True Blood "Let Me Go": All in the Family

Didn't get a screener this week, so we're going to be a bit more raw and loose with the analysis of "Let Me Go." The theme this week is about family, and because this is True Blood we're talking about, it's certainly non-traditional -- and mostly dysfunctional. Some are just discovering family (shapeshifters Sam & Daphne; telepathes Sookie & Barry the bellboy; even sheltered geek loves Jessica & Hoyt), while others have been around for centuries (vampires and their makers).

MaryAnn has her own family of sorts, and more than anyone, recognizes its importance. That's why she stirs the pot in the Merlotte's Roadhouse family, and then dresses up as Gran to pull Tara back into her circle. Of note was the dark twist on the Gran's theme music they played during the MaryAnn as Gran scene, which was nicely set up with an earlier reprise of the theme played while Tara was looking at the photo. Meanwhile, MaryAnn also must have something to do with Daphne and her convenient appearance in Bon Temps to ensnare Sam.

We'd already seen how Bill was brought into the vampire family last season -- turned by a bored evil vamp mostly interested in toying with a soldier -- so it was nice to see how Eric was turned nearly 1000 years prior. Most vampires are like family, born into a situation they did not have a choice in, but Eric got to choose, with Godrick seeking him out after seeing his action on the battlefield. Fitting then, in the midst of a search for Eric's maker, Bill's maker should show up at the end of the episode, seemingly part of the web to do with Eric's designs on Sookie.

Finally, the closing song was Katie Webster's cover of "Never Let Me Go", which was originally a hit for the late great Johnny Ace. The 1950's R&B singer works well with the theme of family, in that he was part of his own R&B family. He was 'made' by B.B. King (band member), eventually part of a bigger family that had its Mama - Big Mama Thornton. Speaking of Big Mama, the the late blues singer Katie Webster is a largely obscure New Orleans blues singer outside the record collecting public (and Germany -- she's like David Hasselhoff in that regard).

One last note: I already called the Newlins/Jason love triangle an oddity to behold last week, now I'm closer to being convinced that Sarah is merely a beard and Steve, like his beard, has eyes for Jason. Sarah can "wash my feet" anytime.

Playlist: True Blood - Episode 2.05
1. "Ebben, Ne Andro Lontana" - stock music from Extreme: Sookie chases down Barry
2. "Tomorrow" - Lisa Shaw: Sookie talks to Barry at breakfast
3. "Fly on the Wall" - stock music from Black Toast: Daphne and Arlene argue at Merlottes
4. "Wild Love" - stock music from Black Toast: Sookie, Bill & Eric meet with Isabel and Stan
5. "Hellbound Train" - Three Bad Jacks: Tara feels ganged up by the Merlotte's crew
6. "Cello Suite #5: Allemande Movment" - Johann Sebastian Bach: Eric tells about history w/ Godrick
7. "Everybody Needs Somebody" - Silas Hogan: Sam and Daphne 'connect' at the pool table
8. "Badunkadunk" - stock music from Extreme - background at Hotel Carmilla
"Never Let Me Go" - Katie Webster - closing credits

Previously: "Snap & Fingerpop": Run with the Bulls (Episode 2.04)