I don’t watch soap operas. I don’t judge those who do; they just don’t provide any real form of entertainment for me. I admit that I used to be an avid fan of ‘Days of our Lives,’ but that was back in my teenage years, which seem like eons ago. Although surprisingly enough, ‘True Blood’ is sort of like a soap opera, especially in terms of the characters and how they relate to each other. They’re just so polarizing!
OK, I admit – in a real soap opera the girls don’t try to rip each other’s throats out with their fangs, so there are some serious differences. But I can feel such a strong pull toward the characters that I haven’t felt since my soap opera days… some I love, some I hate and others I wish would just go away.
So who do I love? Tara Thorton, hands down. This girl is awesome. She says what she wants, does what she wants and doesn’t give a you-know-what about the opinions of others. She’s had a rough life: raised by a drunken mother, endured the death of her boyfriend, Eggs, at the hands of her best friend’s brother, raped and tortured by a vampire, and the list goes on. She’s very angry and her wounds run deep. Despite her tough exterior there’s a soft side that longs to come out. The walls she’s barricaded around her heart are thick though, and vulnerability doesn’t come easy for her.
Very much like Peter Dinklage of ‘Game of Thrones,’ Tara is a scene stealer. She has the best lines, and she’s the funniest of the Bon Temps bunch. Much of her humor is sarcastic, and being from Jersey myself I totally appreciate and enjoy good ol’ sarcasm when I hear it.
She’s strong and independent – qualities I definitely appreciate.
Well, now we move on to the character I hate the most. Insert Bill Compton. Last year I watched the entire show on HBO On Demand to catch up to season 3. Throughout that time I had really grown to like Bill Compton. I would watch him and think to myself, “What a southern gentleman…how polite and respectful he is, especially to Sookie.” Then I witnessed the finale of season 3 and that illusion came crashing down.
Say what you will, but based on the evidence Eric presented to Sookie on her porch that night, Bill never had Sookie’s best interests at heart. He had her beaten so she’d come to him. He kept secret files on her family. He tried to secure her for the Queen of Louisiana. He drained her blood to the point of almost killing her. Does this sound like someone she can trust?
He’s conniving and manipulative; you never know what Bill’s got up his sleeves at any given time. He says he didn’t mean to cause Sookie harm, and that might be true. But the risks he took put her in direct danger which pretty much proves he didn’t put much thought into watching out for her.
Which now leaves us with our last category…who do I wish would just go away? Arlene Fowler. What I wouldn’t do for HBO to just eliminate her role already! Her nervous and fidgety nature is frustrating at best, and her obsession over the potential evilness of her baby is just annoying. Normally when I watch ‘True Blood’ I’m fully immersed in the episodes, but when the scene cuts to her and her “drama,” it’s just a rude interruption.
I will admit, I tried to like her. I know she’s a bit high strung; many people are. I thought perhaps I could look past that. I figured, she was tethered to a serial killer and I could understand how that could make one a bit…jumpy. But come on now. She’s constantly crying, making scenes, overreacting, etc. I’m pretty much done with her emotional outbursts.
But hey, don’t let my opinion be the only one that stands. Who do you love/hate in Bon Temps? Comment below!
