Deadlocked: The Storm Before the Calm

Anyone who has visited my blog knows that I am terrible at writing a non-spoilery review. This post isn’t so much a review as it is an analysis of some key events in the book. So, if you have not read Deadlocked (and do not wish to be spoiled) you better stop reading now.

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Deadlocked (DL) is the 12th installment of the Sookie Stackhouse Novels and the second to last book in the series. As we are so close to the end, I thought I would focus my analysis of DL on the growth of Sookie Stackhouse. She’s come a long way from the Sookie of the early books and, though she still has a way to go, I’ve really enjoyed the ride.

One is the Loneliest Number

When Bill asked Sookie about her plans for the future, way back in the first book, and Sookie told him she planned to “Grow old and die.” I was profoundly sad. It saddened me that this was all she could see for herself. However, it was not difficult to understand why this was all she could see for herself. This was the Sookie who perceived her telepathy as a disability. This was the Sookie who was so desperate for friendship she considered Arlene her best friend. This was the Sookie for which dating was an impossibility and therefore she viewed all the elements of a “normal” life to be out of her reach.

Thus, there were two events in DL that made me smile. The first was the girls night out at the strip club. It was so nice to see Sookie take part in this female bonding ritual. What was equally nice is that Sookie wasn’t an outsider but she was sharing in the “girl talk.” She also did a fabulous job of diffusing a difficult situation when they discovered that Tara’s husband was a stripper.

The second event that made me happy was that Sookie didn’t spend her birthday alone. I loved that a party was thrown for her at Merlotte’s and I loved that when she got home there were three vampires there to wish her a happy birthday even if one of the vampires was Bill.

There is a Charlaine Harris quote which is brought up often within this fandom; Charlaine has said something to the effect that Sookie will not end the series alone. This is often discussed within the context of suitors for Sookie but I personally take a broader view. Though I am Sookie/Eric shipper, I want Sookie to have more than just Eric. I think Sookie’s widening social circle, and improved relationship with her brother, is an example of how she has moved on from the lonely girl that we first met in Dead Until Dark to the woman that won’t be alone.

The Place Where Everybody Knows Your Name

Our favorite telepath is moving up the corporate ladder. Considering how long she has worked there (and how many parking lots attacks she has survived), it is only fitting.

As the most senior employee, Sookie was often counted on to fill in for Sam when he was gone. I remember in one book she couldn’t sleep because she was so worried she would screw something up and Merlotte’s would go out of business. Thus, I was so proud of her take charge attitude in this book. Also, though I love the addition of the employee lockers, I really think she should have opted for several security cameras and a night watchman for that parking lot.

And Now for What Everyone is Flipping Out Focusing On

The main focus of this fandom is Sookie’s love life and there were some events that I bet leave many in a bit of a lurch. Before I delve into my take on some key events in DL, I’d like to begin with two quotes from earlier books.

“Had it occurred to you,” he said, after we’d rolled out of the city’s center, “that you tend to walk away when things between you and Bill become rocky? Not that I mind, necessarily, since I would be glad for you two to sever your association. But if this is the pattern you follow in your romantic attachments, I want to know now.” Eric to Sookie – Club Dead (Book 3)

“Beyond him I could see the same woman was still sitting at the bar, the one who’d remarked that I was no maiden. She was obviously wondering what I had done to secure the attention of a vampire as ancient and attractive as Eric. I often wondered the same thing.” Dead as a Doornail (Book 5)

Sookie and Eric are going through a rough patch, to put it mildly. However, I believe Charlaine is putting these particular obstacles in their path to highlight the growth of these characters throughout this series.

While I get that angst is not everyone’s cup of tea, I am perplexed that some readers are expecting the final books of the series to involve Sookie and Eric having no struggles and simply teaming up to solve mysteries like some sort of supernatural Dave and Maddie. That is the stuff of short story not novel. The novels, above all else, are about Sookie’s growth and development. I fully expect, and it is bearing out, that Charlaine is going to throw everything but the kitchen sink at Sookie as the series wind down. Times are going to be rocky and this Sookie is not running.

Now, let’s talk about the Cluviel Dor shall we? Or, more specifically, Sookie’s use of the Cluviel Dor. I stayed spoiler free prior to this book and I have successfully avoided most online discussion and analysis because I wanted to give a fresh perspective without fandom reaction influencing it. However, after 3 years in this fandom, I can predict what some reaction may be and I imagine that some discussion goes like this:

“The Cluviel Dor can only be used on someone you love!!! Sookie used it on Sam and NOT Eric. ZOMG that must mean she really loves Sam!!!”

Ummm. No.

I think this interpretation is really far off the mark and this is NOT due to my love of a certain Viking but what is in the text and what has been built up over the past TWELVE books.

Yes, Sookie loves Sam … as a friend. The Cluviel Dor makes no stipulation on the type of love you feel for the person you use it on, you only must love that person; the love for a friend definitely qualifies.

Now why didn’t Sookie use the Cluviel Dor to get Eric out of his jam with Freyda? Because that wouldn’t really solve what is at the heart of the problem and that is Sookie’s fear that Eric will leave her.

Sookie has come very far but there is still a part of her that is like the Sookie in Book 5 that is not sure what Eric sees in her exactly. This, coupled with the a terrible ending to her first relationship, makes her think that it won’t last. Something will tear Eric away. This is why Appius’ dying utterance that she will never keep Eric cut her to the quick because it touched on her deepest insecurities.

The Cluviel Dor would have been a quick fix. But if she had used it to free Eric from Freyda it would have done nothing to address her insecurities of Eric leaving. That is because she would have used some magic device to prevent Eric from leaving rather than Eric preventing himself from leaving. And what if, down the road, there was some other political situation that threatened to tear Eric away. The Cluviel Dor is one and out and there would be no more quick fixes.

That is why Sookie discarded the notion of using the Cluviel Dor for Eric because it wouldn’t have fixed what is really troubling her about the Freyda situation. Eric is not going to leave Sookie willingly but her insecurities are not allowing her to understand this. Eric is in a situation he is desperate to get out of but one that is not easily fixed. Then he discovers that his girlfriend has an object that can make this problem go away but she is not stepping forward to use it for him.

It is my very strong opinion that Harris has set up this specific situation to address one of the biggest impediments to Sookie and Eric’s longterm future and that is Sookie’s insecurities that she and Eric won’t last; her fear that he will find something better thereby validating those that wonder what he sees in her.

For Sookie to have a believable Dead Ever After this needs to be addressed and sure as hell wouldn’t be addressed if Sookie were to have used the Cluviel Dor to make the Freyda situation go away.

So how exactly are Eric and Sookie going to get out of this?

I can’t predict exactly what is going to happen but it is my very firm belief that come next May, Sookie/Eric shippers are going to see a very satisfying resolution to this.

You can bet a demon’s dick

Alexander Skarsgard: Sports Fan

One of the things that I like about Alexander Skarsgard is that he is a regular person. As someone who takes sports a tad too seriously (I will never get over Adam Deadmarsh hitting the goal post in the 2000 Western Conference Finals. NEVER), I appreciate Skarsgard’s devotion to the teams and the sports that he loves. So I thought I would pay tribute to Skarsgard: The Sports Fan.

In a recent interview with the UK’s Daily Telegraph, Skars talked about how a recent encounter with the Hammarby football team brought out his inner fanboy.

“I took them out after they played LA Galaxy. I live in Hollywood and meet all these celebrities and I couldn’t care less. I was at a bar with a bunch of footballers from south Stockholm and I’m crying I’m so happy.

“Someone who doesn’t support a team will never get it. These are 22-year-old kids from south Stockholm. They’re not Lionel Messi. They’re not even the best team in Sweden. We’re in the second division right now. But I will never get more star struck than that.”

Full Article

And in other sports news …

Skars makes a great cheerleader.

Skars talks hockey.

Skars talks about how it can be difficult being a fan of a team that is not that good.

I love hockey so much that I love seeing Skars in a hockey jersey … even if it is a New York Rangers jersey.

Source

Any sports fan knows that team ownership issues can be cause for concern. Here is Skarsgard at Bajen Aid.

Source

Finally, I bet as a Swedish sports fan, Skarsgard had to have seen this … and cheered loudly. (Note: Skarsgard does not appear in this video but my favorite hockey player does. I am including it because I think this is awesome. You may not want to click on this if you are from Canada)

The Things I Do for a Sookie Book

My love for Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse series makes me do some things that are a bit … odd. I suspect I’m not alone in this. So, as we approach the release of the 12th Sookie book, I thought I’d share with you one of my more colorful fangirl moments.

Patience is not a Virtue

Perhaps it is a symptom of growing up in a family that opened our presents on Christmas Eve, but I have difficulty waiting for things. At the time I was introduced to the Sookie novels, there were nine books published and I tore through them in a 3-week span. Thus, the approximate six-month wait until the tenth book, Dead in the Family (DITF), was agony.

As the weeks slowly ticked away, and the release date inched closer, I started to think about how I would go about purchasing the book. My favorite spot to buy books is a local independent book store. However, it is several miles from my house so that means I have to do my book shopping on a weekend.  As the new Sookie book came out on a Tuesday, there was NO WAY I was going to wait four more days in order to buy the book. With my favorite book buying option closed, I had to settle on an alternative. I quickly vetoed Amazon.com (what if the book wasn’t delivered on the release date?) and settled on a Barnes and Noble (B&N) near my house.

Settled, right? Wrong.

A day before the release date, a couple of women on an Internet discussion board, I used to frequent, were absolutely thrilled; they’d ordered the book off Amazon and it arrived a day early. I was so upset. Here, I had vetoed ordering off Amazon because I was afraid it wouldn’t arrive on time.

“I could be reading Dead in the Family, right now!” I mourned.

Well, my inner fangirl was not going to be denied. Knowing that the books had to be in the back room of B&N, I developed a stupid cunning plan.

This is how my plan worked in my head: I would go to B&N. I would pretend that I thought the book had already been released. When I would ask an associate where the book was, they would explain that it wasn’t due to come out until tomorrow. I’d explain that I was leaving for a business trip to Greeley (FYI: small town with no B&N) the next day and I hoped to buy the book for my trip. I’d then ask them if they could look up the address of the Greeley B&N (haha). Of course they would discover, if they didn’t already know, there was no Greeley store. I would then say, “Well, people in Greeley must read, I’ll just buy the book at another book store up there.” The associate not wanting any B&N to lose a sale, and knowing the books were already in the back room, would offer to sell it to me a day early.

Like I said, that is how the plan worked in my head. Here is how it worked in reality: I went to B&N. After I looked around the shelves (just in case they accidentally put the book out a day early), I found an associate and asked her where the new Sookie book was. She went over to the computer to look it up and, of course, she discovered the book wasn’t scheduled to be released until the next day. I then proceeded with my Greeley business trip bullshit story. She searched the computer for the “Greeley location’s” address. Of course, she could not find one. However, she was really certain there was a Greeley location, and by “certain” I mean she spent 15 minutes on the problem. She was trying search feature after search feature because she knew they just HAD to have a Greeley location. I nearly broke character because I felt so bad she was spending so much time trying to help me on, what I knew to be, a fruitless search.

Finally, she accepted the fact that there was no Greeley location. Cue me uttering the line, “Well, people in Greeley must read, I’ll just purchase it at another book store up there.” However, instead of her offering to sell me the book a day early, she told me I could put it on hold; they would reserve me a copy. I told her I would be in Greeley for a week and I really wanted the book that week so I could read it during my trip. She told me if I did purchase it up there I could always take it off hold. I felt so bad that she had spent so much time trying to help me, and being that I was going to purchase it the next day anyway, I relented.

On my drive home from B&N, it dawned on me that I couldn’t purchase it from that location. I had told her that I would be in Greeley for a week. What if she saw me the next day? She would know my story was bullshit. But she spent so much time helping me I didn’t want her store to lose a sale. However, I sure as hell wasn’t going to wait a week for the book. I briefly considered buying two copies (one tomorrow and the other a week later from that location) but I vetoed this because I didn’t want to spend that much money.

So the next day I bought the book from Borders and I called B&N to have them take it off hold and I felt really guilty (I’m a terrible liar).

Yes, my love for the Sookie books makes me do some really stupid things.

Reminiscing about this event has made me decide that I am going to purchase Deadlocked from that B&N; I owe them a sale. And I am going to go in on May 1st. I will NOT try to get them sell it to me a day early.

Maybe.

Will the Maker of the Real Sookie Stackhouse Please Stand Up

I’m a little late but I just wanted to post my thoughts on the wonderful interview Charlaine Harris gave to the Orlando Sentinel. For those of you who have not read the full article, it is well worth a read and you can find it here.

These are a few of my favorite quotes:

“The Sookie Stackhouse novels were selling well before the TV show”

I’m so glad she brought this up because the ridiculous notion that she somehow owes her entire success to True Blood and Alan Ball is one of my biggest pet peeves with this fandom (and I have about a million pet peeves with this fandom).

The Sookie Stackhouse novels were on the New York Times Best Seller list BEFORE True Blood was a sparkle in Alan Ball’s eye. Anyone who says differently is ignoring established FACTS.

Did the success of the TV show take her book sales to new heights? OF COURSE it did. This happens to ANY book series that is adapted into a movie or TV show.

I have NO problem with people that like a certain character or story arc on the TV show and, when they find out that characterization is not present in the source material, decide not to read the books. However, I DO have a problem when people decide to trash novels they have not read and make crap up that makes no sense whatsoever.

Charlaine Harris wrote the Sookie Stackhouse Novels. Yes, that would be an “s” at the end. An “s” means more than one. NO author continues to be published if his/her books don’t sell. As Ms. Harris has not only written the Sookie Stackhouse SERIES but the Aurora Teagarden, Lily Bard, and Harper Connelly SERIES of books as well; she does just fine in the sales department.

“It was never a Bill vs. Eric situation in my mind.”

The Bill vs. Eric hype of the show is not the same in the books largely because Bill’s role is diminished from the third book on.

Bill is Sookie’s first love and the ending of their relationship, and subsequent revelations, takes Sookie awhile to work out. In my opinion, after the revelation in Book 6, Bill never had any chance of regaining the same place in Sookie’s life that he once had. While the effects of her relationship with Bill definitely impacted her relationship with others, particularly Eric, it was never from a perspective that she would go back to Bill. Rather it was a process of Sookie letting go of the hurt so she could move on with her life and pursue a relationship with someone else. In my opinion, it is a much more complex and better crafted situation than the continuous yo-yo love triangle situation of the TV show.

This is not to say that there is not suitor discussion, and panic attacks, amongst book readers. I think a large reason this exists is because of Alan Ball’s revelation at Paley in 2009 that Harris had to be talked out of killing Bill in Dead & Gone. I think Ball’s comments led to the perception that Harris can let events in the TV show influence her writing.

Harris has long said, and she reiterated in this interview, that she has known how the series will end since about the second book. However, there is a BIG difference between knowing how the series will end and knowing the exact path you are going to take to get to the end.

As long as the ending that Ms. Harris has been working toward for the last decade is not changed (and I see NOTHING in the last couple of books to indicate Ms. Harris has done an about face), I care little if the path is modified to get to the end point.

“I don’t write Anna Paquin, I write Sookie Stackhouse.”

This quote got the biggest smile from me. I can’t count the number of times I have tried to sit down and write ALL my frustrations with TB Sookie and have stopped because it is simply too damn depressing.

I love Book Sookie. She is by no means perfect and there have been more than a couple of times that she has grated on my nerves but her humor, intelligence, bravery and sass always bring me back for more.

Harris has crafted a compelling heroine but even in the fantastical atmosphere of the novels there are things about Sookie that are relatable.

I remember a scene in the earlier books when Sookie and Bill were fighting. Sookie cooked an Italian dinner so her house would smell like garlic because she knew, if Bill were there, the smell would drive him crazy. It was like Sookie was taking back a part of herself. This really struck a chord with me because it reminded me of an ex-boyfriend. No, he was not a vampire who hated garlic. He was a music snob who hated any band that had sold more than 50,000 copies. I’m sad to say I kept my love for more popular bands, particularly ’80s hair metal, quiet. I remember a week after we broke up, I cranked Def Leppard’s Pyromania and sang it at the top of my lungs. I knew if my ex were there, he would have HATED it. It was such an empowering and FUN moment.

Reading about Sookie cooking the garlic infested dinner brought me back to that moment and, from then on out, I was fully ensconced in Sookie’s corner. Harris created a heroine that I genuinely like and root for.

Finally I would just like to say whether you are books only, show only, or like both mediums, NONE of it would be possible without Charlaine Harris.

“I am the creator. When I’m on the set they call me the Maker.” 

Random Recommendation: The Amazing Maggie Smith

It can be difficult being a fan of the Sookie Stackhouse Novels or even the TV show, True Blood. Come May or September when the last page is turned or the last episode is aired, readers and/or viewers are faced with the loooong wait until the new book/season.

Well fear not, faithful readers/viewers; the wait doesn’t have to “suck.” During the last two hiatuses, I found several new series that I enjoyed immensely. The most recent series, that has captured my attention, is Downton Abbey.

In the US, the second season just wrapped up. While I personally found the second season to not be as good as the first, I still enjoy the show. Hands down my favorite part of the show is the wonderful Maggie Smith.

My first introduction to Maggie Smith came when I was a little girl. I absolutely adored Agatha Christie mysteries and Maggie Smith was in two movie adaptations of Christie novels: Death on the Nile and Evil Under the Sun.

Death on the Nile (1978)

I love this movie. It has an amazing all-star cast. Besides Maggie Smith, the other actors are David Niven, Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Peter Ustinov, and Angela Lansbury just to name a few.

Much of the movie was shot on location in Egypt and the scenery is breathtaking. It has a haunting score by Nino Rota (he also scored The Godfather). Plus, it has Peter Ustinov as Hercules Poirot, Christie’s most famous sleuth.

Ustinov brings a sense of compassion and humor to his portrayal of Poirot, that makes Ustinov’s take on the Belgian detective my favorite of all the actors that have taken on the role.

As Death on the Nile is a murder mystery, and I tend to give away the farm in my reviews, I will stop myself here and talk about …

Evil Under the Sun (1982)

Peter Ustinov is back as Poirot. Like Death on the Nile, this movie features exotic locations; it was shot on an island off the coast of Spain.

Another movie. Another murder.

Maggie Smith portrays Daphne Castle; the owner of an exclusive hotel that caters to the rich and famous. Smith’s role is much larger than her role in Nile. She is a central antagonist to Arlena Marshall, played by the wonderful Diana Rigg.

Rigg’s and Smith’s scenes are some of my favorites of the movie. When the character of Daphne talks of her days as a showgirl with Arlena she says this:

“Arlena and I were in the chorus of a show together, not that I could ever compete. Even in those days she could always throw her legs up in the air higher than all of us. (pause) And wider.”

Or when Arlena comes to the cocktail hour late, on purpose, in order to make a dramatic entrance and Daphne calls her on it:

“Have a sausage, dear. You must be famished having to wait all that time in your room.”

As it is a Christie mystery, there is obviously a death. You may be able to guess the murderer straight away but can you explain how he or she did it?

So don’t fall for the marketing campaign SSN/TB fans, waiting doesn’t suck. If you haven’t watched Downton Abbey, what are you waiting for???? And, while you are at it, put Death on the Nile and Evil Under the Sun in your Netflix queue. If none of these options, make you smile take note of this …

Only 71 more days until Deadlocked.

Is Sam a Telepath?

Small Town Wedding

Gradually, the remaining guests of the unofficial party began to leave. I couldn’t avoid talking to Jannalynn anymore. She’d been sitting behind the table within reach of Sam since I’d returned, and she hadn’t said a word. I knew this situation was hard for her, and I felt sorry it was, but there was nothing I could do about it. She’d known when she’d come to Wright that it was the wrong thing to do.

What could I see in her brain? I saw grief, resentment, and envy. Jannalyn was wondering why Sam couldn’t see that she was just like me. She was brave and pretty and loyal, too.

(Next day Sookie and Sam talking about Jannalyn) “She’s a lot younger than me,” he said. “And she has some impulse control issues. But she’s really brave, really loyal.”

Okay, that was just weird it was like listening to an echo of Jannalyn’s thoughts the night before.

Dead in the Family

I nodded. “Okay. Well, I better get home.” I wanted to check my cell phone for messages and my landline, too. And my computer. I was dying for someone to reach out and touch me.

…”Eric’s out of touch?” he said, proving that Sam is one shrewd guesser.

Dead and Gone

I went in the employee entrance and right to Sam’s office.

“Brace yourself. Tonight’s the night,” he said.

I was so proud he’d told me, and he’d echoed my own thoughts so closely, I couldn’t help but smile.

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“Has someone told Sam, do you know?”

Dr. Ludwig shrugged. “I don’t know. I imagine so. He seems to hear everything.”

Dead to the World

(Sookie and Sam talking about Eric regaining his memory) “I think it’s for the best,” I told him. “Definitely.” But I would be going home to an empty house again. The knowledge skittered at the edges of my awareness, but I wouldn’t look at it directly.

“Too bad you weren’t working the afternoon shift,” he said, somehow following a similar train of thought. “Calvin Norris was in here.”

*********

(Earlier in the book. Sam is telling Sookie about Calvin) “Calvin’s an okay guy, as far as I know … Some of the other guys from Hotshot own a welding shop. I hear they do good work. But I don’t know what goes on in Hotshot after they go home at night …”

(Later in the book, Sookie reveals to Sam that Jason vanished the night Crystal was waiting at his house) “Crystal – she’s the Hotshot girl he was with New Year’s Eve? The skinny black-headed girl at the search?”

I nodded.

“The one Felton loves so much?”

“He what?”

“Felton, you know, the one who came along on the search. She’s been his big love his whole life.”

“And you know this how?” Since I, the mind reader, didn’t, I was distinctly piqued.

“He told me one night when he’d had too much to drink. These guys from Hotshot, they don’t come in much, but when they do, they drink serious.”

(Kind of contrasts with his earlier statement that he doesn’t know what goes on in Hotshot after they go home at night)

Dead as a Doornail

(When Sookie and Sam are kissing in his office)

If I’d had the gift of teleportation, I would’ve had us somewhere more private in an instant. Remotely, I felt there was something kind of tacking at feeling this lustful in a messy office in a bar …

“Not good enough for you here,” he said.

Dead Until Dark

“No! No!” he exclaimed, apparently even angrier. “I don’t want to lose you!” He gripped my shoulders and gave me a little shake. Then he stood looking at me with wide, crackling blue eyes, and I felt a surge of heat rushing out from him. Touching accelerates my disability, makes it imperative that I hear the person touching me.

… I appreciated the delicacy of this and wondered if Sam had touched me on purpose.

*********

I could not read Sam’s thoughts. I could feel his emotions but I could not spell out one single thought. This was so fascinating and unexpected that I stepped out of JB’s embrace,  wanting to go up to Sam and grab his arms and really probe around in his head … Now he felt me in his head and though he kept on walking toward me, his mind flinched back. Despite his invitation to me, he hadn’t known I would see he was different from others; I picked up on that until he shut me down.

I’d never felt anything like it. It was like an iron door slamming. In my face.

********************************************************************************

Things that make you go hmmm.

 

Dexter Season 6 Finale: Deb Does Dexter (Or Wants To Anyway)

OK. I’m going to make this brief. Real life, holidays and all that crap stuff is keeping me busy. But before the holiday season takes me away from my blogging, I just wanted to share a few of my thoughts about the Dexter season finale.

Oh boy.

Just like a certain other show, this season of Dexter started with so much promise but then began to unravel in the latter half of the season. And just like a certain other show the mess culminated with a putrid scene set on a sofa. Hence, 2011 will forever be known as “The Year the Sofa Scene Destroyed my Favorite Shows.”

But I digress.

Now, Dexter has not jumped the shark for me … yet. I still have faith that the writers can right this ship. However, there were some very disturbing developments that, if not corrected or minimized next year, leave this show in danger of killing my interest.

But before we get to next season, let’s sort through the cliffhanger, shall we.

Season 6 ended with a scene that most fans have been waiting for since the start of the show: Deb discovers that Dexter is a killer.

I was shocked that Deb found out, mostly because the show was recently renewed for two more seasons. This kind of reveal is a total series game changer and I am really curious how the show is going to handle this for not one but TWO seasons. While the ending shocked me, I hated how it went down. I always wanted Deb to discover Dexter’s “dark passenger” based on her own investigative skill. (Although Dexter was so careless this season; if it were a police investigation that led Deb into that church, it wouldn’t exactly make her the next Sherlock Holmes.) However, Deb wasn’t going to the old church to investigate a crime; she was going there to confess her lurve.

Yeah, About that.

Do not think about it, Deb. Do NOT

This plot development came out of left field. I have watched every episode of this show and, while Deb leans on Dexter and loves him a lot, I NEVER got the sense her feelings were anything other than sisterly love. This “revelation” came about from her therapist’s suggestion that Deb doesn’t love Dexter in the Luke sense but more like the Han (Star Wars reference #1).

Deb’s reaction mirrors the audience’s: she responds with anger and disgust. However, she goes home and has a cringeworthy dream that makes me want to; 1) donate my sofa to Goodwill and; 2) shred all my Chinese takeout menus.

Sadly, the combo of this dream, her therapist’s suggestion, and her own poor romantic track record lead Deb to conclude that she wants to get to know her adoptive brother in the biblical sense (nudge nudge to Season 6’s theme).

Please Show. No. Just. NO!!!

Deb’s therapist bases her theory upon seeing Dexter and Deb have a tender moment. Yes, because when a sister hugs her brother after he saves her life from a chemical attack it can only mean she wants to jump his bones.

And you thought my eyerolling was exclusive to True Blood. Pfft.

Did I mention I HATE this plot development?

It cheapens the revelation. It would be dramatic enough for Deb to deal not only with the knowledge that her brother is a killer but also that her beloved father trained him to be a killer. Adding the twist that Deb is “in love” with Dex takes this dangerously close to soap opera territory.

Maybe if Deb had seen this painting it would have killed her attraction.

Save Me, Creepy Intern. You’re My Only Hope (Star Wars Reference #2)

While the Dex/Deb plot developments leave me concerned about upcoming seasons (and begging for eyeball bleach), I am thoroughly interested in what is on the horizon for Louis Greene (Number 3 in Masuka’s Revolving Door of Interns).

While I’ve heard some fans bemoan what they perceive as the show failing to tie up his story, I couldn’t disagree more. I think the show is setting him up to be next Season’s Big Bad. I think Louis has the potential to make a very intriguing Big Bad. The fact that he: purchases old crime scene evidence over the Internet, has a seeming nice guy demeanor, and works RIGHT NEXT TO DEX open up many intriguing possibilities.

Let’s just hope the show doesn’t go too far off track with the Deb/Dex reveal.