TV REVIEW: True Blood “Lost Cause”

Every show has their share of messy relationships filled with toxicity that will harm a group of characters or story development. And there’s nothing more fans love than a juicy relationship to turn the tables on a television show. Most people wouldn’t strive to emulate these circumstances in real life, but on TV it can make for one fantastic episode. That is why I love True Blood’s James and Lafayette. Not because I stand behind the actions these characters took on their journey to the path they’ve wound up on, but because it’s just so damn entertaining to watch and the chemistry is contagious. These are two characters that have broken the tight bounds of conventional emotion and decisions. These are two characters that have grown organically just within a very short period of time.

But I’m jumping ahead of myself because True Blood’s fifth installment of the final season, entitled “Lost Cause,” was anything but. There was death, destruction, and a very weird party, all things that have proven to make an episode of True Blood truly fantastic.

Lafayette’s solution to all the recent deaths plaguing Bon Temps was to throw a booze-filled bash at Sookie’s place. He took it upon himself to invite the whole town over to enjoy some top-shelf liquor and pure debauchery. Sookie was less than thrilled that her request to not be left alone was taken as a “please invite the whole town over to make poor life decisions at my house!” kind of invitation. Thankfully, two beautiful speeches given by Alcide’s father and Tara’s mother were a kick starter for Sookie to realize that she could still mourn her loved ones and enjoy herself, even if it meant drinking away all her sorrows. In Lafayette’s words it was a “f*ck you to death, hello to life” type of night and everyone was due for at least ten drinks.

Image © HBO

But like all Bon Temps parties (seriously, have these people learned that nothing good ever comes out of their parties?) chaos ensued. James and Lafayette (finally) hooked up, getting caught by Jessica mid thrust; Jason and Jessica reconnected; Lettie Mae stabbed Willa for her blood, still claiming that Tara was trying to communicate with her in the afterlife; and Andy proposed to Holly, rendering Adilyn and Holly’s son to be stepsiblings. The gold star of the night went to Nicole, though, as she lashed out on the entire party, chastising them for celebrating death so nonchalantly and pointing out that no other town would throw such a weird party. For the towns folk of Bon Temps it was just a normal Saturday.

Skipping the party were Eric and Pam. Eric demanded Willa join them on their Sarah Newlin quest but Willa refused, stating that Tara had been more of a maker to her than Eric ever was. Eric couldn’t argue with Willa and instead released her in exchange for information on Sarah Newlin’s possible whereabouts. Lucky for them Willa knew that Sarah’s sister was alive and well, sort of. The sister that no one knew anything about was living in Texas as a vampire. It was off to Dallas.

Eric and Pam quickly discovered where Sarah might be hiding and her Hep-V infected sister would gladly give them a helping hand. Her parents were set to attend a highbrow, Republican thrown bash and Sarah was sure to be stalking her parents out at the party. Eric and Pam dressed in their best “Republi-c*nt” wear and headed off to find Sarah. Sarah’s sister’s information turned out to be correct, as Sarah had stalked out her parents, waiting for them secretly in the party’s bathroom. Unfortunately, Pam and Eric weren’t the only non-invited guests with the right information. The Yakuza had done their homework as well and began murdering party folk, including both of Sarah’s parents. Eric was going to be damn sure he was the one to rid of Sarah and murdered the Yakuza members in cold blood.

Back in Louisiana, the scene of everyone getting ridiculously drunk had incited more flashbacks for Bill. He remembered his human days once more and the wife and children he had before the war and his life as a vampire. His flashbacks were odd and even more oddly placed, but it all became clear in the last minutes of the episode as Bill discovered that he had somehow been infected with Hep-V.

Quick Thoughts:

James and Lafayette’s blooming relationship is anything but healthy yet I can’t shake my attraction to the pair and their connection.

Violet hearing Jason and Jessica’s sexy time noises will probably end in the death of one of these three characters. My bet is on Violet as her brash behavior and inability to empathize are a formula for disaster.

Poor Ginger.

KEITH KEITH KEITH!

I was devastated when Eric released Willa. I was really hoping for the father/daughter relationship that Bill and Jessica display, but alas.

I’ll just assume that were only an episode or two away from finding a cure for Eric and Bill now that almost all the key vampires seem to be knocking on death’s door.

“I’m not a monster, I’m a Buddhist!” – words you never imagined Sarah Newlin would ever speak.