as Luke shows that he’s devoted to the cause just as much as (if not more than) Steve. I wonder how that bomb isn’t going to kill everyone; maybe the vampires’ super-speed can stop it? The look on Sookie’s face was simply priceless.