When True Blood (developed by Six Feet Under creator Alan Ball) premiered on HBO in 2008, the sexy, splashy melodrama about vampires coming out of the shadows and into human society gave the pay-cable network a buzz-worthy hit. Although it eventually slid into increasingly outrageous storylines and the ratings slipped accordingly, the series retained loyal fans to the end. For this seventh and final set, the show ostensibly puts the on-again, off-again romance between the part human–part faerie heroine Sookie (Anna Paquin) and centuries-old vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) at the center, but it's still really an ensemble effort, with dozens of figures and plenty of complicated relationships—all given their due in this wrap-up. At the same time, the terrible Hep-V plague continues to turn vamps into rabid creatures before finally killing them (an AIDS metaphor for the series), and this season adds the Japanese yakuza syndicate into the mix as everyone scrambles to find an antidote or a vaccination for the disease. This final compilation never reaches the thrilling blend of horror pulp and social metaphor that made the first few runs such a pop-culture fixture, but it does provide closure and even a happy ending for many of its characters. Compiling all 10 episodes from 2014, extras include episode commentaries, and a behind-the-scenes featurette (exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a bonus featurette and an interactive guide). Recommended. (S. Axmaker)
True Blood: The Complete Seventh Season
HBO, 4 discs, 600 min., TV-MA, DVD: $59.99; Blu-ray: $79.98 Volume 30, Issue 1
True Blood: The Complete Seventh Season
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