Who’s Watching True Blood?
bella | Sep 16, 2008 | Comments 60
I’ve become less and less of a TV junkie. My comedic TV must-sees, The Office and 30 Rock, and Curb Your Enthusiasm are currently off the air, and my dramatic HBO addictions, The Sopranos and The Wire have gone for good. I wasn’t looking for a new show, but one found me.
I gotta tell you, HBO’s True Blood is my new gotta watch Sunday show. And it’s all about vampires living on the bayou.
Anna Paquin plays Sookie Stackhouse as sweet and complicated (despite her short shorts and tight white tee), her new vampire boyfriend is seductive, with old fashioned manners (must be that Civil War era upbringing), and — despite my initial pause — I really liked her best friend Tara, played by the beautiful Rutina Wesley. Apparently, the Tara portrayed in Charlaine Harris’ series of books, is a meeker and less dominant character.
When I saw Tara appear on screen, I was like great — sassy black friend alert. I can’t deny that Tara is indeed a variation of the oft depicted, poison tongued, eye rolling, gum snapping, whatchu-say caricature we’ve seen on television ever since the days of The Jeffersons, but by the end of the episode, I liked her. I did. So sue me.
From what I’m seeing in the comments on Entertainment Weekly, quite a few folks are complaining about the stereotypical sassy African American characters, like the aforementioned Tara and her cousin, the out and proud, tell it like it is diva of the kitchen, Lafayette — ably played by Nelsan Ellis.
Lafayette is gently critiqued in this review at After Elton : “The character of Lafayette is supposed to be controversial, but I liked him. Yes, he does sort of crossdress, and he wears make-up and is just a step away from doing finger snaps at people, but he’s also a nice guy with a big heart for his friends, and can probably wipe the floor with any homophobe who comes in the bar.”
The New York Times calls the show’s two opinionated, broadly drawn black characters “the equivalent, in True Blood, of clowns in Shakespeare and ghosts in Toni Morrison.” I hope there’s much more character development to come. I’d hate to see Tara and Lafayette turn out to be little more than that. Either way, I’ll be watching next week to see how the plot thickens. This week ended with an afrobella vampire threatening to bite Sookie. Dun dun dunnnnn….
I’d love to hear from anyone who’s been watching — do you like what you’re seeing so far, or do the stereotypes make you cringe?
Filed Under: Famous Faces • Issues
Thanks Jazzy Melanin, I’ve been meaning to pick up Fledgeling for a while now.
And also, since it seems that you like werewolves too (I totally dig them, even more than vamps. Everytime I see Underworld, I root for the Lycans), pick up “Lonely Werewolf Girl” by Martin Millar, if you’re not already familiar with it. It’s awesome! Such a fun read!
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Lonely-Werewolf-Girl/Martin-Millar/e/9780979663666/?itm=1
And Devon, thanks for the surfthechannel link, I’m goin to use that since I haven’t had cable since The Sopranos went off…
I like the show.. at first I did not like Tara..but it seems like her character is getting more complex. But I can’t stand her attitude… and her gay cousin gets under my skin..why are the only two black people on the show like this??? Even that black vampire has a serious attitude.
My first time commenting on your site EVER. First off I love the site. Second I re-ordered HBO just so that I can watch this show. I loved the ads that they had in NYC which got me intrigued. So far the acting seems to be overdone but I still like it. The Black dude cracks me up.
I like the show, but the exaggerated Southern stereotypes get old at times. I grew up in Monroe, LA, a city that lies 98 miles east of Shreveport. Both cities are mentioned prominently in the story. Yes, you can find people who fit some of the quirks displayed on this show, but that’s true in any place in the country.
Tara’s character is more like many young sisters at home than I’d like to admit. I like the way that the scripts are building her story slowly over each episode. As for Lafayette–crazy on a stick…
I’m in LOVE with this show. I must say for everyone who was offended by the characters on the show; I think you are missing a much bigger context.
I find this show to be more about Social Commentary and stereotypes than a true portrayal of individuals and ethnicities.
Look at the issues being dealt with – social integration for vampires, civil rights, and the percieved perceptions by the locals, etc. These aspects of the show simply relate to viewers how screwed up our country is when it comes to social issues. Once you look at it in that light, the stereotypical portrayals don’t matter much.
what do you expect when a white man is writing the script? I still like the show. Although, I don’t understand why there’s so much sex in it. I am more of a Heroes fan.
I love love love love this show! I am so hooked. I love tara she is my favorite character, and I like the way she because she reminds me a “real black girl”. meaning yes she is sassy and out spoken like most black women are but she also has a gentler side, that you see when you watch the episodes… and for the girl who said that sookie brother is no ot she is tippin! in conclusion the show is the best thing on television right now because it it different and not all about highschoolers and money. It’s dramatic, unique, and will definitely be on at my house every sunday!
Hello everyone, love that people are raving about the show…..here’s a link where I view the show myself:
http://www.fastpasstv.com/
Here you can watch the show for free and whatever else is posted there – some pretty good stuff. I love the show and have been a trufan from the very beginning. Interesting things I’m hearing about Sam tho – it’ll be interesting indeed to see how his character turns out. Love Tara and Lafayette……I fully enjoy seeing both of them in this show. Cant wait until next Sunday – need my dose of TRUE BLOOD. For those who plan to use the site that I posted, just type in TRUE BLOOD in their search and all episodes should pop up.
I’ve been watching the episodes on line, and the show is strangely addictive even those accents are not Louisiana accents. They sound like they’re more from Mississippi or somewhere.
I do, on http://www.seriaalid.net