If I had to summarize this episode I’d say it was about love lost. Before I begin, let me provide some background for those unfamiliar with the series.

The series takes place in a backwater town called Bon Temps located near New Orleans, Louisiana. The star of the series is a young lady named Sookie Stackhouse, a twenty-something plucky blond who works in the local bar, Merlotte’s. Sookie, although fairly outgoing, has a secret that she keeps to the chest: she can read minds. She doesn’t know how she came upon this gift but to her, it’s more a curse than a blessing. Why? Because it’s difficult shutting people out. By default she can hear the thoughts of those around her. She has to really concentrate on blocking those thoughts from her mind.

This sets up the premise for her attraction to Bill Compton, the vampire that just moved into the neighborhood. Sookie immediately gravitates toward Bill because she discovers she can’t read his mind. When she’s near him there’s silence. The day-to-day buzz of other people’s thoughts is non-existent. Bill explains that since vampires are dead and have no brain waves, there’s nothing for her to pick up. Whatever the reason, Sookie is pleased to find someone she can be unguarded around. The two soon develop a romantic relationship.

Episode 5 opens with Sookie rebuffing Bill for his treatment of a highway trooper who approached their car after they fled a vampire bar in Shreveport (they’d pulled over on the side of the road). Sookie was frightened by Bill’s ability to use mind control over the patrolman and criticizes him for his behavior.

The main focus of this episode is to give us some backstory on Bill’s life both before and immediately after he became a vampire. We learn that Bill served in the Civil War as a soldier and had a wife and 2 children. Bill’s recounting of his experiences during the war are at times quite touching and heart wrenching.

We then learn how he became a vampire: he was wandering through the woods one night (after the war had ended) looking for food and shelter when he came upon a small shack. He’s invited inside by the woman living there and given food to eat. He soon learns that his hostess’ husband was also a soldier in the war, believed dead for several months. After a while, the woman surprisingly propositions him. Bill is so shocked he gets up to leave and is then attacked. You see, she’s a vampire. Bill wakes up later to see the bodies of her other victims. Fortunately for him, she decides to let him live, albeit as one of the undead. From that point on, Bill never sees his family again.

In keeping with the love lost theme, Sam Merlotte, Sookie’s boss and the owner of the bar where she works, works up the nerve to ask Sookie out on a date. Sam is a likable character that’s currently portrayed as the “lonely guy who never got the nerve to tell the girl he loves her” character. As such, he’s thrilled that Sookie accepts his invitation but ultimately ruins his chances with her by pushing her too soon. He’s quickly reduced to “friend” status, a position from which he’ll probably never emerge.

The episode ends with a cliffhanger, as have all prior episodes. Sookie discovering the dead body of her closest relative.

The series had a bit of a rough start in that it only captured a small percentage of the viewing public during its premiere. Since then the Internet is abuzz with talk about both the series and the books that the shows are based on. One can envision Charlaine Harris books flying off the shelves as the series grows in popularity. Overall, the show works. It’s dark, quirky, violent, and funny, with a bit of graphic sex thrown in for good measure. This combination has worked in the past with other HBO shows like Rome, Big Love, and Six Feet Under and will no doubt continue to draw audiences to True Blood during the rest of the season.

If you don’t have HBO there are several urban fantasy book sites and entertainment sites that let you watch True Blood online for free.