By the time season two of HBO’s True Blood ended, fans were already restless in anticipation of season three. After Maryann the maenad was defeated by Sam, Bon Temps, LA seemed to be getting back into their own strange sense of normalcy. That is, until vampire Bill mysteriously disappears just moments after proposing to Sookie. Season two left fans hanging with a very frantic Sookie desperately calling out for her beloved beau. It seems that True Blood is just as addictive as V.
Season three begins with Sookie (Anna Paquin) doing everything in her power to track down Bill (Stephen Moyer), which includes turning to Eric (Alexander Skarsgård) for help when werewolves get involved. Yes, werewolves. Sookie finds out that Bill is being held captive by Russell, the Vampire King of Mississippi, so she and her new werewolf friend Alcide (Joe Manganiello) head to Mississippi to rescue him.
In Mississippi, Bill has found himself in quite the predicament. While being held captive by Russell, he’s reunited with his maker Lorena and the two of them resume their sadomasochistic love relationship. Russell has grand schemes to become the vampire king of the entire country, and he wants to take down everyone who crosses his path. Russell’s mansion in Mississippi takes on a life of its own as almost a very swanky prison; it seems there’s almost no escape for anyone.
Back in Bon Temps, Sam (Sam Trammell) has set out to find his real parents. When he does, he finds out that they’re shifters just like him; and he has a brother. Taking pity on him, Sam brings his brother back to Merlotte’s and gives him a job. Sam has also given Jessica a job, as she’s trying to find her place without Bill around. Poor Jessica is also dealing with Hoyt, who has broken up with her and is seeing another girl.
Meanwhile, Jason (Ryan Kwanten) has joined the police force and teams up with Andy Belfleur. Jason also finds himself in love with a mysterious girl named Crystal who comes from a family of were-panthers. Tara (Rutina Wesley) is reeling from the death of Eggs at the end of season 2, and in her fragile state, becomes glamoured by an emotionally unstable vampire named Franklin. Franklin holds Tara as his own personal hostage, what could be considered in the name of love.
True Blood season two was a bit of an exhausting affair, what with all of the shenanigans surrounding Maryann. While that season was a little more focused on that one very big storyline set almost entirely in Bon Temps, season three finds our main characters scattered all over the South and involved in individual storylines of their own. Season three also introduces more supernatural characters like werewolves, were-panthers, and witches. Sookie’s heritage is also revealed, explaining her supernatural abilities to hear people’s thoughts and to shoot light from her hands.
Season three also seems to delve deeper into the sleazy elements of the show that make it such a guilty pleasure. There’s more nudity, twisted sex (and in one particular sex scene, a character is literally twisted), drug use, and violence than ever before. In fact, in the commentary on episode seven, during one quiet scene Anna Paquin remarks, “Isn’t this the ONE TIME in the episode where someone isn’t bloody?”
After only three seasons, True Blood has turned into a full-fledged phenomenon. During the show’s hiatus between seasons, fans tweet their favorite moments from the show along with the hashtag #TBWithdrawal. The characters have become popular Halloween costumes. Season four premieres on Sunday June 26 and will be loosely based on the fourth book in Charlaine Harris’ series “Dead To The World”, and the countdown has already begun. Even if the vampire sub-genre may be suffering due to over-saturation, True Blood never fails to deliver on every level.
HBO always does a phenomenal job with their Blu-ray packaging and extras, and True Blood Season Three is no different. Every episode on the discs can be watched with the option of “Enhanced Viewing” which features pop up commentary by some of the characters, flashback/flashforward options, and pop up trivia, hints, bios, and FYI’s. The only complaint I have is that the font they use is so small, I had to sit directly in front of my TV to read everything.
Here’s a breakdown of the episodes and extras found on each disc:
Disc 1:
Episode 1 – Bad Blood
Episode 2 – Beautifully Broken
Post Mortems
Episode 1 – This feature tells about the reasoning for using real wolves as the werewolves. (2:02)
Episode 2 – A fake 16 mm short film claiming to be shown to US soldiers during WWII about the Nazis involvement with werewolves. Funny!
Episode 2 – Anatomy Of A Scene – This really cool feature shows us how they did the werewolf transformation effect. (10:12)
Series Recap – (Found in the Episode Index) Lafayette gives a complete recap of the first two seasons. This is a must watch, even if you’re already familiar. Lafayette is genius! (4:54)
Commentary
Episode 2 – With Alexander Skarsgård and Scott Winant (director)
Disc 2:
Episode 3 – It Hurts Me Too
Episode 4 – 9 Crimes
Episode 5 – Trouble
Post Mortems
Episode 3 – Joe Manganiello (Alcide) talks about True Blood werewolf lore. (2:00)
Episode 4 – An INS agent interrogates a vampire wanting to immigrate to the US. (2:04)
Episode 5 – A commercial for a fake TV show called Digging For the Dirt, where a Steve Irwin-style scientist finds Eric’s dad’s remains. Great stuff! (0:47)
Commentary
Episode 3 – Alexander Woo (writer) and Michael Lehmann (director)
Episode 4 – Kristin Bauer Van Straten (Pam) and David Petrarca (director) – Note – I especially was looking forward to listening to this commentary since I love Pam so much, and it was the most boring commentary I think I’ve ever heard. All they do is say things like, “Oh I love her, isn’t she great?” “He’s just spectacular, isn’t he?” And then David Petrarca talks over Kristin every time she tries to say anything. Terrible.
Disc 3:
Episode 6 – I Got A Right To Sing The Blues
Episode 7 – Hitting The Ground
Episode 8 – Night In The Sun
Post Mortems
Episode 6 – A clip from Sunday Morning With McGafferty (3:57)
Episode 7 – A funny trailer in memorium of Bill and Lorena’s relationship (1:27)
Episode 8 – A really cute video called “How To Survive A Werewolf Attack” for vampires. (1:52)
Commentary
Episode 6 – Alan Ball (show creator) and Denis O’Hare (Russell)
Episode 7 – Anna Paquin (Sookie), Joe Manganiello (Alcide), and Brian Buckner (director) – Note – Commentary for episode 4 is the one NOT to watch, but if there’s only one commentary you listen to, make it this one. They have such a good time with it and tell really funny behind the scenes stories. “Are there straight up were-chickens?” THIS is how you do an entertaining commentary track.
Disc 4:
Episode 9 – Everything Is Broken
Episode 10 – I Smell A Rat
Episode 11 – Fresh Blood
Post Mortems
Episode 9 – A breaking news story on the McCafferty murder. (0:37)
Episode 10 – “Praise His Light” with the Reverend Steve Newlin. I love this guy, he’s just so crazy. This is another must-watch extra. (3:02)
Episode 11 – A really great featurette on how the show views fairies. (2:13)
Disc 5:
Episode 12 – Evil Is Going On
Commentary
Episode 12 – Stephen Moyer, Anthony Hemingway (director)
Complete Character Perspectives – This will show you the complete character perspective by a specific character for the Enhanced Viewing feature, and is shown seamlessly for the whole season. This takes quite awhile to get through. I’d recommend just watching the episodes with Enhanced Viewing, especially if you’ve already seen them before.
“Oh Sookie” Music Video by Snoop Dogg
If you’re a True Blood junkie (like myself), this blu-ray will be a must own. The audio and video quality is amazing, and the enhanced viewing feature alone will help you pass many a lazy Sunday afternoon. True Blood is a cleverly crafted show that gets more and more addicting with each episode. This Blu-ray is a delicious shot of V to tide you over until Season 4 premieres on June 26.
HBO Home Video presents True Blood: The Complete Third Season. Directed by: Various Starring: Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgard, Rutina Wesley, Ryan Kwanten, Joe Magnaniello. Written by: Various. Running time: 720 minutes. Rating: TV-MA. Released on Blu-ray: May 31, 2011. Available at Amazon.com.
