True Blood - Recap: Forever is Just the Blink of an Eye
True Blood continued to sink its teeth into Season 6 this week with and episode that set the blood-soaked stage for the latter half of a great ten-episode run. What does Warlow want? And sex galore!
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Episode 5 opened just where it left off, as per usual on True Blood. Sookie had Warlow all revved up and ready to sex. That is, until she revealed her vampire “supernova,” the feary light trick Grandpa Niall had taught her. Warlow was quick to jump to his own defense, reasoning with Sookie that she’d misconstrued the entire situation. In truth, Warlow was never out to drink Sookie. He was simply looking to marry her. Sookie agreed, and the two eloped. No, not really. Sookie Stackhouse has been through enough vampire lies to call bull when someone several thousand years old named Warlow shows up out of the blue, uninvited. Warlow barely got out the story of how he murdered Sookie’s parents in order to save her life (the twists! True Blood, the twists!) before that awful Vampire Billith (Stephen Moyer) zapped in, yet again, out of the blue, uninvited. As it turns, out Billith and Warlow are linked. A mere burn from Sookie’s light on Warlow’s chest manifested itself on Bill’s, and the Lilith inside of him was quick to scoop up her progeny. If Warlow is the key to killing Lilith, he’d have to be kept under lock and key.
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Governor Burrell (Arliss Howard) and his new lady-friend, Sarah Newlin (Anna Camp), dealt with the unfortunate undeadness of his daughter, Willa (Amelia Rose Blair), by shipping her off to the vampire concentration camp for study. At least she’d get her own bedroom! Right? That was nice of her terrible father and his hateful new woman. Sarah was quick to console her man by offering up her womb. Would Burrell be into baby making now that Willa was transformed into that which he most despises? Not tonight, unfortunately, Sarah. All decked out in black lingerie, and nowhere to go. Scratch that! Sarah Newlin scrambled her primped up self over to the residence of one Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten). I’m not quite sure that the storyline here really made sense, but I was all for Sarah “saving” Jason via a good lay. She’s been with a gay man and an old man, but Sarah had never felt more “holy” than she did while she spent time with Jason. Jason Stackhouse, of course, is not one to let rage and hate get in the way of a good night’s screw session.
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It seems that Sarah can’t catch a break. I, for one, am thankful for that. Jessica, having nowhere else to turn to, ran to her former flame Jason for help following her massacre of Andy’s four daughters. Jessica had found herself aroused, as in sexually, while drinking copious amounts of faery blood, and she spent the entirety of Episode 5 tweaking. Is Bill God? Is Bill The Devil? We know the answer to this, but Jessica, unfortunately, does not. I like the concept of having a vampire character, specifically a baby vamp, contemplating what it means to be a vampire with regard to religion. It just doesn’t seem to come up so often of True Blood, unless the character spewing doctrine and verses is a lunatic or entirely unsympathetic. Speaking of whom; Sarah peeled herself out of Jason’s bed just in time to rescind Jessica’s invitation to Jason’s home, landing her in the custody of the anti-vampire police force outside. Jessica was arrested for breaking curfew and her pretty little ginger-vamp head was sent to join the likes of Pam (Kristen Bauer van Straten) at the elusive camp.
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Meanwhile, Tara (Rutina Wesley) merely had to mention the fact that Pam had been arrested to Eric (Alexander Skarsgard), and Northman would concoct a harebrained scheme on the spot. The two surrendered themselves over to the authorities willingly. We know Eric at this point. This is Season 6, after all. Eric’s tactic of choice is usually something along the lines of “I’m an ancient Viking vampire, and you’re not.” Works for me!
Inside the facility, we caught our first glances of how the incarceration process would work through the eyes of Pam. Vampires were initially tested using, as previously stated, a torturous “game” or sorts. For example, Eric would fight to collect bouncing blue rubber balls before his three competitors could, landing him in a #1 position. Later, we’d learn that Pam too was successful. I’m guessing the poor saps who lost during the first round of this test fell at #4. The ranking system would denote where and how the vampires were tested and studied.
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For Pam, a #1 position meant the horrifying torture that is… therapy. You would think therapy would be a snap for Pam, who always says what she means, means what she says, and eats whoever disagrees. Sadly, the therapist was guarded, and Pam would have to comply. Luckily, playing along also meant that Pam could dine on a donor for her good behavior. My favorite part of Episode 5 of Season 6, “Fuck the Pain Away,” was probably the moment in which Pam explained to the therapist that “forever” for humans is merely a blink of an eye, while “forever” for vampires is actually forever. Humans feed on pain, treating it as a virtue. I loved Pam’s example of crying the most at a funeral to prove you’re the best person. Vampires, on the other hand, learn to move on… in most cases. Pam, needless to say, will never shake Eric, her maker. He is her Achilles’ heel, and now, the government had their ammunition.
While Tara attempted to quash Jessica’s fears of looming doom and eternal misery in Hell (Sorry, Jessica. You’re already in Hell!), she also might have stumbled upon a new love interest. Jessica, refusing to drink her food, drew unwanted attention, only to find a mysterious new lady-vamp coming to her rescue. The glimmer in her eye said that Tara’s plot might be on the brink of expansion, fangers. Could this spell trouble for Tara’s relationship with Pam? Maybe recap and reviewer Joe is just imagining things.
Interestingly enough, the reunion between Lilith and Warlow allowed us to experience some insight as to what Warlow truly is and actually wants. Again, not to harp on Buffy comparisons, but Season 6 is chock full of them. Warlow is very reminiscent of Buffy’s Angel. A faery prince turned vampire, Warlow ate his family following his turning at Lilith’s hand. In revenge, Warlow exposed Lilith to the sun, killing her. That is, until Billith was born. Now, Warlow is the key to Lilith’s heinous plan of vampire chaos.
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Before closing out the Recap and Review for Season 6 Episode 5, let’s cover some of the less important side plots. Firstly, just to get this completely out of the way, Terry hired an assassin to sharp shoot his brains out while he’s not paying attention. No, I’m not making this up. Terry has enlisted the help of an old friend. He couldn’t pull the trigger himself, so he reached out for backup. Again, I’m not making this up. Also, were you under the impression that Alcide (Joe Manganiello) and his father had patched things up and buried the hatchet? I certainly was. That is, until the grey wolf suggested Alcide quit the search for Emma. Is Alcide merely looking to impress his she-wolf? Most likely; however, it was his father who managed to stumble upon Sam (Sam Trammell) and Nicole (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), who’d awoken to regrets and splitting headaches, outside of their motel. Their hangovers seemed to come with a side of shame following their romp in the sack. Lastly, and thankfully, Andy managed to stumble upon his daughter’s corpses. That is, three corpses and one wee faery on the brink of death. A little vampire blood, and the girl was on her way to a full recovery. I like this idea. Four teenage daughters would get to be too much for Andy. One daughter will strengthen his character and help him to mature just fine. Good work, Jessica? Thank you? In any case, both Andy and Jessica are on paths of redemption. Hopefully, Holly (Lauren Bowles) will get through to Andy, and everyone can find peace in the fact that this was truly an unfortunate and grisly accident. Was it me, or did Andy not seem too upset over finding three of his daughter's dead?
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Eric had thought he’d outwitted the system, yet he once again found himself in hot holy water. The governor had arrived, and Northman was brought into a room alone. There, Burrell spoke from behind a glass regarding his daughter’s newfound path in life and her subsequent incarceration. Eric was flabbergasted. The man had betrayed his own daughter in support of his principles, and Eric was slated to pay. A gladiator-esque fight to the death would do, and the team would send in Eric’s competition… Pam.
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Sookie, desperate for answers surrounding Warlow’s intentions and the true reason behind her parents’ deaths, turned to none other than Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis) for assistance. The medium, who never fails to channel Whoopi’s Oda Mae from Ghost while conjuring the spirits, called directly upon her parents. Sookie became privy to the truth. Once Warlow had initially approached her parents, expressing his love for their daughter and his promise to make her his immortal princess, Mr. Stackhouse decided to take matters into his own hands. Rather than see his daughter join the likes of the vampire kind, he attempted to drive her out to the bridge… to kill her. Warlow did, indeed, save her life; however, the spirit of her father returned with a vengeance. Possessing Lafayette, the man once again locked Sookie in the trunk of a car and drove her out to the lake. There, he proceeded to being drowning her. Sookie Stackhouse is dead… No, not really. We'll have to wait and see. Take a wild guess, fangers.
What did you think of True Blood Season 6 Episode 5, “Fuck the Pain Away”? Would you like to see a Sookie/ Warlow coupling? Will Jason save the day? Is one of our favorite vamps in for the true death? Are you happy Andy has a second shot at being a father? What would you do with Terry and Arlene? Where is Nora? They wouldn’t kill off Sookie… would they?
Thanks for reading my Recap and Review of True Blood Season 6 Episode 5, “Fuck the Pain Away”!