HBO's True Blood breaks free and stands on its own
If you're a fan of Charlene Harris' Southern Vampire series, you were probably a little disappointed by the first season's adaptation. The problem with season 1 was that it tried to follow too closely to the actual written word, but the translation from page to screen is always hard to do successfully. With Season Two, the True Blood cast took a well needed step apart from the written cannon and struck out on its own, while still remaining faithful to the spirit of the novel series.
Season Two takes its time to step away from the main characters of Sookie and Bill and really starts to focus on the other cast members. Deciding whether to bill Jason or Tara or Sookie as the lead would be a hard choice in this season if you were to judge on screen time alone.
There are three main plots in Season Two: Sam's past and the true nature of Maryann Forrester; Jason and the Fellowship of the Sun Church; Eric and the disappearance of Godric (Sookie's trip to Dallas). Minor subplots include Hoyt and his vampire girlfriend (the newly-turned-by-Bill, Jessica Hamby), Sam and Daphne's "similarities", Andy Bellefleur's fall from grace, Lafayette's "business" catching up with him, and Tara/"Eggs"/Lettie Mae (Mom) relationship issues.
Where Season One had a bad habit of lagging along in the storyline, leaving quite a few "ho-hum" moments, Season Two maintains a fleet-footed pace and maintains it through the entire season. You'll love having this season on DVD since you won't have to wait week-by-week for new episodes. Needless to say, the cliffhanger at the end of the final episode will probably elicit a few choice words directed at HBO for taking a year in order to air new episodes.
Having watched True Blood in it's native HD resolution as well as in non-HD, the Blu-Ray investment is worth every penny. The HD quality truly allows the dank, bog-ridden feel of the swamp really shine through, and the music from the series adds a lot to the overall atmosphere.
If you weren't able to watch True Blood live on HBO and were on the fence about buying this set, go for it! You won't be disappointed.
Reviewed by Naomi (Storm)
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