True Blood
HBO
Sundays, after the 9 pm movie
Rating **

What’s it about? Vampires seem to be a la mode these days. After Robert Pattinson in Twilight, it’s now Stephen Moyer in True Blood, HBO’s new vampire series which premieres on July 5, who’s joined the bandwagon of bloodsucking hotties. True Blood, created by Alan Ball (of Six Feet Under fame) follows the life of cocktail waitress/telepathic psychic, Sookie Stackhouse, who falls in love with a vampire, Bill Compton, whose thoughts are the only ones she can’t read. The vampires have been newly rendered harmless by the discovery of a synthetic liquid that slakes vampires’ thirst so they don’t need to feed on humans. The series is based on the Southern Vampire Mysteries, a string of fantasy novels by Charlaine Harris.

Who’s in it? Anna Paquin plays the role of the sprightly young Sookie. Unfortunately, instead of impish and vivacious, she comes across as tempestuous, impulsive and reckless. If Billy the vampire can see something special in her, then kudos to him because we certainly couldn’t. Her acting is low on skill and high on theatrics. However, Stephen Moyer’s flawless portrayal of Bill Compton saves the day. Another delight is Rutina Wesley, who plays Sookie’s sassy best friend, Tara. She delivers a power-packed performance with her tongue-in-cheek repartees and her soulful looks at Sookie’s brother Jason played by Ryan Kwanten.

What’s hot? Despite its drawbacks, the Sookie-Billy romance works, even when he delivers corny lines like “I can smell the sunlight on your skin” which would have made us barf if spoken by a flesh-and-blood mortal. (Or anyone a degree less hot than Stephen Moyer). Maybe it’s the fact that Bill the vampire is 173-years-old and thus was born in an age when moonlight serenading and mushy couplets still impressed the ladies. Or maybe it’s just that those doleful looks Moyer casts with his voodoo-working eyes have us as mesmerised as Sookie.

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