If Wishes Were Eric, Sookie Would Ride ~ Part 1

If Wishes Were Eric, Sookie Would Ride 

by Steph from FANGSWANDSANDFAIRYDUST.COM

Part 1 of 4 of

"Wrapping up the story lines from the last season of HBO's TRUE BLOOD."

Before Season Four of the HBO series TRUE BLOOD began last June 26 there were plenty of fans of Charlaine Harris' series who made it clear they were unhappy with the show's direction. Often cited were too many storylines and characters, as well as the deviation from the book series on which the shows were based, Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse Series nor the Souther Vampires Mystery series. The books focused on Sookie and her lovers, her brother Jason and her boss Same Merlotte. But it was almost all from Sookie's point of view. The TV show has had dozens of story lines and characters that do not occur in the book series. Most tie back to a book based storyline, but not all.

Mr.Northman (Photo credit: Daisy Terrified.)

TRUE BLOOD fans had long desired the hot relationship (found in the books) between Sookie and Eric to come to fruition on the screen. After all, we had had a long period when Bill rejected Sookie and then she became angry with him. But, there was no denying the magnetic attraction between the Sookie and Eric. In DEAD TO THE WORLD, book four of the series by Charlaine Harris upon which TRUE BLOOD is based, Eric suffers amnesia from a spell cast by witches who want to take over his business concerns. This occurs during a sensitive period and Eric needs to hide at Sookie's. They fall in love and commence a relationship. In the show, season four was to bring that to fruition. However, Alan Ball has never seemed too terribly concerned with the fans' desire to follow the books. I can understand why-it would be a short-lived series that followed books too closely. We might watch a mini-series, a movie or even a number of movies closely following a book or book series, but season after season of an HBO series with a direct correlation from the books? I don't know. Having made the allowance however, even critics felt the series was spread too thin and had left the original theme behind the book series behind. In fact, Eric and Sookie do hook up for much of the season. Unfortunately, he spends most of that time behaving like someone who suffered a traumatic brain injury or sometimes a child. While some fans found this endearing I thought the hook-up was kind of creepy because who has sex with someone who is thus damaged or not in their right mind?

 In TRUE BLOOD the Coven has a different agenda from that of the books. It is no less that magically causing all vampires everywhere to walk into the sun through necromancy. Because in Charlaine's books and the series the vampires are "dead," and so can be controlled by necromancers. Please note that what the coven ends up practicing is not Wicca. Now, in the books, there is no Lafayette so that entire story arc is gone. Of all the added story lines, LaFayette is the one liked best in my experience with fans. In this season, we had the season three's promise that LaFayette would be in a relationship with the hot male nurse Jesus. We also learned that Jesus was a witch and we knew that that relationship would cause Lafayette's nascent spooky powers to coalesce. We did not know that would be somehow caught up with Eric's witchy adventure. Also, not in the books is Arlene's relationship with Terry Bellefleur, Andy Bellefeur's shellshocked cousin. In TRUE BLOOD Arlene is in a committed relationship with him, and in season three we learned she was pregnant with her psychopathic ex's child. She assumes he will be demented or evil. It seems in season four that she is right and that something is wrong with the baby. That isn't quite it, but it also involves laFayette and his nascent powers. It turns out he is a medium. Let me backtrack a bit. At the end of season three, Sookie was upset because of her relationship with Bill and having learned she is part fairy, and a slew of issues, that she takes off to Faerie with her Fairy Godmother. There she meets Barry the Dallas psychic and her grandfather Earl who had disappeared some umpteen years prior. He thinks he has been in Faerie about two weeks. The fae are having a cocktail party of sorts offering Lightfruit. Most of the costuming seems to consist of old prom dresses, left over costumes from Merchant Ivory period films and Gladiator. Barry eats a fruit telling Sookie how delicious it is, and Gramps has had some as well. What's the first rule when you visit Faerie? Don't eat or drink their food or beverages! It tends to have some effect on you. In this case you can't leave. Sookie refuses to eat the fruit, and when the Faery Queen tries to force her, she uses one of her own nascent powers - a light bomb of sorts. It destroys the fae glamour revealing their (really) ugly side. The fae are collecting humans with some unrevealed agenda. Sookie and her grandfather escape dramatically but he dies right after they enter the human plane. What Sookie thought he was a couple of hours turns out to be 12 1/2 months. Everyone thought she was dead and thus her brother Jason sold her house to a real estate company, which turns out to be a front for Eric. Bill and Eric show up almost simultaneously on her return. They invent an excuse for her absence -that she was working for Bill. Ball is really good at connecting the pieces. So, Sookie and Eric are tied up with the witches who are tied up with Holly (another waitress at Merlotte's) and Jesus. Lafayette and Jesus are tied up with Arlene and Terry because of his mediumship. So, Eric is now Sookie's landlord. And he wants her. Bad. In return he offers her his protection (before his head-injury like amnesia).


I will tell you more in another post but here is what Eric tells Sookie when he shows up in her bedroom in the season four episodes one to two bridge (For full episode recaps please see my Season Four EPISODE ONE and EPISODE TWO recaps):

As Sookie is undressing for bed Eric shows up in her room, he tells her he doesn't need an invitation to come in because he owns the house and seems to believe she was part of the closing contract. She says she doesn't come with the house and he tells her that Eric tells her "Your blood tastes like freedom Sookie; like sunshine in a pretty blond bottle. And, while they may not know it, yet, that is what vampires smell when they smell you." This means other vampires will want her and he offers his protection. Sookie replies, "I'm willing to take my chances." She continues walking towards the kitchen, and he uses his speed again to get in front of her, and then Eric says, "I bought this house, because I care about you. If all I wanted was to taste your blood again, I could do it right now and there wouldn't be a thing you could do to stop me. But instead I am asking you to be mine." She turns away and says, "I could never be with you the way I was with Bill." Eric says, "The first time Bill declared you his, how did that make you feel." Sookie replies that it made her angry, and Eric says, "But safe?" Sookie considers and casts her eyes downward, He says, "You'll come around." She says, "You're not listening to a word I‘m saying." Eric immediately says, "I know you. There are two Sookie Stackhouses, one who still clings to the idea that she is merely human, and the other who is coming to grips with the fact that you are better than that." Sookie replies with snark, "And, what do you think is gonna' happen when I do come to grips with it, do you think my legs will just magically open for you?" "Well," he smiles. That was saucy-must have been fairy-Sookie talking. I like it when she comes out." Sookie grimaces, "And I‘m already sorry I said it." "Don't be," he says, "The more you let her speak for you the more likely you are to go on living. And, you want to live don't you?" Sookie, glances up and down, he made her think. "All done?" he continues, "I hope to hear from you real soon." He does that European, rise-up-a-bit-in-height, nod-the-head-mini-bow, sort of like a diplomat. He leaves the house through a squeaky screen door, saying back to her, I'll see to it that gets repaired." In the background you hear him fly off.


Find out what other story arcs were were developed in Season Four in my next post. Season 5 begins June 10.

*This is my first co-blog with Dana at READAHOLICS ANONYMOUS. In four shared posts I am wrapping up the story lines from the last season of HBO's TRUE BLOOD.

Steph will join us on 

May 17th, 19th and 21th 

for Parts 2, 3 & 4 

of True Blood' last season wrap up.

Please visit Steph @ FANGSWANDSANDFAIRYDUST.COM for more amazing book reviews and True Blood tidbits.