# HBO's Trueblood begins on Sunday **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 2, 2008, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740 "2008-09-02T19:07:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/61 "2008-09-10T00:37:40Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Story 1 : > > A young maiden died on her wedding day, after being left at the altar by a cad, who seduced her by a promise to marry, etc. Broken heart or suicide? Anyway, the A/H Emperor had sent a young RC priest to take the place of the good and holy Orthodox priest. The ignorant and arrogant RC priest refused to let the girl be buried in consecrated ground. She was buried in her wedding gown and veil. That (?) night, she crept out and went to the door of the cad, and asked to be let in, promising more kisses. He was such a cad he hadn’t even know she died, so he let her in- an important detail here is that she wore her veil so he couldn’t see her face, which was of course horrible. She drank his blood and floated back to her grave. The next night she arose again, and went to her home, she scratched upon the window shutter of her youngest brother (portrayed as around our age, 8-12 or so), crying she was so cold and thirsty, and he let her in, in his ignorance. Now, she didn’t want to hurt her little brother but the hunger rose in her. She fell upon him, but she was crying also as she didn’t want to do this- so the family broke in and drove her off/she fled. The details of was she physical or just a ghost is a little unclear. > > The family went to the RC priest who laughed at them and their ignorant peasant folklore. So the family went to my family (the local lords), who sent out Cossacks to find the Orthodox Priest (this was very exciting as the Cossack had to ride in all direction, riding their horses to death as they needed to find the Father before the moon rose!). They found the holy man living as a hermit and then they (Cossacks, Voivodes, family, hermit and all) went to the suicides graveyard, and while the Cossacks held back the RC priest, they all dug up the maiden’s body- which when they pulled back her veil appeared flushed with life and with blood on her lips, and dirt under her long nails. Of course, this was just as the moon was rising! The Cossacks staked her and much fresh blood came out. Then the Orthodox hermit blessed her and they reburied her with all ceremony in the consecrated graveyard. The young Jesuit left that day, never to be seen again. The Holy Father returned to his rightful position as spiritual leader, they buried the cad in the appropriate manner and everyone lived happily ever after. Jesus Christ. That story would have kept me a virgin until after my wedding if I had heard it when I was a little girl. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/62 "2008-09-10T02:10:10Z")
Love Anna Paquin, lukewarm at best on this series. It amazes me how far HBO has fallen. I also strongly disagree about pilots being weak. The Sopranos, Deadwood, Rome, hell even In Treatment all had strong pilots that drew you in immediately. At least, they drew _me_ in. This one, not so much. I rewatched all of Deadwood and Rome over the summer, which only served to reinforce how completely Showtime has replaced HBO as the network with entertaining original programming. HBO was untouchable when The Sopranos, Deadwood and Rome were all going. Talk about glory days… And I hear great things about The Wire, which is also now off the air. Now HBO has Tell Me You Love Me, In Treatment, (geez, who has a thing about therapy over at the home office?), a stupid Vampire show, the “male Sex and the City” as if anyone ever wanted such a thing, and some British imports. Switching over to Showtime and you can get some quality: Weeds, Dexter, and Californication are the big three for me. The Tudors is weak compared to Rome, and I imagine Brothers is weak compared to the Sopranos, but at least they’re still on the air. I’ve heard (but have no cite) that the executive in charge of original entertainment jumped ship from HBO to Showtime. That sure would explain a lot. Right now the only HBO show I’m looking forward to is Big Love, and that always used to be the worst watchable thing they had. It is increasingly becoming work to slog through this HBO crap. I willed myself through Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee only by virtue of being a big Anna Paquin fan. (Though I concede her face is a little odd, I still want to do nasty things to her in the worst way.) In Treatment was must-see tv. The second half of John Adams, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, much of Tell Me You Love Me, and every single moment of John From Cincinnatti was unwatchable dreck I had to force myself to watch. I miss the golden years of HBO. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/63 "2008-09-10T02:56:54Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > And I hear great things about The Wire, which is also now off the air. All true (the great things). Are you planning to watch it at some point? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/64 "2008-09-10T03:44:25Z")
> [@LurkerInNJ](#): > > Jesus Christ. > > That story would have kept me a virgin until after my wedding if I had heard it when I was a little girl. Yeah, Babushka didn’t believe in coddling kids. And the way she told it “And the maiden crept and crept up to the door, her eyes glowing under her veil, and scratched to be let in “I have more kisses for you, don’t you want my kiiiisssses”. So he looked thrugh the window and saw her there in her white wedding dress, her face covered by her veil. And since he had been \*to Vienna \* (said with a scornful note)and wasn’t scared of _peasant tales_, he let her in. And the last thing he _felt_ was her cold as the grave hands on his neck, and the last thing he _smelt_ was her breath like that of the charnel house, and the last thing he _saw_ was her eyes, exposed at last from under her veil, glowing red in the dark like those of the hounds of hell…” :eek::eek: ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/65 "2008-09-10T03:54:41Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > All true (the great things). Are you planning to watch it at some point? I was, but got a nasty-gram from the home office after downloading the first two seasons. That ended my adventures in downloading, which is what prompted me to go ahead and subscribe to Showtime. I had downloaded and loved the first season of Californication, the first two seasons of Dexter, and the first three seasons of Weeds. So in a very real and literal sense, torrent downloads brought Showtime a new customer. Conversely, I have been paying for HBO for a decade and a half, and wanted to catch up on the first four seasons of The Wire before the fifth season debuted. Then came the nasty-gram, halting my torrent activity. Ideally they would have just re-run the damn show in its entirety like they did Rome and Deadwood, but no such luck. So with only two of five seasons available to me, no, I have no intention of watching. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/66 "2008-09-10T14:33:55Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Yeah, Babushka didn’t believe in coddling kids. And the way she told it “And the maiden crept and crept up to the door, her eyes glowing under her veil, and scratched to be let in “I have more kisses for you, don’t you want my kiiiisssses”. So he looked thrugh the window and saw her there in her white wedding dress, her face covered by her veil. And since he had been \*to Vienna \* (said with a scornful note)and wasn’t scared of _peasant tales_, he let her in. And the last thing he _felt_ was her cold as the grave hands on his neck, and the last thing he _smelt_ was her breath like that of the charnel house, and the last thing he _saw_ was her eyes, exposed at last from under her veil, glowing red in the dark like those of the hounds of hell…” > :eek::eek: Your Babushka was one great lady from the sounds of it. I seem to be the only one in my family that will spin a yarn for kids. I think it is a mostly lost art. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/67 "2008-09-10T15:49:01Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Your Babushka was one great lady from the sounds of it. I seem to be the only one in my family that will spin a yarn for kids. I think it is a mostly lost art. You may use this. I beleive Babushka (as a small girl) was actually there when the coffin was dug up, but she wasn’t allowed to get close enough to see inside. But she descibed the Cossacks, her Father ("your Great-grandfather) in his antique armour, the “young Jesuit”, the bearded Orthodox hermit- preist, the reaction of the crown and all so perfectly. ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/68 "2008-09-11T01:59:38Z")
I managed to watch it when I was at my friend’s place Sunday night, and I have it on tape so my friend can watch it sometime. I agree with all those who think that Tara is over the top - I just read the first book about a year ago and I don’t remember her being anywhere near that abrasive. I thought Lafayette was a scream. I’m hoping I can get my friend to tape the rest for me, because I do want to see what they do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2008, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/69 "2008-09-12T03:15:43Z")
Me, I’m just happy a Hollywood production finally got the Southern accents right. ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2008, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/70 "2008-09-12T21:24:03Z")
> [@spoke-](#): > > Me, I’m just happy a Hollywood production finally got the Southern accents right. Which is kind of funny, because in the “making of…” shows for True Blood, it’s obvious that Bill (the vampire) is British and the guy who plays the brother is Australian. 🙂 J. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2008, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/71 "2008-09-12T21:27:45Z")
Blockbuster offered the first ep. as a freebie, so I watched and enjoyed it. No cable, though, so I’ll have to wait till next year to see all the rest. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2008, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/72 "2008-09-12T21:36:54Z")
> [@jharvey963](#): > > Which is kind of funny, because in the “making of…” shows for True Blood, it’s obvious that Bill (the vampire) is British and the guy who plays the brother is Australian. 🙂 > > J. Hey, more power to 'em as long as they can do the accent. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![YWalker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/6f9a4e/32.png) [@YWalker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YWalker)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/73 "2008-09-15T02:54:58Z")
A much better second episode tonight. I think they’re starting to hit their stride with this. I felt mildly lukewarm about the first episode, but I think that was mostly due to the fact that it had to do so much setup and introduction of the characters that there wasn’t much action. I think they’ve done a brilliant job of casting this. Although I didn’t see the appeal of Bill in the previews a few weeks back, he is definitely appealing now. I like the courtliness that you can see in him that helps identify him as being from another era. The guy who plays Jason is doing a great job, too. I never liked his character in the books, because, frankly, he is a not-too-bright redneck slut. This guy is playing him perfectly, so that I am still bugged by him — but you can see that he is just so darned pretty and has such magnetism that people let him get away with being the way he is. I love Sam. Although my initial assessment was that he was slighter of build than I expected, he is playing the part perfectly. I feel the same frustration with the Sookie on TV that I had in the book ---- Sam is such a sweetie and is so smitten with her that it seems a shame to stand him up for the vamps. I seriously love Lafayette. He’s just a bit part, character-wise, but the actor playing him really plays it to the hilt. He is really hilarious. I’ve seen people on who seriously hate Tara, but I think she’s a hoot. On the author’s board, she just says that she sees Tara as being very angry, and the actress (and script) are expressing it. I do think it’s a bit of an inconsistency to see her being so sharp and intelligent, and then mooning over a loser like Jason, but that genuinely is a function of the writing. I liked Granny much more this episode. She seemed almost feeble-minded by being so sweet and agreeable in the first episode, so it was nice to see her flesh out a tiny bit more this time around. Anna Pacquin is doing a great job as Sookie. Some of her readings come across as very odd — but, you have to admit that she IS terribly odd. Many of the really odd lines came straight out of the book, and are a necessary part of her character. She does do the “What the hell are you thinking” moments, such as when she dares Bill to glamour her. I loved her delivery of the line “You mean like all black people are lazy and Jews have horns sprouting out of their heads?” in response to Tara’s spouting out a prejudiced remark about vamps. I also loved her response to Bill when he asked if he was being a bit too forward (intimate?) in the beginning of this episode. So, if you’re not watching this yet, I’d recommend giving it a shot.\* And be forewarned that the first episode (or maybe more) may seem a bit slow, but it’s necessary exposition and character development. - If you’ve got kids around, I’d recommend taping it to view later. This is not something you want to watch with the kiddies. ---
**Author:** ![MizTina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MizTina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizTina)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/74 "2008-09-15T03:41:36Z")
Man, I did not think it was possible to make Jason shallower than in the books, but the writers managed. Add to it that I am watching with a 24 year old male Iraq war vet stepson and the pretty vivid sex scenes are a little uncomfortable for the both of us. So I am kinda over Jason, no matter how hot the actor is. Tara is so unlike what I expected and what I still expect, so much so that I don’t see how she will ever be able to be like the character in the books. But that being said, the actress does a fine job playing smitten. I am having one issue with the Bill Compton actor, everytime he says “Sookie”, he sounds just like Bruce Campbell and it cracks me up. ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/75 "2008-09-15T04:54:34Z")
Any of you True Blood viewers also read the Twilight series? There are an awful lot of parallels between the two. Anyway, I like the show but find it a bit schlocky. I enjoy the chemistry between Sookie and Bill, though agree with YWalker-- Sam is hot, and sweet, so why does she need this vampire guy? Also, wondering if Sam turns into that dog. No, I haven’t read the books, that’s just a guess. And if so, that’s just one of the many Twilight parallels. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/76 "2008-09-15T05:02:37Z")
> [@Rubystreak](#): > > Any of you True Blood viewers also read the Twilight series? There are an awful lot of parallels between the two. > > Anyway, I like the show but find it a bit schlocky. I enjoy the chemistry between Sookie and Bill, though agree with YWalker-- Sam is hot, and sweet, so why does she need this vampire guy? Also, wondering if Sam turns into that dog. No, I haven’t read the books, that’s just a guess. And if so, that’s just one of the many Twilight parallels. Someone wrote a letter in this week’s TV Guide, outraged about the similarities. Apparently she didn’t bother to look up the publishing dates of the two books the movie/tv series are based upon. Twlight - 2005. Dead Until Dark - 2001. ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/77 "2008-09-15T05:03:04Z")
> [@Rubystreak](#): > > Any of you True Blood viewers also read the Twilight series? There are an awful lot of parallels between the two. > > Anyway, I like the show but find it a bit schlocky. I enjoy the chemistry between Sookie and Bill, though agree with YWalker-- Sam is hot, and sweet, so why does she need this vampire guy? Also, wondering if Sam turns into that dog. No, I haven’t read the books, that’s just a guess. And if so, that’s just one of the many Twilight parallels. I’m wondering about the dog too! So does anyone who has read the books know about the dog? I don’t mind a spoiler, but others might. If don’t want to bother with a spoiler box, how about PMing me? I liked Sookie better tonight so I think I’m going to get used to her. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/78 "2008-09-15T05:16:41Z")
> [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](#): > > If don’t want to bother with a spoiler box, how about PMing me? Sent 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/79 "2008-09-15T05:28:26Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Sent 🙂 😉 I’m going to have to read these books. ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2008, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740/80 "2008-09-15T12:12:15Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > Sent 🙂 Send me a PM too, please? Or Sleeps With Butterflies, tell me what she told you! I don’t mind being spoiled. I think I am right, because at the end of that shot with Sam and Sookie in his office, there was a shot of a picture on his wall of a dog standing guard over a little blonde girl who was sleeping. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbos-trueblood-begins-on-sunday/461740.md?page=5)