The True Blood Boy’s Club
Dubious though the method of delivery may be, the fact remains that True Blood has inherited a formidable legacy from Charlaine Harris’ novels. I’ve never been crazy about Harris’ writing, but her characters and stories remain compelling. Beyond that, though, and probably more important, is the ease with which Harris has portrayed strong female characters and seamlessly interwoven modern sensibilities and social metaphor into her world. This is a place where women are the focal point, where they are empowered and do for themselves. They carefully balance a sense of pride and humility, and while they may choose to allow men into their lives and hearts, it is always clearly and decisively a choice, and made without losing their sense of self.
For what are essentially silly throw-away novels, it’s quite an endowment, and True Blood is fucking it up.
Don’t get me wrong — I am a fan of the show and always have been. It’s pulling down the mantle of many taboos (If only within the relatively safe space of premium cable television), and I absolutely give it credit for that. The current arc, however, is disturbing to that fundamental part of me that recoils at strong women being turned into sexist cliche for the sake of entertainment.
To understand why I’m so disappointed in the handling of Lorena’s character, you have to be familiar with the source material: Harris’ novels. (It probably goes without saying, but there will be spoilers for both the novels and television show in the text that follows.) In Club Dead, Lorena is introduced as a formidable, but almost entirely unseen character. As Bill’s maker, she is able to summon him at her discretion to do her bidding, and does precisely that, setting the intrigue for the novel. In this instance, she summons him to prise from him a secret project wanted by the vampire Queen of Louisiana.
It bears reiterating: She did not summon Bill because she missed him, loved him or was otherwise pining away for him. In Harris’ world, vampire makers may release their “children” into the world, but always hold sway over them. To wit, it was Lorena’s choice to let Bill go in the first place. When we finally meet Lorena, she is ruthless and powerful and engages in a fight with Sookie, ultimately resulting in her death.
Now, Lorena isn’t a nice character. I certainly wasn’t impressed by her when I read the novel. However, that doesn’t give True Blood the right to completely strip her of her pride and autonomy.
The television series has brought Lorena in a whole season early and interjected her into the altered plot from the second novel, to act as a counterpoint to Sookie. In this bastardized version of Harris’ vision, they have systematically taken away everything empowering about Lorena: Her sway over Bill, her independence, her position. The vampire lore has been changed so that when a maker releases their child, they no longer have any control over them. To add insult to injury, they have devised an entirely new back story wherein Bill never loved Lorena and forced her to release him by emotionally torturing her with her unrequited love. When Eric asks for her help in distracting Bill, she agrees because she’s still in love with him and desperate. She is inserted into a hostile environment where she is made a fool of in front of her peers because of her desire to be with Bill again. All of this is played against Eric’s changed history, where he is still fiercely loyal to and clearly loves his male maker Godric, who is portrayed as sage-like and evolved in a way Lorena never can be.
It is absolutely disgusting, and all of this is, presumably, simply to make our female heroine look better.
Why was this change necessary? Why must Lorena sacrifice her own power and purpose so that Sookie may be empowered? This is one of the most devious forms of misogyny, and so disappointing after the refreshing attitude of Harris’ novels. True Blood purports itself as being so cutting edge and enlightened, and yet it’s still rife with boy’s club stereotypes. This program, that could be a true example of forward thinking without even trying, is tripping headlong into the same old shit we see everywhere else. Shame on you, True Blood, for not only squandering the gift you were given, but doing it for no discernible reason at all.
You’ve pretty much put into words exactly what’s been bothering me about Lorena and Bill, and I didn’t even know it. I’ve never liked how one episode they’re being predators together and the next it’s all about Lorena forcing Bill to be something he isn’t, to love her. Like pulling her down in that way absolves Bill of anything that may tarnish his reformed vampire image. It’s sort of disgusting, and I’m saddened even more when you explain her part in the third book.
What a waste of what sounds like an awesome character.
@bzzinglikeneon
10 August 2009 at 10:38 pm Permalink
I don’t know that I would classify Lorena as “awesome,” but she is at the very least her own person. It really rankles that they took all her inherent power and gave it to Bill, and via a really antiquated method, too.
Thanks for the post. I haven’t watched this week’s episode yet but will soon. I also haven’t read the books yet but plan to.
I guess on the equality side, the change in the Lorena/Bill dynamic made Bill a lot lamer too–after last week’s episode my husband and I were talking about just exactly how PATHETIC he was getting, and that “never loved you” bit really didn’t help. But yeah, that doesn’t make it OK.
@bzzinglikeneon
10 August 2009 at 10:42 pm Permalink
I definitely agree that the change in their dynamic, and that whole aspect of the story seemed to make Bill less interesting, which I’m sure was the exact opposite of what was intended. I felt like they’d taken a decently progressive show and dropped it back in the small screen dark ages. The whole thing felt really tired and unnecessary.
The Lorena stuff have been painful to watch – not having read past the first book I didn’t go in knowing what the relationship was or wasn’t supposed to be like, but something felt off, I couldn’t see any reason for Lorena to act so…powerless, I guess. That and lol I just could not buy that anyone, dead or alive, would be that enthralled by TrueBlood!Bill.
@bzzinglikeneon
10 August 2009 at 10:44 pm Permalink
It makes no sense, you’re absolutely right. What a supreme insult, to introduce a strong female character and then have her happiness so completely reliant upon a man.