True Blood Finale – Return of the King?

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I’ve been saying the past few weeks that if True Blood didn’t get better by the end of the season, I was going to stop watching it. I was seriously considering it, and I had already resigned myself to the fact that there probably wasn’t much the writers could do at this point to change my mind. I wasn’t planning to continue watching this show by the end of season four. Well, the HBO gods must have heard and changed their tactics, because this is one of the best episodes of the season and one of the best finales that we’ve seen thus far.

This episode was very good and extremely uncluttered with filler like the rest of the season has been. Everything wrapped up nicely, without leaving all kinds of questions about what is going on. In the midst of Faeries, Were-Panthers, ghosts, possessed babies, and wiccans, we get to see an ending without all of that ridiculousness. It’s almost as if this is the ending of a completely different season. How refreshing is it to not be rolling your eyes every five minutes.

Can we start with talking about how good of an actor Nelsan Ellis is? I’ve said this before, but when Lafayette is “possessed” by a spirit, Ellis does a fantastic job of channeling that spirit. You almost really believe that the other actor has taken over his body. I’m disappointed that Jesus had to die, as I think that they were an interesting team together. I wonder, though, if Lafayette will always have Jesus’s magic now, or if it left him when Marnie’s spirit did?

Darn, Alcide is sexy. And he makes a lot of sense when he tells Sookie to listen to her brain instead of her heart. I was pleased to see that she did just that by the end of the episode. I’m finding Eric’s stupid facial expression incredibly annoying, and I’m happy that she walks away from both vampires. Is it the end of her relationship with the vamps? No. But it might be the beginning of a relationship with Alcide, and that might be just a bit refreshing.

I didn’t do a review last week, so I do have to add, I absolutely love when Alcide breaks up with Debbie. It was very dramatic. I have a feeling Alcide will be the next pack leader. Especially since this episode made me believe that the writers may be returning to the more simplistic plot lines of the original creator.

Russell Edgington has broken free of the concrete coffin he was given. It’s a little disappointing that he was only gone for one season, but whatever. I guess we need another jerk around, since Eric and Bill killed Nan. I’m glad they killed her, and, honestly, I like when thse two work together. They are way more capable of serious damage to others when they work together.

In order to get rid of Marnie’s soul, Holly conducts a spell to raise the spirits of Bon Temps to protect them. We get to see Adele, Sookie’s grandmother, come back from the grave, but better than that, we get to see Rene talk to Arlene. I know it’s been a few years, but do you remember season one? Do you remember what was so good about the season was how uncomplicated it was? Rene was the killer, and he wasn’t a supernatural. Just a guy who didn’t like vamps or women who messed around with them. Was he crazed? Yes. But he did care for Arlene, and even as a ghost we should take his warning seriously.

We were left with a bunch of cliffhangers, but for the first time in a long time, I was actually interested to see what happened next! I want to know what happens between Jessica, Jason, and Hoyt. I want to know if Pam and Eric reconcile, I want to see what is up with Terry’s new buddy, and what Russell is going to do. But, most importantly, I really want to see if Tara is dead.

Did they kill her? No. I’ll take “vampire blood saves the day” for 300, Alex. Either way, you’ve definitely gotten my attention, HBO. Well played.

One Comment

1. 

   Jamar

   September 14, 2011 at 9:11 am

   Very well written. It was such a great finale, I was disappointed when it ended. Looks like Sam will be killing another werewolf tho.

   Reply