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Season1

Season 1 of True Blood premiered on 7 September 2008 on HBO.

Season overview

The main mystery of the first season concerns the murders of women connected to Sookie's brother, Jason (Ryan Kwanten). Maudette Pickens, Dawn Green and Amy Burley are all strangled shortly after having been alone with Jason. Though Detective Bellefleur has little doubt that Jason is the killer, the town sheriff does not suspect him. Jason and Sookie's grandmother is murdered shortly afterward. At the end of the season it is revealed that Arlene Fowler's fiancé, René Lenier, is actually a guy named Drew Marshall who created a fake identity, Cajun accent and all. He has been killing women he considers "fangbangers."

The first season also focuses on Sookie's relationship with Bill and Sam's relationship with Sookie's friend Tara. Bill explains the rules of being a vampire to Sookie and, after he finds himself killing a vampire to defend Sookie, he is forced to turn a young girl, Jessica, as punishment. In the last episode of the season, this new vampire is left with Bill under his care. After Maudette and Dawn's murders Jason becomes addicted to vampire blood and has a short relationship with another addict, Amy, which ends when she is murdered by Drew. At the end of season one, Jason joins the anti-vampire movement Fellowship of the Sun and seems to be clean.

Episodes

# Image Title Airdate
01 1x01 Strange Love September 7, 2008
Two years after vampires have "come out of the coffin", the life of 25-year-old waitress Sookie Stackhouse is changed when 173-year-old Bill Compton walks into Merlotte's Bar in Bon Temps, Louisiana. Meanwhile, Sookie's friend Tara comes to work at Merlotte's while Sookie's tomcatting brother Jason finds himself on the wrong side of the law.
02 1x02 The First Taste September 14, 2008
After saving Sookie from the Rattray's revenge, Bill uses his vampire blood to heal Sookie and it leaves her with some strange side effects. In return, Sookie invites him to her house for a get-to-know-you gathering with Jason, Tara and Gran. Jason is released from custody, having only been a person of interest in the murder investigation of Maudette. He continues his amorous ways with Dawn, discovering her to also have had encounters with a vampire. Tara expresses her interest in Jason, while the Rattrays are killed by an apparent freak tornado. Later, out looking for Bill, Sookie comes across strange vampires.
03 1x03 Mine September 21, 2008
Bill must suddenly lay claim to Sookie in order to protect her from a cadre of his vampire acquaintances. At Merlotte's, Sam and Tara seek refuge from their respective problems, and Jason asks Lafayette for medicinal help. Dawn is found dead in her bed after an intimate encounter and falling-out with Jason.
04 1x04 Escape from Dragon House September 28, 2008
When another Bon Temps resident is found murdered under suspicious circumstances, Jason is once again taken into custody and it is up to Sookie to uncover the identity of the real killer and clear her brother's name. Bill takes Sookie to the vampire bar Fangtasia, where she is introduced to Eric, a thousand-year-old Viking vampire and Bill's superior.
05 1x05 Sparks Fly Out October 5, 2008
Spurned by an exasperated Sookie, Bill ends up winning over Adele's church audience with his vivid recollections from the Civil War, though Andy and Bud remain suspicious. Sam tries to make the most of his fading opportunity with Sookie, though she's clearly not ready to commit. Ignoring Tara's rebuff, Lafayette convinces Jason to give vampire blood, aka "V juice," another shot. Alone at home, Bill remembers the painful wartime incident that parted him from his beloved family and changed his fate forever.
06 1x06 Cold Ground October 12, 2008
Numbed by tragedy, Sookie looks for refuge from the cacophony of her friends' and neighbors' inner voices. After lashing out at his sister and decking Andy, Jason wrestles with withdrawal symptoms from his V juice habit. Tara resists the overtures of her alcoholic mother Lettie Mae, who's trying to rid herself of a demon and needs her daughter's help (and money). Sam and Tara make a connection in their mutual search for "something real."
07 1x07 Burning House of Love October 19, 2008
Sookie's painful childhood revelation about her Uncle Bartlett spurs Bill into vengeful action. Despite her skepticism, Tara agrees to pay for an exorcism to purge Lettie Mae of a demon. In search of V juice, Jason travels to Fangtasia, where he bonds with an adventurous young woman named Amy. A trio of rednecks decide to exact vigilante justice on a pack of vampires who crashed Merlotte's in search of their wayward mate Bill.
08 1x08 The Fourth Man in the Fire October 26, 2008
Sookie tries to hold herself together in the wake of another possible tragedy. Tara is amazed by Lettie Mae's turnaround, and considers similar therapy for herself after lashing out at Sookie and Sam. Jason's new squeeze Amy charms the crowd at Merlotte's, but shows a darker side to Jason when their V juice well runs dry. René pops the question to Arlene while Sookie is baby-sitting her kids. Later, at Bill's request on behalf of Eric, Sookie agrees to use her gifts to help Eric, a powerful vampire sheriff, root out a thief at Fangtasia.
09 1x09 Plaisir D'Amour November 2, 2008
Bill breaks a vampire taboo in saving Sookie from vampire Longshadow's attack, and must pay a steep price as a result. Jason and Amy break their own taboo by kidnapping a vampire named Eddie in order to harvest his blood. With Lettie Mae apparently cured, a skeptical Tara consults with Miss Jeanette about exorcising her own inner demon. Sookie returns home to yet another horrific tragedy, prompting Bill to enlist an unlikely bodyguard - Sam - to protect her while he's away.
10 1x10 I Don't Wanna Know November 9, 2008
Caught in a compromising position, Sam shares a secret with an incredulous Sookie. Thinking she's been purged of her demon, Tara celebrates with Lettie Mae - but goes off the deep end when she uncovers Miss Jeanette's true intentions. Sookie has a disturbing revelation during Arlene and René's engagement party at Merlotte's. Jason and Amy debate what to do with Eddie. Tara speeds into a bizarre roadside encounter that lands her in jail. At a vampire tribunal to decide his fate, Bill faces a harsh penalty for his offense, but the magister decides on a more creative sentence involving a human teen named Jessica.
11 1x11 To Love Is to Bury November 16, 2008
Bill fulfills the conditions of the tribunal's sentence, although he and Eric find that Jessica doesn't quite turn (out) as expected. Trying to solve the mystery behind her most recent vision, Sookie heads to a pie shop with Sam and later puts the squeeze on a philandering police officer to get info on a murder suspect. Jason helps clean up Amy's bloody mess, worrying about their future, but is unable to break away. Tara's anger over Lettie Mae's refusal to bail her out of jail is tempered when Maryann Forrester, a wealthy "social worker," comes to her rescue. Disgusted by the hypocrisy of a vamp-bashing state senator, Lafayette decides to pay him a warning visit on the campaign trail. In Bill's absence, a vulnerable Sookie finds comfort in Sam. A distraught, self-doubting Jason finds himself in hot water with Sheriff Bud and Detective Andy, again.
12 1x12 You'll Be the Death of Me November 23, 2008
Sookie finds a link to the string of killings in Bon Temps - and is soon in the murderer's cross hairs again. Tara decides to make the most of her second chance with Maryann. Jason finds a new calling after anti-vampire zealot Orry visits him in jail. Bill tempts fate during his latest attempt to save Sookie. Sam is perturbed by a surprise encounter with an old acquaintance. Lafayette finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Season 1 Cast

Lead cast

Strongly recurring cast

Recurring cast

Recurring guest cast

Guest cast

Differences between the book and the television series

Season 1 of True Blood is loosely based on the book Dead Until Dark by American author Charlaine Harris, the first book in The Southern Vampire Mysteries. However, the television series differs from the book in many ways. For one thing, the book is chick literature with romance, mystery and fantasy elements thrown in. The television series reaches out to a more universal adult audience. In the book, Sookie Stackhouse is the sole protagonist. The television series has five main protagonists: Sookie Stackhouse, Jason Stackhouse, Sam Merlotte , Bill Compton and Tara Thornton. Below are some of the major changes between Season 1 of True Blood and Dead Until Dark.

  • The pilot episode of the TV show shows a young frat boy and his girlfriend enter the Grabbit Kwik store in Bon Temps looking for Tru Blood. The shop assistant tricks them into thinking he's a vampire and laughs about it when they fall for his joke. However, the couple and the shop assistant are unaware that a vampire is actually in the store. He extracts his fangs, threatens to kill them if they make fun of vampires again, pays for his Tru Blood and leaves the store with a cheery "Have a good day!" No such event occurs in the book. This scene was added to the TV show as an introduction to television viewers on the premise of the series.
  • In the books, Tara Thornton does not appear until the second novel in The Southern Vampire Mysteries, Living Dead in Dallas. In Season 1 of the television series, however, she is a major character. Lafayette Reynolds is also a major recurring character while he only had a minor role in the first book.
  • Many of the characters in the television show differ greatly from their counterparts in the books, both in physical appearance and personality. In the book; Sookie and Jason Stackhouse have blue eyes, Sam Merlotte has strawberry blond hair and in later books, Tara is a sophisticated, fashionable, mild mannered Caucasian. In the television series, Sookie and Jason have brown eyes, Sam has grey hair and Tara is a brash, brutally honest, temperamental African-American. Also Lafayette in the book is very feminine, he is also feminine in the television series but is quite tough and fearsome alongside that, a quality not displayed in the book. Maxine Fortenberry is also nosy and uncaring on TV whereas in the book she appears to be a more gracious woman while her son Hoyt appears to be a more caring sweeter person on TV than he is in the book. Bill is also a warmer person on TV than he is in the book.
  • In the book, Sookie appears to have very few friends apart from Bill, Sam, Lafayette and Arlene. In the television series, Sookie has been close friends with Tara Thornton since she was six years old. In later books, Sookie and Tara were revealed to be best friends during high school but have tended to fall out of touch from time to time ever since. In the TV show, Sookie also has a closer relationship with Lafayette and Arlene. She is also on friendly terms with Dawn while in the books it is stated that Sookie and Dawn never got on well.
  • In the book, Bubba the vampire is sent by Bill to look after Sookie while he attends business. In the television series, Bubba does not appear and Bill asks Sam to guard her while he's away instead.
  • In the book Hep D never appeared, Instead it was called Sino Aids which is a disease undetected by modern healthcare and can leave vampires helpless.

See also

  • True Blood - Season 1 DVD
True Blood Season 1
Season 2 >>Season 3 >>Season 4 >>
#01 "Strange Love"#07 "Burning House of Love"
#02 "The First Taste"#08 "The Fourth Man in the Fire"
#03 "Mine"#09 "Plaisir D'Amour"
#04 "Escape from Dragon House"#10 "I Don't Wanna Know"
#05 "Sparks Fly Out"#11 "To Love Is to Bury"
#06 "Cold Ground"#12 "You'll Be the Death of Me"
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