Oh, Russell Edginton, you wily scamp! I’m so glad to have you and your genteel manners back. One cannot quite call leaving a pile of dismembered and drained humans lying around an abandoned asylum “genteel,” but that’s likely more to do with the quality of the help than anything else.
As far as the female vampire who dug Russell out from under the parking garage, I’m confident that it’s Salome. The woman in Doug’s memory had a snakier way of moving than Nora.
And how she found Russell? Much has been made this season about vampire parentage: Bill is Jessica’s dad. Awesome Pam is Eric’s child. These vampires have gone on about the powerful bonds between them and the profound meaning of being a maker. My prediction: Russell called out to his progeny, Salome.
We know Russell is 3000 years old. The historical Salome lived in the earliest days of the Current Era. It’s not unfeasible and it’s also the only explanation that fits in to the events and carries through the parent-child theme of the season.
Other True Blood Thoughts:
- “Hello, old friend. Do you remember me? We’ve come to finish what we’ve started.” Bill and Eric are morons. Bill, being so much younger, I can almost excuse him. Eric, though? He’s been walking the Earth for 1000 years. Certainly, he’s learned by now that it’s far better to jump in and kill the target instead of standing there, telling the target what you’re going to do? You see Russell laid up in his hospital bed and you pounce! Right?
- No? OK, then.
- Meanwhile, Awesome Pam is feeling her way around being a new mom and is choosing the abusive route, which is going to cloud my love for her. Then again, neither she nor Tara wanted this.
- But, everyone wants this:
- And this:
- I was really hoping to see a girl-power alliance between Jessica and Tara. Their situations are fairly similar in that they were both turned against their will and had to abandon everything they ever knew. Then it all had to get ruined by a fight over a stupid boy.
- “I’ve seen enough horror movies to know you don’t split up in a big, scary asylum when there’s a crazed killer on the loose.” Look at Sookie making sense! If she keeps this up, I just may start liking her again.
Lastly, I’m really enjoying the development of the Authority and vampire history and am particularly interested in their struggle between secularism and theocracy. The Guardian isn’t just the vampire’s political leader, he’s also their spiritual leader – more importantly, a spiritual leader who does not believe, who sees a better way than the one laid out by the ancients who wrote the Vampire Bible. Roman has to toe the line that all of our leaders do – at least in the United States – of playing lip service to faith in order to placate constituents who can’t see past their own theology.
When True Blood started, there was much that was allegorical to the gay rights movement: vampires living openly, vampires fighting for the right to marry (Vermont led the way in the True Blood-verse, too), vampires fighting for acceptance. In the last couple seasons, it’s telling a broader story: it’s telling the political story of our times and it’s horrifying.
Last season was working class, led by Marnie, versus the 1%, led by vampires.
This season, we’re dealing with religious fanatics who would impose their will upon humanity to the detriment of us all. Of course, that presents no problem to vampires. Vampires would simply be fulfilling their own religious commandments.
I can’t look at that without thinking of those elected religious fanatics who would deny birth control to women, who would deny healthcare to the sick, and who would deny life as we know it to the gay community because their doctrine tells them to. These people are in our government. This is happening to us now.
The very clear message of True Blood Season 5 appears to be this: religion and government do not mix. There should be, like, a separation between church and state or something. I believe some people already had that idea and it’s in a rather important document somewhere.
Next week! Christopher Meloni’s meaty pecs in a tight polo!
Related Stuff:
Lisa Fary's earliest influences are Princess Leia, Rainbow Bright, Astronaut Barbie, and her 6th grade teacher, Ms. Palmer. She's angry that it's 2011 and she still doesn't have a hovercraft, but will accept a jetpack as consolation. That jetpack had better be pink with a rhinestone monogram. 
