Wednesday, July 10, 2013

My Review of True Blood's 6x04: "At Last"


Written by Alexander Woo
Directed by Anthony Hemingway

Sookie (to Ben): “Get the fuck off me or die, Warlow.”

Aren’t closing moments like this almost an anti-cliff-hanger of sorts? Not that I didn’t enjoy it but Sookie nearly getting naked with Ben before letting him know that she was aware of his real identity was certainly the opposite of the usual type of cliff-hanger we’d get on the show.

It’s a nicely gratifying moment though as we saw in the episode how Sookie pieced things together with Ben being Warlow and how she went to good lengths to trap him as well. I do think informing both Jason and Niall of her master plan might have been a good idea too but at least Sookie was on a roll this week.

The reveal about Ben being Warlow was hardly a shock but it actually was quite satisfying to watch. In this episode alone, he got both Jason and Niall out of his hair but in a merciful way. He made Jason forget everything instead of killing him and he spared Niall yet again, even if he did shove him into that dimension he was trapped in for the last twenty years himself.

Now I’m really curious as to why Ben/Warlow actually wants with Sookie. She basically asked him the question as well and he gave her some spiel about wanting to belong but obviously there has to be more to it than that, right? More to the point – a fairy/vampire hybrid?

Personally I think it’s actually rather a neat twist and given that previous episodes alluded to it, not one that feels off about Ben/Warlow either. In some ways, he’s got the best and worst elements of being both but at the same time, he’s going to be massively hard I assume to get rid of over the coming weeks as well.

This season has certainly breathed a lot of new life into the characters but for the vampires, it’s almost like this episode went out of it’s way to prove that Burrell has a point about wanting them dead. Eric more than proved this point when he decided to make Willa into a vampire and send her back to Burrell.

It was nice that Burrell showed some genuine conflict upon seeing Willa being turned (times like this, I like being proved wrong) but with Sarah in his ear and Willa trying to attack him, it doesn’t look like Burrell will be giving up his vendetta towards those with fangs anytime soon. Thanks to Eric, Burrell will probably be a lot worse in the remainder of the season.

I mentioned in my previous review about the double standards in fandom surrounding Eric and this episode highlighted it again. I get that people adore the character but the fact that some did try to rationalise what he actually done to Willa, yet berate Bill for his similarly reckless actions this week does smack of hypocrisy to be honest.

Speaking of Bill – he was both right and wrong in this episode. His idea of trying to synthesise fairy blood in order to save vampires isn’t a bad idea but using Andy’s daughters in order to do it wasn’t too smart either. I really did think that it was going to be Bill who would drain the girls dry. Having Jessica do it after her desperate attempts of trying to keep the girls safe only made it more sad. And I’m saying this as someone who doesn’t actually like Andy’s daughters. The teenage versions we had in this episode were super annoying that I hope we never see them again but I have a feeling they’re not dead though.

Last but not least – Ginger, Pam and Nora were snatched by Burrell’s goons a little too quickly, weren’t they? I guess the pieces of Bill’s doom laden prophecy are coming true and it won’t be long before Eric, Jessica and Tara are next on the list. Why do I get the feeling one of these characters might not make it out of this season alive?

Also in “At Last”

Ben gave Jason some of his blood to drink and we got a delightfully homoerotic shaving dream with the pair of them.

Burrell (to his men): “Get those choppers in the air. I want this town to light up like a Christmas tree.”

The annoying clerk from “Strange Love” was in this episode when Jessica acquired Andy’s daughters.

Andy (to his daughters): “No telepathy. It’s illegal in these parts and that’s coming from the Sherriff of this parish.”

Ben: “You haven’t done this before, have you?”
Jason: “No, not really.”
Ben: “Just relax. Do it like you do it to yourself.”

Ben can’t seem to drink fairy blood and he also seemed immune to silver (which Sookie laced in his dinner). I wonder when he dies if he’ll go to dust or goo.

Willa: “Why did you choose me?”
Eric: “You deserve to be one of us.”

Ben: “It’s a date.”
Sookie: “I didn’t say that, now did I?”

Sam and Nicole had sex in this episode and it seems that Sarah and Burrell are sleeping together as well. There’s some speculation that she’s pregnant too. Also, what’s happened to Steve?

Ben: “Go to work, do your job.”
Jason: “Okay.”
Ben: “Stay away from Sookie’s place tonight, we have plans.”

The werewolves are getting increasingly boring this season and I’m not liking Alcide too much either, though I did appreciate him taking Rikki down a peg or two.

Willa: “You did this to me to get back at him. You took my life.”
Eric: “Just as he’s taken so many of ours.”

Standout music: Etta James’s “At Last” of course.

Niall: “No, there, no.”
Ben: “I survived twenty years. I’m sure a King can survive longer.”

Chronology: Pretty much from where “You’re No Good” left off.

“At Last” lived up to it’s title and delivered the Warlow plot with some aplomb. I can’t wait to see where he’s going to go in the next few weeks and with the likes Bilith and Burrell, surely Warlow/Ben is going to face off with them soon, right?

Rating: 9 out of 10

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