True Blood Season 6 Episode 3: You’re No Good

After two pretty mediocre episodes to start the year, I have to admit that this season is the best of season so far. Having said that, there is still plenty I wished was just a little bit better and plenty I wish hadn’t been in the episode at all.

True Blood Moves in a Different Direction

The episode starts off with Eric almost killing the governor’s daughter and then stopping just short, once she tells him that she knows secrets about what the government is doing to the vampires. It donned on me after this scene that the show has taken another real move away from the things that made this show great for two or three seasons. Three episodes in and I don’t think we’ve seen a single human or vampire die. Considering there is a supposed war going on, that seems a bit strange. The only blood we’ve seen has either been left behind by victims we never see, or in the tears of emo vampires.

We do see the aftermath of a supposed Warlow attack on a Fairy hideout in which he supposedly killed everyone, and we do find one victim who was left behind but when he dies he turns to dust. The show was great because it was revelling in its blood, gore and sex. Now it seems it revels in hinting at both, while cussing a lot. In other words, the show used to push the envelope and now it hints at pushing the envelope in the same way that a sixth grader pushes the envelope.

Newlin’s Return

True Blood Season 6, episode 3 does bring back the Newlins, though its still unclear why. Steve Newlin is captured by the governor’s men and is being grilled for information about Eric while Sarah Newlin makes a short appearance with some vague comments about turning to politics. Maybe this will become something interesting but at the moment, it seems to be another storyline in a show that already has too many separate storylines.

In one of the other storylines that is getting incredibly old just three episodes in, Bill is still trying to find out what exactly Lillith wants with him. He’s also still figuring out his powers and in a scene that is probably supposed to be dramatic, but made me laugh out loud, he stands in the middle of the road as the sun rises, believing that since he can survive stakings, he can also survive UV light. Turns out Bill was wrong and bursts into flames, having to rush back inside to safety. The story of a godlike vampire like Bill could actually be interesting, but the way the show is carrying it out just makes it annoying. Is Bill bad? Is he good? Is he insane? Do we care anymore?

This ambivalence takes another turn when Bill goes to fetch Sookie so that he can mass produce her blood using the man who invented True Blood. Then, when he proves that there’s no way to stop him, he decides to give up and go home. Again, either be bad or be good, but Bill needs to decide because I don’t think people care all that much for the waffling back and forth.

The best parts of this episode involved Andy and his four faerie daughters. When we are reintroduced to the group we see that the girls are now apparently pre-teen age. Andy Bellefleur and his predicament is yet another storyline that seems only marginally important to the ongoing plot but at least it provides good comic relief. Andy delivers the two best lines of the show when talking about how fast his kids are growing up. He also admonishes one of them for using her “hand lasers.” I used to find his character annoying, but he’s becoming one of my favorites.

Pointless Story Lines

In a show with too many pointless storylines, Alcide’s might be the most pointless of them all. He’s taken over his pack and is no longer the likeable construction worker who was caught up in trouble. Now he’s a tough guy who has stolen Luna’s child from Sam and is holeing up in Luna’s mother in law’s shack. I suppose at some point, this storyline will tie back to the rest of the show, but at the moment it is entirely separate and entirely pointless.

This is after all, a show about vampires. Sure there have been other creatures introduced in the show, but the plot is supposed to be how well, or how poorly humans and vampires coexist in this new world. Having a completely separate storyline involving werewolves just seems like a waste of time that could be used advancing the main story.

The end of the episode actually does a pretty good job of getting me to want to see what happens next. That’s the kind of ending I haven’t really seen yet this season. As Bill is walking back from Sookie’s he runs into Andy and they have a relatively friendly conversation but then Bill notices that there’s a child’s toy on the front seat of Andy’s cruiser. As they go their separate ways, Bill gets a grin on his face that can only hint at a plan being cooked up.

Being that this episode was the best of a admittedly small bunch so far this year, here’s hoping the show is about to get quite a bit better.