In the season premiere of True Blood, titled "Bad Blood," Alan Ball threw all the cards on the table. Pretty much everyone was in the episode and doing something different. It looks like there will be lots going on this season, almost too much in my opinion. The season premiere sets up plot after plot with many brief scenes with all the characters. It's too early to tell how the season will pan out, but for a first episode, it was a decent start to the season.
With a scattershot episode like this, there wasn't much depth and it felt all over the place at times, which wasn't bad. The test will be whether the plots and subplots will come together in the end.
At the forefront is Bill's kidnapping, which ended season 2. Sookie, who seems to have forgotten she can read minds, finds little successful with the local police who don't even view Bill as a person, criteria for a "missing person." She goes to Eric who has no idea either. Later, she learns from Pam that Eric can call her away, so she finds Jessica, who felt tingles the previous day. They find Bill's overturned car and a dead guy who bears a symbol for "Operation Werewolf" on his neck. Bill, meanwhile, gets his blood sucked until he flips the car. He ends up sleeping in the ground before sucking the blood of an old lady and leaving only to find himself surrounded by wolves.
Jessica is continuing to struggle with her condition and is unable to revive the guy she brings home and leaves his body to decompose. She does, however, receive Hoyt's flowers and reacts with compassion before seeing the dead body, pulling her back into a world she wants no part of.
Sam is off trying to find his parents, and has a small gay dream about Bill due to him drinking Bill's blood earlier. Sam tracks his family to a house and approaches it.
Jason, who killed Eggs in the season 2 finale, has huge problems reconciling what he did. Andy admitted to the shooting in self-defense and wants Jason to act normally, delivering the best line of the night, "Conscience off, dick on." Jason gets right on it, but is unable to perform, seeing bullet holes on the girls' foreheads.
I don't like Tara, so her plot about Eggs only served to annoy me. She and Eggs were practically high on Maryann stuff all the time last season, so why is she crying so much about Eggs. Seriously, get over it. And Tara continues to treat Sookie badly even after trashing her house. She tries to choke Sookie after she admits to allowing Eggs to remember what happened. After Tara'a insufferable mother, Lettie Mae, lets Tara take a shower alone, she starts downing pills before Lafayette starts banging on the door.
In the vampire world, Eric is in hot water. The Queen and Magister pay him a visit to discuss the vampire blood that has been growing in abundance in surrounding counties. Eric himself had originally planned on kidnapping Bill, because he knew about the blood, but the werewolves nabbed him first. The Queen needs quick cash, so she has Eric get rid of the blood at a discount price.
Wow, I think that's all the plots presented in the first episode. Since there are about 50 times going on, I'll list a couple plots that are more notable to me Bill and the werewolves looks like it'll be a strong plot while Tara's looks kind of weak. Also, what's the deal with Jessica's dead body?
Overall, I was pleased with the season premiere and am excited with all the new things introduced. My hope is that each episode will cover less material and be more focused.
Score: 9.0/10
