Have you ever seen something that was so over the top ridiculous that it was funny, but were hesitant to laugh because you're sure it was supposed to be serious? That's basically True Blood.
True Blood has a lot of the set up of a play: with silly over acting and a brightly lit set despite most of the story taking place at night. Even the film work feels a little theatrical, looking like something in a cheap B-movie. All these elements also make the show feel like a satire - which is kind of sad considering I'm pretty sure this is supposed to be a serious drama.
The characters are silly and weird at the same time. A lot of the times they have these knee-jerk reactions, which is most prominent whenever two characters get into an argument. The fights usually have little to no provocation (Sookie and Tara), and I assume they all suffer short-term memory loss because when the characters meet again the fight has been forgotten. Most of them are pretty easily swayed, so if one character tries to talk another into doing something chances are it'll only take a few sentences to convince them.
The plot itself is silly, with vampires serving as such a heavy-handed metaphor for homosexuality that it can get a little ridiculous. This also can be frustrating since the metaphor falls flat on its face at times, since the only nice reoccurring vampire is Bill - but even he's an ass at times. The plot also has quite a few holes in it - particularly whenever vampire weaknesses are brought up. Considering how fast information travels, I doubt that vampires would be able to keep their weaknesses secret.
So, yeah, True Blood can't really be taken as a drama - but it's a fantastic comedy. Granted, I've only seen the first season - but what I've seen so far has been fun to watch. While I feel a lot of the hype comes from the vampire fever that's been going around, True Blood is definitely worth checking out if you're looking for laughs.
An Amazing Comedy
If only the comedy part was intentional.
Have you ever seen something that was so over the top ridiculous that it was funny, but were hesitant to laugh because you're sure it was supposed to be serious? That's basically True Blood.
True Blood has a lot of the set up of a play: with silly over acting and a brightly lit set despite most of the story taking place at night. Even the film work feels a little theatrical, looking like something in a cheap B-movie. All these elements also make the show feel like a satire - which is kind of sad considering I'm pretty sure this is supposed to be a serious drama.
The characters are silly and weird at the same time. A lot of the times they have these knee-jerk reactions, which is most prominent whenever two characters get into an argument. The fights usually have little to no provocation (Sookie and Tara), and I assume they all suffer short-term memory loss because when the characters meet again the fight has been forgotten. Most of them are pretty easily swayed, so if one character tries to talk another into doing something chances are it'll only take a few sentences to convince them.
The plot itself is silly, with vampires serving as such a heavy-handed metaphor for homosexuality that it can get a little ridiculous. This also can be frustrating since the metaphor falls flat on its face at times, since the only nice reoccurring vampire is Bill - but even he's an ass at times. The plot also has quite a few holes in it - particularly whenever vampire weaknesses are brought up. Considering how fast information travels, I doubt that vampires would be able to keep their weaknesses secret.
So, yeah, True Blood can't really be taken as a drama - but it's a fantastic comedy. Granted, I've only seen the first season - but what I've seen so far has been fun to watch. While I feel a lot of the hype comes from the vampire fever that's been going around, True Blood is definitely worth checking out if you're looking for laughs.