True Blood: Dead Meat

Posted by: Andrew Burns  •  August 6, 2013 @ 3:17pm

Filed under: Recaps & Reviews

This past Sunday was all kinds of crazy. Only one death (which was a little surprising considering the title of the episode) however, it seems like the entire cast of characters all pulled a 180 in their respective story-lines. Third last episode of the year things are getting really interesting and for the first time all season the show doesn't hint at what's around the corner.

Before I start speculating about next Sunday let me quickly go over what happened this week in "Dead Meat". Alcide's pack turns on him and Rikki challenges Alcide for pack master. An enraged Eric threatens Bill after he didn't stop the true death of his sister Nora, and then disappears to plan his revenge. Sookie asks Warlow for his help to save the vampires at the camp after Bill's warning from last week, in response Warlow issues Sookie an ultimatum if he helps she becomes his immortal bride. Meanwhile in the vampire prison camp the Hep-V laced Tru Blood is given out to the inmates and those in the know refuse to drink it.

Even though the show's characters and their story-lines are scattered everywhere, like they normally are week-in-week-out, this episode felt like more of a whole story rather than bites and pieces. Not that separate stories can't be a good thing, but the way "Dead Meat" played out it felt as connected as season one's stories were. Apart from the prison camp sequences the rest of the episode took place in Bon Temps. That's where the roots of the show are, and was great to see cast members that hadn't had scenes together all year start interacting with each other more. However, before I get to the Bon Temps bits I have to talk about the craziness that was Sarah Newlin.

It seemed like it would be almost impossible to top that messed up scene where Sarah made out with Governor Burrell's dicapated head but this episode came pretty close. Back in the season six opener the show introduced one of the business owners of the syntetic blood brand Tru Blood in Ms. Suzuki. Suzuki struck a deal with Burrell about reopening the Tru Blood plant in Bon Temps; which later became the secret vamp camp. When Suzuki returned to the show this week the blood hit the fan. Steve might be a vampire but Sarah has proved she is the most powerful Newlin after this episode. Fearing her secret vampire concenstration camp will be discovered Sarah snaps and pretty much throws Ms. Suzuki to the slaughter. Warlow may have been hinted at as this year's biggest treat but so far all signs are pointing to the religious nut case that is Sarah Newlin.

The prison camp setting only has more death in its future but for the first time in a while it seems like the world outside of there is wide open. Every story arc from the grieving Bellefleur family, to Alcide leaving his pack, Sam's new relationship, and even Sookie's future is all entering new territory. Alcide can't change who he is so he is forced to leave his people, but not before beating up their women. That sounds awful, and it was hard to watch at times, but that fight scene where Nikki challenges him showed what kind of person he is and that he isn`t a killer. Leaving his pack was never a possibly the show really hinted at and now it appears after befriending Sam once again Alcide could take Terry's spot at Merlottes. Toss in the fact Sam can smell that Nicole is pregnant and the centre setting of the show is in for a complete overhaul if she decides to stay in town like Alcide has.

The biggest mystery of where this season is headed is with True Blood's main three characters. Warlow's condition to helping Sookie's friends live is to give up her mortality and become a hybrid fairy/vampire like him, as well as his bride. While Sookie struggles with her decision Bill waits and Eric goes absent. Sookie's decision or intention never gets to be fully revealed because Eric takes matters into his own fang. I doubt the episode's final image of Warlow will be the last of him but it does seem he may have evened the playing field with Bill after seeing how much of Warlow's blood Eric has drank. Now that Eric has pulled one over on Bill and Sookie, before they could double cross each other, it's hard to tell how this story is going to play out.

With only two episodes remaining this season time is ticking. All signs are pointing to Bill's premonition of the vampires in the prison meeting the sun coming to pass next week, but I don't see any true deaths happening anytime soon. Also with all the talk from Sookie about where Niall, her fairy godfather, has gone and her remembering the demonic vision of Warlow calling to her through another realm something bad is going to come from that story; and soon.

Since Sarah pretty much stole the show this week its only fitting her former husband should share the spotlight with her. Steve Newlin gets this week's True Blood quote of the week during his conversion with James in the male gen-pop area:

"I haven't felt this unpopular since the 8th grade." – Steve

"The 8th grade was hard on all of us" –James

"I brought second and third pairs of underpants, encase the wedgies. Most days I needed a fourth." –Steve

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Tags: True Blood, Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgard, Sam Trammell, Ryan Kwanten, Rutina Wesley, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Nelsan Ellis

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Andrew Burns loves film and comics, and can be found writing about when those worlds converge. You can follow him on Twitter at @myAndrewBurns.

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