What I’m Watching: True Blood

True Blood: Season 5, Episode 2 “Authority Always Wins” (B+)

Things are not going well for just about everyone in this hour. The interrogations of Bill and Eric were fascinating, and I was particularly excited to hear and then see Christopher Heyerdahl, who played the Swede on “Hell on Wheels,” here with his unmistakable voice as Bill’s torturer, who spent a fair amount of time talking about the Original Testament, which alleges that vampires were made in God’s image. I’m glad neither of the two men, who have never gotten along well, let the false stories of each other’s betrayals influence them to give in. Christopher Meloni’s high-powered Authority figure is certainly eccentric, and I’m unsure of how Bill pulling the Russell card is going to play out. Tara did not respond well to being turned, and I hope that this transformation will turn her into a more interesting character – it certainly worked for Steve, whose conversation with Jessica was among the best moments of the episode. Sookie going into the anti-vampire weapons shop and telling the clerk that murder is a federal offense was quite amusing, and it demonstrates how unconnected and oblivious she is to everything else that’s going on. I loved the flashback to Pam in 1905, which showed Eric saving rather than turning her. Terry’s starting to go a little crazy, and I’m glad that Arlene isn’t standing for it after all of her baby drama from last year. Jason getting into trouble for his promiscuousness is hardly new, but I liked Jason’s admission that he’s probably close to having had sex with all the women in the town. Alcide not wanting to be the pack master makes sense, but Emma suddenly turning into a wolf after Luna kicked Sam out changes things considerably.