True Blood, Curb Your Enthusiasm (11/9/11)

Posted by The TV Critic on 12 September 2011 | 0 Comments

Tags: True Blood, Curb Your Enthusiasm

Curb Your Enthusiasm - 810 - Larry vs. Michael J. Fox

Michael J Fox remains my favourite actor and it was nice to see him on TV once more. As you would expect Larry decided to take on the potential sanctimoniousness of those with diseases and Fox was game enough to play along. I did like the conclusion where Larry once more flees a city to avoid doing charity work. Otherwise I didn't think this was particularly funny.

Larry seemed in the wrong for most of the episode which tends to cut out the fun of seeing him rant. The swastika story was very predictable and Jeff taking a bullet for Susie was rushed. The guy who pressed all the elevator buttons didn't return to pay off that joke in an interesting way either.

Still, it's been a solid season overall. When you think about it this season has been pretty tame, narratively speaking, compared to the last few. We had the Seinfeld reunion, the Blacks moving in, Larry almost dying and before that The Producers musical. However it doesn't seem to matter what is going on or which famous person is making a cameo. The show is a formula comedy and sometimes things click and other times they don't. By now you should know what you are getting with Larry David.

True Blood - 412 - And When I Die

Another season ends and I shrug. The majority of storylines actually reached a conclusion which was nice. Last season's finale felt like it was just setting up this season. I think I will have to resort to bullet points just to round up all the loose threads:

- The show just doesn't do character development. I felt like all the talk about Marnie being lonely and impotent came half way through the season. I don't think that was ever well established in a way which would lead to a satisfying conclusion.

- Similarly the Jason and Jessica story annoyed me. What annoys me is the implication that they have a complicated love story. We are given no more information about Jessica than she is struggling to adjust to being a vampire and fancies Jason. Similarly Jason claims he is a good moral guy but Hoyt is right that he could have shown more self control. The two of them try to talk about their situation but it was flimsy stuff.

I'm still bemused that Jason can be repeatedly raped and yet suffer no change in character at all. That whole Were-Panther story was forgotten so quickly that I question why we had to sit through the misery of his incarceration in the first place.

- Another character who received no real attention was Jesus. Yes he was a nice guy but beyond that did we know him at all? Not really but thank goodness Lafayette was able to get closure on his death a full day later! If only Boone could have visited Jack and Locke a little sooner. Or maybe Angel's ghost could have visited Buffy immediately after she shoved a sword through his chest. Then we could have skipped all those annoying episodes where characters actually have to deal with their emotions.

- I'm glad Tara is dead. The writers didn't seem to have anything but misery in mind for her. Now at least we won't have to hear her cry and squeal about it.

- The cliff hangers on True Blood mean absolutely nothing. The Werewolf attacking Sam and the Reverend attacking Jason won't lead to either of them dying. Remember that we finished last season with Bill facing certain death only for that to be conveniently written out. Did Alcide finding chains in the parking lot imply Russel Edgington has been dug up? Maybe I'm forgetting something.

- The whole vampire politics angle seems equally consequence free. Poor Bill and Eric slaughter a bunch of people (yay for our heroes) and are apparently now outlaws in the eyes of the Authority and the American Vampire League. Umm. Ok. Do we now get Bill and Eric playing the odd couple and bickering over Sookie until the inevitable threesome happens?

- It's good to see that Alcide is a glutton for punishment too and wants to be jerked around by Sookie for another season. Sookie is an amazing female wish fulfilment character isn't she. She is a fairy, can read minds, is irresistible to every hunk in town and no matter how irritating she is everyone loves her. I assume the fairy who seduced Andy is after Sookie too.  

- I see Arlene is in for some more misery from Terry's old army buddy. Great, I really enjoy seeing people miserable and upset in stories that go nowhere.

I did try to go through the season without being too sarcastic and negative about True Blood. However I needed to vent after another season of nonsense. Aside from Heroes, I've never sat through a show which squandered as much potential as True Blood does. It irritates me that it attracts such a huge cable audience and doesn't receive more criticism.