I have been a major Sookie Stackhouse
True Blood DVD fan for years. I began reading Charlaine Harris's series, then called the Southern Vampire Mysteries, since before book four came out, and have read them all in order. I was puzzled when I found out that HBO was going to make a TV adaptation of it. Why this particular series? Why not Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series? (It would have been suitable,
Gossip Girl DVD what with all of the sex and all.) There were others as well, like Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld and MaryJanice Davidson's Queen Betsy series -- all of which have the erotic tones that HBO would have loved. So why this book series? Now I know why, but more on that later. I very much enjoyed season one. It was very faithful to Dead Until Dark, except that small characters like Tara and Lafayette were expanded,
The L Word DVD and you get everyone's point of view, not just Sookie's. Also, Bill has more depth here, and you see things from his point of view, and you understand him better. Other storylines were added, like the emphasis on "V" addiction, which makes sense. Season two has taken things to a whole other level and I love it so far. I can't wait for the blu-ray release! From the very beginning, the show has very sexually explicit scenes, most of which centered on Jason's exploits, and some violence as well,
The Simpsons DVD with a great deal of emphasis to vampire hatred as the new form of southern racism/segregation. Season two takes things further, with gore and horror replacing the sex (there's still plenty of it though), and the fledging out of characters like Eric, Tara and Lafayette (whose death does not happen in the TV series). MaryAnn is the mysterious creature that makes a brief appearance in Living Dead in Dallas, but is expanded on the TV version to the point that she almost takes over the entire show. Jessica, Bill's "daughter," puzzled me at first. What's the purpose to this character? But I like her now,
CSI Miami DVD especially after Hoyt becomes her love interest. And I love the emphasis on vampire makers, like Lorena and Godric, the latter of whom moved me almost to tears in the last episode that he's in (plus, the actor who plays him is totally hot). I don't want to ruin it for people who don't have HBO and have to wait for the DVD or blu-ray release, but, in spite of the departures from the books, it's better than season one.