*SPOILER ALERT*

"Never really thought I was smart enough to get depressed...." Great line by Jason Stackhouse--my pick for best quote this week. And of course, Aussie Ryan K. puts on a great show as the emerging Jason, full of surprises--like being a philosopher this season, as well as a responsible citizen, friend and brother. His character in the Harris novels is not as likable as the person we see through Kwanten's efforts, and the show is better for it.

My other favorite of the week is Nelsan Ellis's Lafayette though he's been on my radar for the last three seasons as one of the best actors on the show. By all counts, the character of Lafayette should be dead, if not completely broken, But there he stands, grateful and eager, even after all he's lived through. What a powerhouse performance by Ellis. I recently read that Harris was glad Ball kept Lafayette alive in the HBO series--in the novels, he's found dead in Andy's car instead of the voodoo woman Ball replaced him with. Adaptation is such an interesting facet to our popular culture...and it adds to the many facets of this week's True Blood.

No Jessica this week, and more's the shame. But Hoyt's got his hemming-and-hawing routine down pat. Moving on....

The King of Mississippi, now also the King of Louisiana, Russell Edgington, is another wonderful development of the adaptive powers of Ball's brainchild. Edgington is played by Denis O'Hare. I saw O'Hare playing a very different part in a syndicated episode of CSI Miami and barely recognized him--he was sniveling and odd and weak-looking. My God, that's acting! O'Hare IS the Vampire King. He owns every inch of his 3,000-year old undead life. I LOVED what he did with the Magister. I LOVED what he said. I LOVED how he said it. And I could totally relate to what should be a totally unrelatable character--all thanks to O'Hare's daring portrayal of a character that has NEVER been played before in our pop culture history. Think about it, how many 3,000-year old vampires do you know? Even Dracula wasn't THAT old! And he's not just a 3,000-year old vampire, he's a 3,000-year old vampire-philosopher. He spoke in recent episodes about philosophies surrounding the environment, defining the master race, the pretense of socio-political justice...you know, the kinds of things a 3,000-year old sentient, intelligent creature would be thinking about.
 
But on to more, ah, physical things...like Alcide's part in Sookie's fairyland.

Tara is kick-ass in this show! You go, Rutina! She's surprised to learn that vampires turn into bloody puddles of goop when dead because, of course, her bludgeoned beloved didn't. Gulp. Stay tuned there. But my favorite part was when she literally kicked Bill Compton out of the truck and into the sun...really terrific stuff.  Empowered by the vampire blood, Tara was unstoppable...which doesn't bode well for her in future. It's like a high-functioning alcoholic who appears to be doing everything with ease but only because of their blood-alcohol levels. If that drops off, so does their effectiveness.

We meet Sookie's fairy-cousin, Claudine...her literal fairy godmother. And of course, it's what I've been saying since Season Two...Sookie's fairy-roots are emerging, even with all that peroxide in her hair.

The death of Lorena was no surprise in the show. She'd outlived her usefulness and went with grace...even love. Anna Paquin's snarling, "You wouldn't know love if it kicked you in the fangs," smelled of the episode-director's touch. I could practically hear him coaching her, "Just think of that thing that makes you so angry you could scream...or kill, whatever the case may be...." ;)

Don't we love Pam???  She's another fantastic female character who is tough, smart, strong...and fashionable. We're all Tiffany girls at heart, but could we all stare an eye-piercing in the face with a straight face?

What to look for in future? Well, I can't spoil all the surprises but there's more than meets the fang to Eric's new allegiance to Edgington...we all know he wants to keep his 1000-year old promise to his long-dead father. But Eric, like all very old creatures, sees the long-view. Pam, however, is more concise. Layfayette, still tied in to Eric and Pam, will have a part to play in the politics ahead.  

All in all, a GREAT episode! Kudos to the cast and crew...TB 3:7 knocks it out of the park. And if you think this week was good, wait until you see next week's episode!

As always, my favorite Truebies, fangers, shifters, weres, and fangbangers--buy your copy of True Blood & Philosophy: We Wanna Think Bad Things with You (Wiley 2010) to gain EVEN MORE insight into this HBO summer series whose future is as wide open as the adaptative creators behind it....

Did you know that the word "august" means "royal"? The month of August is named after Gaius Octavius Caesar Augustus (63 BCE -17AD), the first Roman Emperor. And that's right, he was the great nephew of the now infamous Julius Caesar, who posthumously adopted Gaius, adding the Caesar Augustus to his name for all of his history to see. Pax Romana or the period of Roman "peace" during Augustus's rule is a bit deceptive. He used the considerable loyalty of the legions to "persuade" the Senate in approving his decisions. It's a funny thing, but that kind of double-talk permeates human civilization...as well as everyday life.

Augustus was given his title of "The Revered One" in 27 BCE by the Senate...and now that you know the REAL story, you also know that the Senate had little choice in the matter. Just or no, Augustus had unparalleled power and did do some good with it. He rebuilt Rome, created an official police force, courier system (aka post office), fire guard, army, navy and built roads that are still used today. Of course, HE didn't really do all that--all he did was use the back-breaking free labor of slaves, his military muscle to "convince" people to take on various jobs, and, to pay the necessary taxes to make it all happen. That's right. Taxes. Augustus wasn't just the first Roman Emperor, he was also one of the first rulers to develop a system of taxation.

But isn't it possible for a tyrant to also be kind and democratic? For an abuser to also be loving and supportive? Of course. All is possible within the human heart. But one who acts badly cannot be truly good without being consistent. And there lies the rub.

How many do you know who fit this dualistic conundrum? You have a friend, a family member, a lover, or a colleague who seems to have a split personality; kind and respectful in one moment, and in the next, a real nightmare. We may want to believe that the good in all people is stronger than it sometimes is, but we're only hurting ourselves when we choose to ignore the obvious. The thing is, a truly good person would be consistently good--not always patient perhaps, but still, good. When you have those individuals who seem to be almost two different people in their behavior, what you really have isn't a conflicted individual but a mediocre actor.

Indecision isn't what I'm talking about here. It's about a person who, out of one side of their mouth sings your praises while out of the other, tears you down...kind of like the first Caesar. "Oh, aren't those Senators great--they just awarded me the title of Augustus..I love those guys...," yet the next day, he'd easily send some of his Praetorian Guard to go break some Senate-neck. Scary. But not psychotic. That's kind of an excuse we offer when we don't want to admit we've been fooled. Like in poker--it's a lot like life. We think we see one thing and when we're wrong, we can lose big time.  To save face, we pretend that the other person or persons who fooled us "didn't seem to be" whatever we HOPED them to be. When all it really adds up to is that the other person had a really good poker-face.

So keep that little life-lesson in mind as we move through the month of August, named after a "great" man whose greatness was only defined by the ruthless power he held over others. It was like he had a permanent royal flush...or august flush, if you prefer.

And don't take this wrong way--like emulating that kind of behavior can get you where you want to go, because no matter how history records your actions, the truth is out there. If you're a jerk, you'll always be a jerk. And people like me will see it, know it, and tell others. Though the rewards seem smaller, trust me, being a "good" person is the wild card in your hand. Five of a KIND always beats a royal flush...and by KIND, I don't just mean grace in friendship and language, I mean consistency--the type that corrupt power will ALWAYS lose to. Even if, sometimes, history tends to leave out that small detail of truth....

Enjoy your final weeks of summer! Head to the ocean one last time, swim in its depths, refresh and renew yourself for the FALL. Ironically, you may find yourself being offered more apples than you want to recognize. ;)

Until next time, dearest readers!