egads! Torchwood. I so wanted to like that show... But the characters were so friggin annoying... and the man-kissin-man scenes were so obviously gratituous, I just usually rolled my eyes. I thought the writing on there was just bad; and more people needed to die off.
Sin --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "Adrianne Brennan" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > I love the show, and I think what is hurting it isn't the actors but the > uneven writing--which is pretty much what happened to Torchwood during its > first season. > I am hoping that they'll clean that part up and have a FANTASTIC second > season. The show has a lot of potential, and I'm frankly hooked. > > ~ "Where love and magic meet" ~ > http://www.adriannebrennan.com > Take a bite out of Blood and Mint Chocolates: > http://www.adriannebrennan.com/bamc.html > Experience the magic of Blood of the Dark Moon on 12/2: > http://www.adriannebrennan.com/botdm.html > > > On Fri, Nov 21, 2008 at 3:19 PM, brent wodehouse < > [EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > > http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2008/11/true- blood-hbo.html > > > > 'True Blood' amps up the enjoyable vamp antics as its finale approaches > > > > > > OK, fine, "True Blood" fans. I give up. You win. > > > > I like this show. > > > > And yet. Those of you who've been e-mailing me telling me that "True > > Blood," which airs its season finale 8 p.m. Sunday, is your favorite show > > -- I can't say I agree. > > > > But the friends and readers who've been saying the HBO show has finally > > become the escapist vamp potboiler that was lurking inside the somewhat > > pretentious show we first saw back in September -- yes, I agree with that > > assessment. Though it's not perfect, "True Blood" has improved a lot. Dare > > I say it no longer needs a transfusion? > > > > There are so many things about "True Blood" I can still pick apart, and I > > mentioned many of them in my initial review. > > > > As Sookie Stackhouse, a woman in love with a courtly vampire, the miscast > > Anna Paquin is often the least interesting part of this show. The show's > > melodrama veers into laughable Southern Gothic at times (Demon exorcisms? > > Really?). There are plenty of plot holes that you could drive a hearse > > through. The show's vampire mythology is contradictory, if not downright > > chaotic. > > > > And don't start me on the variable accents on this show: In the Watcher > > household, a favorite pastime is imitating all the weird ways various > > characters on the show pronounce the name "Sookie." > > > > On the other hand, lately, "True Blood" has been doing a lot of things > > right; in the last three or four episodes, in particular, it has gotten > > markedly better. > > > > Perhaps because of the obvious lack of charisma between Sookie and her > > vampire lover, Bill (the fine Stephen Moyer), the show has been adding > > terrific guest actors left and right. And it's focused on the one > > through-line that unites the show's disparate elements: The mystery of > > who's been murdering women in Bon Temps, La. > > > > A few weeks ago, the wonderful Stephen Root showed up as a gay vampire > > accountant (and that's the first time I have ever written those three > > words in a row). His character didn't resemble the mostly predictable > > vamps on this show, which have tended to favor eyeliner, leather pants and > > wanton murder. He was a lonely, soft-spoken guy who thought becoming a > > bloodsucker would spice up his life -- but it didn't, at least not the way > > he thought it would. > > > > Sookie's dim brother, the eternally shirtless Jason (Ryan Kwanten), used > > to be one of my least favorite characters. But recent developments > > involving Jason, Root's character and Amy, the hippie-dippie psycho played > > by the excellent Lizzy Caplan, did a lot to amp up Jason's story line, and > > it even gave Kwanten the chance to prove he can do more than take off his > > shirt. > > > > As if that weren't enough, in recent weeks the show featured two > > "Homicide" veterans I would watch read from the telephone book: Michelle > > Forbes, of HBO's "In Treatment," and Zeljko Ivanek, who won an Emmy for > > his work on FX's "Damages." They're two of the best character actors > > working now, and Ivanek in particular was terrific as the Magister, the > > final adjudicator of vampire disputes. If anyone could make sitting in a > > chair in the back of a truck transfixing, Ivanek could. > > > > Forbes' role is less clear -- her mysterious character just took in > > Sookie's troubled friend, Tara (Rutina Wesley) -- but I dearly hope that > > if there is a second season of "True Blood," Forbes is in it. Ditto for > > Alexander Skarsgard (Iceman in "Generation Kill"), who plays Eric, the > > quietly intimidating "sheriff" to Southern vampires. > > > > In addition to loading up the show with a terrific array of guest actors, > > "True Blood" features one of the best supporting casts around. As Tara, > > Wesley has given what could have been a grating character a lot of > > anguished depth, and I once again have to single out Nelsan Ellis, whose > > Lafayette is one of my favorite TV characters right now. Sam Trammell has > > also been providing solid support as the amiable bar owner Sam Merlotte > > (though I still don't understand why either Sam or Bill is attracted to > > the huffy Sookie). > > > > I don't know if this development follows the progress of Charlaine Harris' > > Stackhouse novels, on which the series is based, but "True Blood" has > > wisely opened up the world of the show beyond vampires, a territory that > > his been well trod in books, TV and movies for decades now. There are > > shapeshifters in Sookie's world, and other beings with strange powers have > > been hinted at as well. (One thing the show has not handled all that well: > > Sookie's own psychic powers, which figured prominently early in the season > > but have been barely mentioned in recent weeks.) > > > > Though it still has its self-indulgent moments, "True Blood" has picked up > > its pace admirably and now boasts more tension than the lackluster current > > season of Showtime's "Dexter." (Dare I say "True Blood" has sucked the > > life out of "Dexter"? Sorry, that may be one pun too many). > > > > An HBO representative says that viewership for the show has increased > > dramatically over the last couple of months (for more on that, check out > > this AP story). But even before those numbers went up, the network had > > renewed "True Blood" for a second season, which now looks like a wise move > > (and a necessary one -- the finale, the HBO representative said, contains > > a couple of cliffhangers). > > > > All in all, this drama is on its way to becoming what creator Alan Ball > > originally promised: A sexy, well-acted soap opera about bloodsuckers and > > the people who love them. > > > > > > ------------------------------------ > > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > > > >
