True Blood Season 7 Blu-ray Review
Brad Sturdivant
November 16th, 2014
I liked ‘True Blood’ when it first came out. I thought it had a great premise, with great acting, good writing and fun characters. So I was as sad as anyone to see what I thought was a great show tumble into an unwatchable mess after only a few seasons. Before starting each season, I wrestled with the decision in my head of either giving up on the show or fighting through it in hopes it would get better. Much to my dismay, it never got better until the final season, which made just a few tiny, tiny improvements.
When the show was in Bon Temps, it did pretty well, but as each subsequent season started adding supernatural characters and new settings, the show just lost itself completely. I feel like the seventh season recognized that and tried to bring the action back to Bon Temps, where Bill is suffering from the virus and the town is about to be attacked by infected vampires. So Jason, Sookie, Bill and others are now confined to their hometown, where they decide to make a stand and defend themselves and their town. Everyone is there except for Eric and Pam, who are off doing their own thing with a corporation that has a cure for the virus.
Maybe I’m numb from the ridiculousness of the show, but the storylines in the final season seemed more grounded and relatable than in previous seasons. I would hesitate to say I actually care about anything going on, but at least we were given some side stories that moved along quickly and gave us some closure to some of the characters we had stuck it out with for seven years. The highlight in the seventh season was the storyline of Erik and Pam. I’m not sure if the showrunners were aware enough to know that Eric and Pam were lightyears more interesting than any other character or if they just lucked out, but separating them from the rest of the group and giving them their own story was the best decision of the seventh season. In fact, I enjoyed their story and banter so much that I would actually welcome a spinoff that focused on their characters. Alexander Skarsgård was consistently the brightest spot of the show and the last season was no exception.
As for the ending…well…it was too little, too late. They had already murdered Bill’s character in the seasons leading up to this, so it was hard to find any real sympathy with his demise. It didn’t feel like anything was planned out and instead, his and Sookie’s ending felt more like a last second effort to redeem Bill and close out the annoying relationship they had. To be honest, I was more disappointed/sad with what they did with Alcide since after Skarsgård, I thought Joe Manganiello was the next brightest star. His demise was a bigger loss to the show by season seven than Bill’s.
At this point, everyone hates on ‘True Blood’ because it either didn’t go where they wanted it or overstayed its welcome. For me, ‘True Blood’ should have ended a few seasons ago and although the final season was better than the last several, it wasn’t enough to make up for so many misguided storylines and lost potential. There is a part of me that’s sad to see the show go, if only because I kept hoping it could regain some of the glory of its first season.
BLU-RAY REVIEW
Video: ‘True Blood’ still looks amazing on Blu-ray, making it one of the best looking shows on HBO, which is saying quite a bit.
Audio: The audio is equally impressive.
Commentaries on five episodes: Stars Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin show up on the last episode to give a commentary and of the five commentaries, theirs is the best. Fans of the show will enjoy hearing them reflect positively on their experiences on the show and the last episode.
A Farewell to Bon Temps (27:46): Everyone shows up to talk about how much they love the show and how great it was to be a part of it.
True Death: The Final Days on Set (15:01): This focuses on the last 30 days on set of ‘True Blood” as everyone gets emotional knowing it’s almost over.
True Blood Lines: An interactive character map
