Over the last few episodes True Blood has swung from the thought provoking to titillating to ludicrous and back again. Between Jason’s meat-headed drug-induced philandering and Bill’s civil war era tears of blood, the show has tried to push every emotional button it can get its blood crusted fingers on. Last week, it stomped on that button by killing Grandma.

Bill and Sam the were-tender have their expected confrontation at the murder scene while the Bubba police officers debate the merits of this latest murder. After her grandmother’s body is carted off, Sookie morbidly cleans the puddles of her grandmother’s blood off the floor. Even though I wasn’t exactly taken with grandma, it was the only time I’ve seen some quality acting out of Anna Paquin. After finding out, Jason has an expected freak out and runs off presumably to get high or hump something.

At the funeral Grandma’s brother Uncle Bartlett arrives, visibly angering Sookie. Looks like there are more weirdos in the Stackhouse clan. Tara’s drunk mother decides to share her feelings at the funeral actually making herself into a two dimensional character for the first time. Tara’s mother tries to make peace with Tara claiming that all her years of abuse is due to a “demon”. Once again Tara and her family are more compelling than the vampire, the telepath or the were-tender.

Jason is totally spun out on vampire blood at this point and he’s obviously in withdrawal.     His downward spiral has almost made me love this guy. He’s actually incapable of making a good decision. Its like watching a massive train wreck in super slow motion. Speaking of slow motion, there was a tediously long scene of Sookie eating her grandma’s pecan pie while crying. I wonder if the writers had been to cryingwhileeating.com

Now for the big news, Bill and Sookie actually do have sex in this episode. I have no idea what really triggers it. Sookie just seemed to burst out of the house in her nightgown running all the way to Bill’s waiting arms. Sookie not only loses her virginity to a vampire but she also allows Bill to feed on her blood.

Once again, Tara is the one to watch. The story lines of her mother, her feelings for Jason and her own lack of confidence make her as compelling as any story line with an actual vampire. Bill and Sookie finally consummated and it looks like the action is about to pick up. Let’s hope so, I can’t take a full season of grieving for grandma.