Newsgroup: it.fan.tv.buffy
Titolo: Buttiamo nella spazzatura pure True Blood

Per la cronaca, ho guardato il pilot, a fatica. Una roba insopportabile.
http://blogs.pioneerlocal.com/entertainment/2008/08/review_hbos_true_blood_worth_a.html
The vampires really aren't the strangest residents of HBO's new series,
"True Blood," airing Sept. 7.
The show -- from "Six Feet Under" creator Alan Ball, is based on Charlaine
Harris' The Southern Vampire Series and takes place in the rural Louisiana
town of Bon Temps, what has to be one of the randiest towns in the country.
Based on the first five episodes, it's absolutely addicting, although it
has some major flaws. It's doubtful "True Blood" will have the more
mainstream appeal of "The Sopranos," or even "Six Feet Under," but if you
can past some of the cheese, it's well worth it.
Set in modern day, vampires are beginning to "come out of the coffin" after
the Japanese have developed a synthetic blood drink, True Blood. That means
the vamps don't have to munch on humans for their sustenance -- although
there are some who aren't ready to give that up. Meanwhile, there's an
underground demand for a new drug, V, made from vamp blood that gives
humans extra strength, LSD hallucinations and some help in the sack.
Waitress Sookie Stackhouse (a sweet and sassy Anna Paquin) is immediately
entranced by the first vamp (to her knowledge) to visit Bon Temps, Bill
Compton.(Stephen Moyer, although British, oddly has one of the best
Southern accents). Part of the appeal is that Sookie can read people's
thoughts -- an ability she can turn off, but not without some effort -- and
she can't read Bill's mind.
The Gothic-style town of Bon Temps quickly becomes caught up in the world
of vampires -- whether it's fear of the unknown to absolute fascination, as
in Sookie's kookie grandmother who's delighted to find out that Bill, who
was made a vamp during the Civil War, can tell her more about the war and
her family's history.
The town is stocked with oddball characters from the usual town gossips,
toughs and tarts to the major players in Sookie's life -- her bland boss
Sam (Sam Trammell), her horndog brother, Jason (Ryan Kwanten), and her
sassy best friend, Tara. (Rutina Wesley). Sam is madly in love with Sookie,
but hardly stands a chance against the ultimate vamp bad boy. "You know
what I wish would come to town?" Sam mutters. "Buffy or Blade or one of
those badass vampire killers to come get Bill Compton."
BIll, looking every one of his over 140 years, has a conscience, but can't
always contain his biting tendencies. Paquin and Moyer have some good
chemistry -- in one episode where they don't have much screen time
together, I found myself willing them to at least look at each other. As
with most of these vamp/human relationships, Bill can't help but go a
little fang-faced when he's around Sookie. (The vamp teeth in "True Blood"
leave something to be desired.)
Bill is, as all good vampire love interests should be, a bit mysterious,
but the danger is that he can also come across a bit boring. Hopefully,
that will be rectified in the future. We do get of his backstory --
flashbacks to his human life that have a strangely cheap quality about them.
Meanwhile, Sookie's best friend, Tara, evolves past just a funny, tough
exterior to someone who became that way after having to deal with her drunk
mother. And then there's Sookie's brother, Jason, who is involved with
about half the women in town, and who is beginning to discover that fang
banging is a popular after-dark activity in town.
One of the weaknesses of "True Blood" is the inability to latch onto any
one character because of them are so odd. But even that weakness improves
after the first couple of episodes. Sookie is an interesting protagonist --
she's smart, but naive, sweet but feisty. And you can't help but smile with
some of her reactions to the seediness of the town such as when she tells
Bill, "Listen, you might be a vampire, but when you talk to me, you'll
still talk to me like a lady." Sookie's prone to uttering phrases like "oh
my stars."
Each episode ends with a cliff-hanger and the one at episode 5's end is the
biggest -- promising to change Sookie's life the most. There's a lot of
balls tossed up in the air: the murders of local women, of which Jason is a
suspect; Sam's crush on Sookie; an old vamp in town who has Sookie on his
radar; a trio of out-of-control vamps; and a dog who doesn't seem to be a
dog.
The combination of quirk, black humor, sex and romance doesn't always blend
perfectly, but there's just something so damn likable about the series. If
Ball can get these pieces to meld a little better, "True Blood" should rack
up a loyal following.
Verdict: "True Blood" is different, intriguing, addicting and worth
checking out.
-- 
Jolan Tru
Filippo "Hytok" Simone
http://perestroika.iobloggo.com/

 Per la cronaca, ho guardato il pilot, a fatica. Una roba insopportabile.
 > [...]
Ammazzao se sei lapidario! A me tutto sommato sta piacendo.
Ciao,
Enrico il Pentolaio.
-- 
SIR - I could not help but notice that almost immediately after you 
published a flattering Face value profile of Diane Greene, she was 
sacked [...]. I was wondering if you could soon write a Face value 
profile of Italy's prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi? (the Economist)

 Enrico il Pentolaio.
Davvero? A me fa abbastanza schifo...
In realtà mi sarei aspettato una caratterizzazione dei vampiri più 
simile a quella di Supernatural, dove i vampiri sono essenzialmente 
umani un po' potenziati e senza quelle cazzate di contorno del non poter 
entrare in una casa senza essere invitati, la forza inconcepibilmente 
elevata che si accresce col passare degli anni, la supervelocità e le 
capacità rigenerative alla Linderman/Claire.
E i denti dovrebbero essere fauci, non quei ridicoli dentini da 
carnevale che mi fanno scompisciare dal ridere ogni volta che appaiono!
I vampiri così come sono rappresentati sono troppo forti per accettare 
il presupposto che vogliano entrare a far parte della società umana: non 
hanno niente di umano!
I vampiri di True Blood non hanno nessun vantaggio nel render pubblica 
la loro esistenza, e questo scredita l'intera serie.
Daniele

 Ammazzao se sei lapidario! A me tutto sommato sta piacendo.
Appena finito di vedere il primo episodio, e devo dire che ho fatto fatica
a finirlo. Una lentezza di ritmo esasperante, i personaggi non mi hanno
detto granche'. Gli concedo fino all'episodio 4, prima di cassarlo.