And When I Die - Part 2 of 2 - Saints

I just wanted to take a minute to appreciate the fact that for the first time in three seasons (flashbacks notwithstanding) we got to see Gran -- albeit in a nightgown with dirt in her hair, on Halloween, for the purpose of dispelling Marni's effed up witch-spirit. Poor Gran was the first emotionally significant casualty of the whole series, way back in season one. Sigh. Sookie still isn't over it, really.

Whoops, I guess I should have warned against gratuitous multiple-vampire feeding... Sookie looks superfierce though. The denim is nice, the floral T is sweet, and the leather jacket! Be still my heart, Sookie, you've finally graduated from Delia*s hoodies?! That's my girl.

And can we talk about Sookie's awesome knotted bun? Casual but feminine. And super hot. A+!!!

They went to some pains to make Tara look sweet and loving in this episode, even though this girl has been through Hell and back multiple times (do not pass "GO," do not collect $200) and has a lot of anger and crazy pent up inside of her to show for it. Unlike Sookie, who tends to have crazy stuff happen to her and then she carries on somehow, Tara has shown a lot of signs in the last season or two of real wear and tear on her sanity. But her hair looks lovely here, and I like the pink top on her...

...but not the denim suit. The wash is too light and the two items are the same wash. Tara, honey, what happened to your cagefighter leather and combat boots???

Oh, poor Sam. No family left (poor Tommy!) except the hope of building new family with Luna and Emma now that all the bad nasty people are dead (the Mickens, Marcus, etc). Sam looks sharp in a suit, you gotta admit.

Even when he's the only one at his brother Tommy's funeral other than Maxine Fortenberry....

...who, although sporting her usual over-the-top fabrics and styles, looks really nice in spite of it all, and genuinely loved Tommy (even though he was a conniving little cuss). Her words of wisdom are actually even comforting to Sam, and it is possible that Hell also froze over while she was making her speech about family and life. Who knew she had it in her?!

Luna and Emma show up to the funeral at the last moment, looking equally lovely in funeral-appropriate darks, but with a splash of pattern from Luna, who is also a contender for Bon Temps' Most Fashion Forward now that Sookie has lost all of her sundresses.

Although Holly's devastating Halloween costume is beyond anything I could ever have imagined her in, she did a lot of good deeds this week so I'm putting her on the saints list anyway.

Besides, the costume itself is actually almost impressively awful.

And of course, since it's Halloween suddenly (what?) Arlene and Terry show up to work at Merlotte's dressed as zombies. Extremely PG-rated zombies. (Also, shout out to Arlene's kids, who are dressed as an alien/monster and Teen Mom. Kudos, kids.)

Poor Jesus. Poor, poor, POOR Jesus. I can't even stand it. He was such a wonderful character.... on so many levels.... one of them being that his eyes matched any blue or green item of clothing he ever had on, and his hair was so ruffly and friendly.... Oh, that, and he had lots of juju to save people with. But. Yes. Erm. Sadface dot com slash bye hottie.

In conclusion, all I really have to say is that we're in for a regular good old fashioned revengefest next season. There's a whole heap of trouble happenin' in Bon Temps and our unfortunate heroes (Sookie and... well... whoever else, I guess) are going to have their work cut out for them. I am thrilled that we were able to recap this season, though, and I look forward to the next one, even if there are zombies a-comin'.... See y'all next summer!

Soul of Fire - Part 1 of 2 - Witches vs. Vamps

Episode Synopsis: Finally Bill is ready to use violence against that awful Marnie/Antonia. But wait! Bill and Eric's beloved Sookie is trapped inside the shop. MarTonia (hee-hee!) decides to negogiate a deal which involves Bill and Eric killing themselves in order to release Sookie. Really? And they ACCEPT. Really?? Luckily, Pam is having none of that and decides to take matters into her own hands and shoots a very large gun-thing (sorry I'm no weapons expert...fashion is my game) into the protection spell. Meanwhile, Jesus is digging deep into his magical shaman ways to get Antonia out of Marnie's body. On the non-vampire side of things: Sam has a death warrant out for Marcus, who just so happened to have kidnapped his own daughter, while entertaining Debbie AT ALCIDE'S HOUSE. Yeah that's right. I don't even know what's left to happen for next week. Oh, wait. Marnie's ghost hopped into Lafayette. That's no big deal, I'm sure.

So once again, not a big week for wardrobe changes...and I suppose it's understandable when you get to wear these bad-ass, black leather gettups. I know Anthony included a similar image last week and Kim re-purposed it for her mini-recap, but they all look plain awesome, so let's look at it again:

Last week, Anthony commented (frequently) on the unfortunate-ness that is Marnie's belt OVER her leather jacket. When she went outside to have a talking with Bill & Crew, I thought "Yay, she is going to be a normal person and wear her belt UNDER the jacket." But alas, she walks out of the shop and suddenly the belt is OVER her jacket. How did she have enough time between putting her jacket on and walking through the front door to remove her belt and replace on top of her jacket? Is that another one of her spells?

Who would consider leather-belting a leather jacket? Oh right...a crazy psycho witch who has binded herself to a semi-crazy ghost witch, that's who.

Marnie does have some fantastic ring-wear, however. More is definitely more, in this case.

AHHHHH! I never could have imagined that such a cute face as Jesus' be turned into something this monstrous! Although the more I look at it, the more I realize it's just a mask and not a real transformation. Sorry True Blood make-up department: not as convincing as it could be. 

Awww the cute face is back. But what I really wanted to point out in this photo is the skull and crossbones pillowcase! So adorable! 

It appears that since Eric has regained his memory, he also regained a much more mature hairstyle. No morefloppy, weird Gareth cut he had going on as Nice Eric. 

It's a Bumpit. Jessica has a Bumpit in her hair. Really? C'mon Jess...you have the most perfect strawberry red hair and you put in a Bumpit?? Bumpits do not make you look tough and badass; they make you look like Snookie. (Yes, that's spelled correctly, Jessica. You don't get Jersey Shore down in Bon Temps?)

I couldn't resist posting this menagerie of Marnie's Wiccan followers. From L to R: We have Lafayette's Twin sister, Mom Jeans, Carrot Top's Mother, Matrix Wannabe, and Confused Dude (this guy was wearing the hemp sweatshirt last week...he doesn't know what culture to follow).  

No wonder MarTonia couldn't complete her mission. This cast of characters looks more inclined to hallucinate about killing vampires than to practice crazy-psycho-witch-magic and do it. 

Cold Grey Light of Dawn - Part 1 of 2 - Fun in the Sun

Episode Synopsis: A whole lotta stuff is all about to hit the fan in Bon Temps, and the suspense is killing me. Well, actually, it's killing the vampires, or trying to... Marni is possessed by the spirit of Antonia, a vengeful Spanish witch from the 1600s, and she's adopted the distraught Tara into her circle of fun (not because Tara is a witch but because she was raped by a vampire, a fate which Antonia shared). Lafayette is a true medium, like Marni, and Jesus is convinced that Lala is the one to put a stop to Marni's crazy. Meanwhile, King Bill decides the only way to keep the vampires safe from Antonia's spells is to chain themselves with silver during the day. Jason and Jess are still thinking (read: fantasizing) about each other, and poor Hoyt is so confused that he's not even wearing plaid. Sookie and Eric finally get it on, but this whole Marni thing is really putting their love-fest on hold. Sam's brother Tommy skinwalked as Sam and slept with hottie shifter girlfriend Luna, and Arlene's demon baby Mikey is seeing this 1930's voodoo lady who sings in French (but Lafayette sees her too now, so maybe we'll finally get some answers).  

Although this week had a SEVERE shortage of cute sundresses, we do see a few uninteresting leather jackets (Vampire Diaries-style) and at least one American Apparel hoodie (Glee-style). Oh, Bon Temps, it's always a surprise...

King Bill's wardrobe has been updated since he became king, and this shirt -- while plain -- is a nice splash of color in the dark and generally pretentious decor of King Bill's house.

Later on, however, King Bill falls prey to the Uninteresting Leather Jacket syndrome and presents himself at Sookie's looking super uncomfortable (both about Sookie/Eric and about his jacket, I'd say).

Jason, although generally kind of a mess, manages to make his millionth plaid shirt look cute when thrown over his incredible washboard abs and sculpted torso, topped off with a "Made In Louisiana" trucker cap. Goofy? Yes. Still hot? Absolutely.

Also, I think he looks yummy in his cop uniform. Heh.

Jessica is seen wearing dark, slim cut jeans and some kinda sandal, with a pale blue shirt that compliments her complexion and hair really well, even if the shirt came from K-Mart. But this pic is mostly for her hair... girlfriend has luxurious locks, and I lurve it.

Jesus manages to set off the amazing color of his eyes with a denim (or cargo, can't decide) jacket. Go figure!

Lafayette looks like he came from a 90's music video in a black track jacket with red stripes and a yellow bandana... but his eyelashes are fierce, and he can do no wrong. You want more bling, you say? Well...

...here you go. Flipping burgers at Merlotte's requires more panache, obviously. The white scarf he's got has silver threads running through it, and he has a camo-print top on. The icing on this cake though is his vintage fan.

Booyah. So fierce.

The Princess and the Frog ghost that's following baby Mikey around shows up, and Lafayette doesn't quite understand that she's a ghost, or who she is, but at least he can see her and hopefully that means we'll find out what her agenda is soon. Meanwhile, her 1930's dress is simple but gorgeous and her hair is impeccable... she can't be all bad, right?

Everyone's favorite shapeshifting girlfriend Luna looks ferosh at work (watch out, fifth graders...Ms. Luna's a knockout!) even though she's furious with Sam for kicking her out after they slept together the first time. Only it wasn't Sam, it was Tommy...

Sam! I didn't even KNOW you owned a solid colored shirt! Goodness.

And back to the plaid. But here's the funny thing: even with all the plaid Sam Merlotte sports around town, I prefer this shirt to the plain one. Sigh.

Our boy Alcide has the most interesting leather jacket on this episode, a lovely cognac color which offsets his rugged appearance.

And even with the plaid peeking out, he still looks gorgeous. Although, Alcide, honey, that look of shock at walking in on Sookie and Eric isn't becoming... if she finds out you saw them, she'll be very upset, you know. Also, now Debbie thinks you're in love with her, so way to blow your own cover, man!

Finally, our puppy-dog-amnesiac Eric is sill wearing Jason's clothes... but this plaid (yes, Eric Northman in plaid!) looks INCREDIBLE on him. Maybe it's the amnesia. Maybe it's the fact that he and Sookie just did it in the woods (a lot). Who knows? But I LIKE IT.

Me and the Devil - Part 1 of 2 - The Power of Christ Compels You!

Episode Synopsis - There's a whole lotta sinnin' goin' on. In other words, it's biz as per use in Bon Temps. Tommy killed his parents (oops), Tara's luvah finds out she's been lying about her identity, the vamps capture Marnie, Eric dreams of killing Sookie, while Jason dreams of getting it on with Jessica...and Hoyt? Meanwhile, Jesus and Lafayette go down Mexico way to pay a visit to Jesus' g-pa, Sookie gets a message from her g-ma to stay the hell away from Marnie, and Arlene and Terry get the least effective spirit-cleansing ever.

Let's start with the pure, the clean, the non-sinners. In other words, let's start with Sookie.

I know, you all love this dress.

I love it too. Unfortunately, it was custom-made by the TB wardrobe crew. Unless you've got mad sewing skills, it will remain but a dream.

Oh, that reminds me - Eric has this dream where he Godric feast on Sookie's delectable neck, but I'm more interested in her dream sleepwear. Look at that wee little giraffe print! And the fuchsia bow!

In real life, her sleepwear is no where near as adorable. In fact, it's heinous. Ladies, do not wear crap like this to bed. You deserve pretty, sexy PJs.

Speaking of sexy, hello Alcide! I have no fashion commentary for this photo. I just though you all might like to see it.

I also don't have much to say about Arlene's camo velour track suit. It's just so many trends that I don't like, all wrapped in one. Snaps for the shot of color with the pink lace, though.

I grabbed this pic not so much for Arlene's slightly dowdy dress, but for Baby Mikey's sweet little Newsies get-up. He might be an evil baby, but he's a stylish evil baby.

Unlike dear old dad. I get that Terry tried, and I applaud him for that. But...just...no.

And what were we all dressing up for? Why for the rootin-est, tootin-est exorcism in these here parts!

Seriously, you guys can not wear pink and sing peppy songs to drive out the devil. You need to wear heavy robes and chant Latin incantations. I know. I saw The Exorcist, and it totally worked.

The Bellefleur-Fowlers do seem to feel better, though. And look at that futuristic bedding! You know, I heard that sleeping on a satin pillowcase is good for your hair. Reduces breakage. That seems like the sort of thing Arlene would know.

Hoyt and Jason hash out the events of the past few days of a spot of breakfast. I'm digging Hoyt's bold stripe shirt. It's a welcome change from plaid.

So is this purple and red pinstriped shirt. Two dapper shirts in one episode? No wonder Jason is dreaming about him!

At first I was disappointed by Jesus's ho-hum striped shirt, but then he put on the fedora and I was all squeeee! I love this hat even more than Baby Mikey's.

All that (snakeskin) luggage, Lafayette? For just a short trip?

Bitch, please. I've got a parka in here.

Oh. So you do. Carry on, then.

¡Hola, abuelo! Here he is, both past and present. Looks like he's ready to kick some culo in either decade.

Also ready to kick ass/take names? Naomi, who wants to kick Tara's ass for taking the name "Toni" and lying about it. I like her tissue-weight tank. Casual, but sexy. Good for pouting. Well played.

Oh hi, Marnie! Hey, you might want to change into something more comfortable, because you're about to go to Vampire jail. What's that? You're already wearing a free-flowing and non-constrictive baggy dress? Well, I guess the only thing to do is protect your neck. Whoops, looks like you've got that covered, too. You think of everything. Except how to reverse spells.

Oh hi, Sam. Thanks for pulling out the obligatory plaid. We almost went plaid-less in this recap. Love the rugged jacket and distressed jeans, too. You wear the Country Boy look well.

She's Not There - Part 1 of 2 - Breathers

Episode synopsis: Sookie finds herself in Fairy Land with her Fairy Godmother, Claudine, and a bunch of other white-wearing yuppies, but something rotten is going on, and Sookie quickly discovers the fairies' true faces (ugly) and true aim (to 'harvest' the humans that carry Fae blood from the human world and take them away to the Fae lands to keep away from vampires and the like). Sookie meets up with her Grampa, but he dies upon re-entering the atmosphere, and Sookie realizes she's been Rip Van Winkled: twelve months have passed since Bill betrayed her and Claudine took her away. Her brother Jason is now a sheriff, Lafayette and Jesus are dating and hanging out with a witch coven led by a woman called Marnie (played by FIONA SHAW!), Jessica and Hoyt are living together, Sam is grumpy but has new shapeshifter friends, Eric and Pam are still running Fangtasia, and Bill is a public figure... and KING of the vampires?! WHAT?!

Okay, so seriously? Cocktail Waitress Fairy here in the foreground has kind of a cool semi-flapper dress goin' on... but can we talk about the Dancing With The Stars couple to her left? What is that all about? It's kind of like the costumer raided a dance shop for flowy-flashy-unusual stuff and threw it together in a weird way. Totally not how I thought fairies would look.

Sookie always has a look of youth, innocence, girlishness, and naïvité about her. Usually it's pulled off with style and even here, she looks fabulous.

You can see the dress a bit better here. Great color, great cut, great length. And her hair is smooth and simple.

However, I disagree with the heel type she chose with this outfit. A cutoff denim mini and basic tank from Delia's are best paired with flip-flops or sneakers. Not fun yellow slingbacks. Her somewhat ornate hairdo is on the same page as the shoes. Sookie, did you get distracted, or what?

Here she's even more done-down: easygoing plaid and a side braid. Still cute and girly but in a low-maintenance way. We've also got everyone's favorite doofy/hot brother, Jason, wearing a super-standard Bon Temps Football shirt. He has four thousand of them. His collection rivals Finn's collection of American Apparel hoodies on Glee.

He's now a sheriff and is rockin' a uniform and some facial hair instead of the usual careless, boyish stubble. Goodness!

Plaid: you must own it to live in Bon Temps. The colors are nice on Jason, though.

And here's Tara! Except, l'OMG, she's calling herself Toni now, and she's a cage fighter and a LESBIAN. (That's her girlfriend Naomi on the left.) So many questions, Tara. Like what's with the stonewash denim jacket? And the less-than-expert weave?

Ladies and gentlemen.... Arlene. One of the few constants in the consistently variable world of True Blood. She's got a fresh hue of red on her hair, cleaned up makeup, and animal print somewhere on her person. She's in business. Season four, woo hoo!

I was gonna skip over Portia Bellefleur (new character to the series, presumably related to Andy Bellefleur, ex-sheriff) but she looks SO MUCH like human-form-Ursula from The Little Mermaid that I had to point it out...

...SEE?!

Leader of the new witch coven, Marnie (played by the infinitely talented Fiona Shaw) is kind of dumpy. Like. Really dumpy. Actually, a bunch of those witches were kind of style-void. But we'll see more of them later on in the series, so I'll wait on judging just yet...

When we first see Lafayette this season, I got scared, because boyfriend is sporting a pretty hardcore mohawk right now. But he's punked out and rocking it here, so I let him pass...

...and this is more like it!!! YES, Lafayette, YES. So much sass. So little time.

Again, more like his usual self. Pink pleather cropped moto jacket? Mmmmmmmmkay.