True Blood Most Watched HBO show since Sopranos Finale

The “True Blood” ratings are in, and they are huge. The Nielsen numbers show “True Blood” at 3.7 million viewers, which doesn’t account for DVR or time-shifted viewers – HBO estimates those bring the total to 5.1 million. It’s up 50% from the 2.4 million that watched last year’s season finale. It’s also the best showing for an HBO show since “The Sopranos” finale brought in over 11.9 million a couple years ago.

Even more good news – “True Blood” DVDs are currently number one on Amazon in DVD sales and on sale for $24.99.

This is huge for HBO, a network that looked on the brink of dropping way off after shows like “The Sopranos,” “Deadwood,” “The Wire,” and “Six Feet Under” ended their runs and replacements, like “John from Cincinnati,” failed to connect with an audience. It looks like Fantasy might be their new go to genre with the success of “True Blood” and George R. R. Martin’s anticipated “Game of Thrones” around the corner.

Instant Reaction: True Blood “Nothing But the Blood,” 6/14/09

“Doesn’t it always seem like you’re apologizing or yelling at me?” Sam Merlotte said to Sookie in the “True Blood” season 2 premiere.   Yikes.  He basically nailed the biggest flaw of the first season.  Sookie is petty, whiny and snotty.  For someone that can read others’ thoughts, she has very little empathy.  At times it’s hard to watch.   Hopefully that bit of dialogue means that the writers are aware of this problem.

And with that one line, Sam became a more complex and interesting character.  It also marked the first time in the show that someone got the best of an argument with Sookie, which is pretty unbelievable considering how irrational she is.  Still, it was a step in the right direction.

The show seems to be taking a more complex track altogether.  The first season focused almost entirely on the murder mystery and Sookie and Bill’s romance with the subplots left a bit messy.  This year’s debut introduced much clearer long term storylines for Lafayette, Jason, Bill, Jessica, Sam and Tara (though Eric’s role is admittedly mysterious at this point).  Even the two cops seem to have a defined conflict and purpose.  Plus Bud had a spectacular square dancing shirt.

Signs of progress in the sophomore year? Yes.  Still, “True Blood” needs to make Sookie more endearing or they risk losing a huge portion of the audience.  After all, only about 50% of the population is going to be won over by hot vampires.

Also of note:  the episode opens with something of a big twist for Charlaine Harris fans.  The body discovered in the back of the car outside of Merlotte’s that served as the cliffhanger of the 1st season?  It’s not Lafayette like it is in the books.  Nope.  It’s Miss Jeanatte of insane (and fake) exorcism fame.

Tonight’s the Night: True Blood Season 2

Season 2 of “True Blood” premieres tonight at 9 pm. We’ve gathered up a slew of videos and pics to satisfy your blood lust over those last few hours. We’ll also have an instant response up tonight shortly after the episode airs, so be sure to check back.

Here Stephen Moyer goes way out of his way (and well off the red carpet) to pose for photos and sign autographs for fans. He actually seems like a really nice guy:

Hollywood Access interviews several key cast members at the S2 premiere in LA:

HBO’s S2 Trailer:

Photos:

Remember to check back tonight for the TV Casualties instant response to “Nothing but the Blood,” the S2 opener of “True Blood“.

Entourage, Season 5: The Decline and Fall of Vincent Chase

“They made me feel like a piece of meat sitting with a big star,” Irina Voronina said of her time with the “Entourage” cast as a guest star. Maybe this show is more realistic than I realized.

Season 5 of “Entourage” opens with a bearded and broke Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) relaxing on a beach in Mexico. “Medellin,” the indie movie about Pablo Escobar he risked everything for, failed to find a distributor and embarrassed him at Cannes. The outlook for his career is bleaker than ever.

Somewhere along the way, though, “Entourage” stopped being solely about Vince’s successes and failures as an actor. So while Vinny sulks in the sand, Eric (Kevin Connolly) and Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon) are back in LA working. Ari (Jeremy Piven) faces another major career choice this year, and even Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) witnesses some major events with the potential for real character development going forward.

TV Casualties Rating: out of 5

Created by: Doug Ellin

Starring: Adrian Grenier, Kevin Dillon, Jeremy Piven

Season Premiere: 09/07/08

DVD Release: 06/30/09

Nielsen Rating: 2.0 million viewers

Metacritic Score: 71/100

That said, the 5th installment takes some time to really get going. Early episodes seem to have slightly more gimmick-y elements (like Turtle working as Drama’s assistant for one day), and the fireworks don’t really blow until the last 4 or 5 shows of the year. (The notable exception is the mushroom episode, which, despite being one of the clearest gimmicks all year, made me laugh.) The last half of the year may be the strongest stretch in the history of the series as Vince’s quest for a comeback takes some odd turns.

The cast is the same as always. As usual, Ari and Drama provide most of the laughs. (We picked Kevin Dillon to win the Emmy. If he does, it’d make it 4 in a row for “Entourage” in the supporting category as Piven has landed the last 3 in a row.) I’ve found Connolly annoying in the past, but at this point, I think he makes a decent straight man for the group. Grenier was too sunny to pull off the doom and gloom at the beginning of the season. He showed enough fire down the stretch, though, to even things out.

Channel Surfing: Thrones casting, the Late Night Ratings War, and a new face for Tara

Here comes TV news at Twitter speed:

Showtime announced that Viola Davis signed on for a significant guest spot on season 2 of “United States of Tara.” The network also renewed its brand new Edie Falco series, “Nurse Jackie,” based on the strength of the ratings and critical response of its debut episode.

Letterman beat Conan in the ratings on Tuesday night, which seemed a surprise considering the hype O’Brien got over his “Tonight Show” entrance.  Conan moved back on top last night.

Maurissa Tancharoen annouced via her twitter account that two former “Reaper” writers/producers have joined the “Dollhouse” team – Michell Fazekas and Tara Butters. The news doesn’t come as a huge surprise as the pair had inked a 2 year deal with Fox a while back.

George R.R. Martin said on his livejournal that Cyanide Studios have bought the rights to make next gen console and PC games based on his “Song of Ice and Fire” series. He also said that casting is underway in London, Ireland and LA for HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”   (Check out our Thrones dream cast here if you missed it.)

Zoë Green will write the George Clooney produced Sci-Fi Channel project, “The Diamond Age.” According to the Variety report, Green has forthcoming Rob Reiner and Stan Lee projects.  “The Diamond Age” will be based on the Hugo winning Neal Stephenson novel of the same name.

Sticking with Scifi, “Battlestar Galactica – The Plan” will air in November.

In HBO land, the season 2 premier of “True Blood: The Complete First Season (HBO Series)” dominates the headlines. Sunday, June 14, at 9 pm.

A Storm of Stars: Casting HBO’s “Game of Thrones”

HBO scored a major coup last month when they landed Peter Dinklage to play the role of Tyrion in their upcoming series “Game of Thrones” based on George R. R. Martin’s “Song of Ice and Fire” series. Dinklage was the dream choice of everyone from the author himself on down. As huge fans of pretty much everything GRRM writes (as well as most HBO shows), we decided to try our hands at filling out the rest of the cast. Here goes:

For all other GRRM info check out Westeros or Martin’s official site.

True Blood, Season 1: Once Bitten, Twice Shy

One part small town murder mystery, one part paranormal romance, and quirky comedy to taste – “True Blood” is a delicious cocktail of genres.

The show’s title comes from the name of a synthetic blood beverage that has allowed vampires to come out of the coffin and rock it among the living. I think you know what that means. Hot girl on vampire action and pla-enty of it, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

One such bloodsucker has recently moved to the tiny burg of Bon Temps, Louisiana, home of a telepathic waitress slash blond bombshell by the name of Sookie Stackhouse. That rascally vamp’s name? Bill. Vampire Bill Compton. Coincidentally (or is it!?) a string of young female residents start turning up murdered. Who the hell done it?

Alan Ball’s vampire series came with a wide range of high expectations, both as Ball’s follow up to “Six Feet Under” and as the adaptation of Charlaine Harris’ bestselling Sookie Stackhouse series. Rabid fans of each had wildly different expectations. The possibilities seemed endless. Would this be an HBO version of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer?” (Fun fact: Ball claims to have never watched the Joss Whedon series.) Would it lean to the quirky or scary side?

TV Casualties Rating:

Created by: Alan Ball

Starring: Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Ryan Kwanten

Season Premiere: 09/07/08

DVD Release: 05/19/09

Nielsen Rating: 2.4 million viewers

Metacritic Score: 64/100

The biggest question for fans of the books: Who would play heroine/narrator Sookie? Oscar winner Anna Paquin landed the role to a mixed reaction. She had the reputation, though she wasn’t much of a match in the blond bombshell department. How’d she do?

Not great, unfortunately. Paquin plays Sookie a little too airheaded and lacks the charisma to carry the series the way the character does in the books. Don’t get me wrong, I would happily forgive the mismatch in looks in exchange for a strong performance. She doesn’t deliver. She’s so uncharismatic, in fact, that she often borders on unlikable.

Conversely, Stephen Moyer brings an understated charm to Vampire Bill. There is a lot of subtle humor in his drawn out delivery, which is a far cry from Paquin’s pouting and yelling.

Whether that’s a bad acting choice or bad writing is certainly questionable, though. All of the female characters often come off as shrill and irrational, while the men get the bulk of the funny lines and are generally more generous. The second most likable character after Bill is Sookie’s dimwitted hornball brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten.) Despite the fact that he’s a selfish, womanizing prick, he grows into one of the most sympathetic characters and the primary source of comedy. The writers aren’t nearly so inspired when writing for the girls.

Similarly, the murder mystery is mishandled. The basic plot elements follow the book faithfully enough, but the pacing is erratic and suspense is practically non-existent. The dramatic reveals weren’t.

On the other hand, the show pulls off the spooky deep south atmosphere well. From Bill’s decrepit yet distinguished house to a bevy of mossy exterior locations, it all looks pretty kick ass.

“True Blood” also makes for a weird juxtaposition of lighthearted humor and graphic sex scenes that come pretty damn close to raunch-o-rama.

So what does that all add up to? Honestly, I’m still not sure how I feel. I am curious to see where the second season (premiers June 14th) will go, which must be a good sign. Maybe what happens next will ultimately cement my feelings about season one.

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