I couldn’t help but laugh when Russell kind of scoffed at the idea of him killing Eric Northman’s family. It’s like he thought it was no big deal, but Eric’s murder of a single person was a travesty. That whole scene in the gallery between Eric and Russell seemed a lot lighter than I expected it would be considering the bad blood (no pun intended) between them.

When I saw the previews of Sam Merlotte getting drunk and telling off his employees and customers, I knew some sort of big twist was coming. It came in the form of Sam and Tara coming full-circle and hooking up again. It also gave Tommy a good opportunity to break into Sam’s safe. Sam’s behavior of late isn’t endearing him to many people right now. In the real world, a guy who acted like that wouldn’t be in business for very long.

As for Jason, he’s still pissed about losing track of Sookie. He was also shocked by the revelation that Crystal isn’t entirely human. That werepanther-to-human transformation last week was something to behold. Jason’s head just about blew up.

Jason also learned what his new high school rival was up to. Kitch isn’t playing on the up and up. He’s using V and everyone knows about it and supports it. I hope to God Jason uses his brain and finds a way to embarrass Kitch, his family, the coach, and everyone else who is supporting his cheating ways.

I felt bad for Lafayette this week. That trip he took with Jesus had some nasty effects on him. He’s got a whole slough of demons to battle now. Seeing Jesus in that mask was some freaky stuff.

I was shocked, shocked I tell you when I saw Hoyt’s mother return to the show. She hasn’t been here all season and now she’s revealed to have tried to get Summer and Hoyt together. Despite feeling bad about everything, they seem determined to get Jessica out of the picture so that Hoyt can be with someone who is at least alive.

As for the bulk of the episode, it was dedicated to Eric, Russell, Bill, and Sookie, of course. The plan for Eric to lure Russell out into the sun was only mildly clever and I’m not convinced he’ll die from the sun. In fact, why can’t Russell overpower Eric and get back inside? That seemed like a gaping plot hole to me.

Despite my issue with the end of the episode, I thought “Fresh Blood” did a good job of moving things toward the season finale, which airs in two weeks. I’m glad things are coming to a head now.

Rating: 8.1

I’ll admit this episode had some of the weirdest scenes I can remember. One of those came early when Jesus and Lafayette went on their V trip. That was eye opening to say the least. I have absolutely no clue as to where this story is going, but I’m hoping there’s something awesome at the end.

I’m glad the writers made it clear that Crystal was a shifter. The audience knew it, but now Jason does and he’ll hopefully get a better idea of what he’s up against when Crystal’s dad and boyfriend come by. That was a pretty awesome reveal, by the way. Jason hasn’t been this integral in an episode in quite a while. He was featured quite a bit this week and I’m glad to see it. He’s often overlooked.

My favorite subplot still remains the one with Hoyt and Jessica. After that altercation in the parking lot, there’s no way Jessica and Hoyt don’t get back together. It’s almost as Tommy was trying to get them to get together. Tommy’s a bit of a mystery to me. I don’t really know what his angle is. I don’t know what he’s up to other than stirring up trouble.

Seeing Sam featured in those flashbacks didn’t seem to serve much of a purpose. I think it’s safe to assume Sam did take advantage of being a shifter and probably did some illegal things. I don’t view Sam any differently now that I know he used to steal things and killed two con artists. Sam’s never been a saint in my eyes.

“I Smell a Rat”’s biggest development was of course the kidnapping of Sookie Stackhouse. I think Eric had painted himself into a corner. He was out of options and he had to throw the Hail Mary in hopes of saving his ass when Russell comes back to town, presumably at the end of the season.

Rating: 7.6

Now that the adoption rate of high-def televisions has increased quite a bit, FOX made the bold move to improve the viewing experience and I like what they did. It’s not a revolutionary move, I admit, but we do get to see more of the players on the field now.

The only negative aspect of the move is the people who are still watching on old televisions won’t get a great viewing experience. Depending on how your local FOX affiliate decides to handle it, you’re going to either get letterboxed or you’ll just get the sides cropped off.

Below is a video from the game’s broadcast showing the difference in 16×9 vs 4×3. Pardon the fact that it’s out of sync. I didn’t record it.

One of the things I liked most about the new broadcast was the small scoreboard. It was less intrusive than those we’ve seen in the past. I like what FOX is doing with their NFL broadcasts. Now let’s see everyone else make the same move.

I’ll start off with Hoyt and Jessica because right now that’s my favorite subplot to the show at the moment. I’m glad Hoyt and Jessica finally talked about what’s going on with them. Hoyt’s not into Summer and I’m sure it’ll only be a matter of time before he calls it off with her. Hoyt and Jessica belong together. There are no iffs, ands, or buts about it.

Now I’ll go with the subplot I’m liking the least: Crystal and Jason. I’m just not enjoying the way this story has gone. I think I’m getting frustrated with Crystal and Jason’s stupidity. They’re a pair of idiots. Crystal and Jason are in over their heads and it’s going to come back and bite them in the ass.

The Nan Flanagan character has only been featured in a half-dozen episodes, but she really made her presence known this week. My hat goes off to Jessica Tuck for her excellent portrayal of Ms. Flanagan. A strong woman is needed in some of these scenes against a macho Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgård) and I think Jessica Tuck is the right woman for that job.

The way in which the story went with Eric and the Authority wasn’t much of a surprise. I didn’t expect them to ask for Eric to be staked or punished in some other manner. Eric was later vindicated when Russell Edgington went onto television and made his little speech. His toss to the weather girl at the end of the episode was hysterical. I bet the set was a riot that night.

As for Bill and Sookie, I’m glad we’re getting somewhere. I admit I was disappointed Bill didn’t tell her what she is in this episode, but I suspect it’ll happen soon enough. It seems as though I was right in my assertions that the blood exchanges between Sookie and Bill are killing her light, but we don’t know to what extent the repercussions are. Will she actually die soon or will Sookie merely lose some of her powers?

“Everything is Broken” was great, but there was room for improvement. This is especially true of what happened with Tommy. Does anyone like this character? He just seems like a loud-mouthed troublemaker. He doesn’t have any other qualities. Also, I didn’t think the revival of Franklin served any purpose. Tara was finally moving on and then he appeared out of nowhere, only to be staked/shot by Jason. Nice job, Mr. Stackhouse. You’ve killed her last two lovers. ‘Course this one deserved it a little more than the first.

Rating: 8.6

Since we’re early in the series, the writers are still using parallel stories between Annie and the other people in the episode. In this case, it was Annie and Diego’s sister, Julia. Unlike Annie, Julia wasn’t able to simply move on. She clung on to her past so hard that it almost killed her.

I’m not going to recap everything in this episode because so much of it was filler. I enjoyed a few little twists, but there wasn’t much in the way of new plot twists. Everything here has been done in other TV shows and movies. Covert Affairs can be an exciting show to watch if you’re into that sort of thing, but I didn’t think “Southbound Suarez” offered much entertainment beyond the action.

Rating: 6.0

Download “South Bound Suarez” – Covert Affairs, Season 1 from iTunes

Meanwhile, Jessica and Bill finally got some important training time in and I’m thankful for it. I don’t know about the rest of you, but even before Bill went missing, Bill didn’t give Jessica much in the way of training. Jessica’s very young and still doesn’t know much about being a vampire. As the episode unfolded, that training proved to come in handy. She was able to take out one of Russel’s little werewolves.

When Eric kissed Russell’s ring, I almost laughed out loud. I had to look away during much of that scene. Although it was well acted, I knew Eric was lying in order to save his ass. Russel’s pointed question about being able to trust him put Eric in a precarious position. It was smart of him to not only say what he did, but to also help Russell out of a jam with Talbot.

I’m grateful to the writers for not dragging out Eric’s lies to Russell any longer. I feared it would be something that would go on for a few more episodes, but it seemed to all come to an end when Eric staked Russell’s dear Talbot.

The staking was of great timing, of course. Just as Russell and a trio of werewolves had Sookie’s house surrounded, it called Russell away while Bill, Jessica, and Sookie could clean up the mess. That fight between Sookie and Debbie gets a solid “A” from me. With so many supernatural characters on the show, there aren’t very many good fights. Everything is one vamp throwing another into a wall or something ridiculous. That Sookie/Debbie fight was a good old-fashioned fight that we can all be proud of.

As for Sookie’s brother, Jason, he’s once again got himself in trouble. He just doesn’t know about it yet. He has no clue Crystal and her family are shapeshifters. He’s going to go nuts when he finds out who he’s loving and fighting.

After this action-packed episode, I’m amped for the next one. Sunday night can’t come soon enough! The only thing I didn’t care for was the nonsense that surrounded Bill and Sookie. There’s no chance these two were over. It was silly to even suggest it.

Rating: 8.7

It didn’t take long before Augie and the rest of Annie’s fellow agents figured out that the young man, Walter, did stumble onto something that maybe he shouldn’t have. Soon the boy and his mother had someone on their tail and they both fled for their life.

The fact that Annie is new to the Agency has her trying to figure out how to juggle her personal and professional responsibilities. Her sister blindsided her one morning asking her to sign legal documents to take care of the kids in case Annie’s sister and her husband were to die. I’m not sure I would have handled the situation much better than Annie did. That’s a lot of responsibility to assume when you’re a full-time employee at the CIA.

Back at the Agency, there were a few changes. The department Annie is in was moved to a new location with new computers and the whole nine yards. The second change was a new agent was brought in. Jai Wilcox’s father used to be the CIA director at one point, so that adds a new dynamic to the story. I felt bad for Joan. Her husband put Jai in the department to follow Annie so they could perhaps learn something about Annie’s ex… the rogue agent they can’t seem to find.

“Walter’s Walk” had a feel-good ending to it. They got the bad guy, the mother and kid were safe, and we learned of why Jai was brought in. I thought the feel-good stuff was a little cheesy, but maybe that’s because I’m a guy. This show seems written for a female audience. Even though I didn’t care for the cheesy stuff, I felt it was a good episode. Covert Affairs is on my watch list and regardless of your gender, I recommend adding it to yours.

Rating: 7.3

Sam Merlotte’s folks did prove to be up to something no-good, but I wouldn’t have guessed dog fighting was it. Tommy and his mother are both shifters, allowing them to turn themselves into monster pitbulls and do well in the fighting ring. Given the negative stuff in the media since Michael Vick got busted a while back, I was surprised to see dog fighting integrated into the story, but it does make sense for this crazy family to earn its money this way.

Sam’s big rescue in “Hitting the Ground” was something else. He’s finally got people to look down upon and it’s annoying. I’m not used to seeing this side of Sam. I frankly prefer “bar owner Sam”.

So after some serious doubts with the Tara/Franklin storyline, things eventually worked out… so far. This is all presuming Franklin is actually dead and out of the picture. I’m not so sure he’s dead yet, but we’ll see. One thing I really hated with “Hitting the Ground” was the way her killing of Franklin was filmed. Franklin’s head was obviously rubber or something fake and I remember laughing out loud when Tara bit into Franklin’s neck and chewed away. This was terrible horror movie garbage. I know the show likes to be funny sometimes, but I didn’t think those were good spots to introduce humor. They should have been more serious.

As for Sookie and Bill, well they finally got to see one another again. However their reunion wasn’t nearly as romantic as Sookie had hoped. Bill came to warn her of Russell and his pack of wolves. It was all for nothing, however. Russell learned of Bill’s betrayal and before too long, everyone seemed to be back at Russell’s mansion, even Eric.

Yeah, Eric showed up trying to track down Bill and when he got cornered on the selling V issue, he was forced to come clean and sell out his queen. If Eric is anything, it is savy. He know when it’s time to cut his losses and keep himself alive. He wouldn’t be as old as he is if he were stupid. But aligning with Russell, even if only for the short-term, is a risky proposition. Russell is, as we learned, partially responsible for the death of Eric’s Viking family. I enjoyed that flashback sequence when he saw his father’s crown in Russell’s collection.

I’m pleased with what the writers are doing with Jason Stackhouse this season. He’s still an idiot, but he’s got some drive for something bigger in his life. His decision to be a cop wasn’t a total surprise. His meeting with Crystal was a bit of a surprise. I’m really curious about that character. Her lying about meeting Jason caught me by surprise. Something shady is going on in those homes and I’m not just talking about drug dealing. There’s more to the story.

Over the course of those three episodes, we were able to learn more about Alcide and his crazy ex. She’s one crazy woman, that’s for sure. Since Alcide didn’t kill her at the end “Hitting the Ground”, I suspect this isn’t the end of these two. They’ll see one another and someone will die. I don’t see a “Happily Ever After” type of situation with these two, even with Coot out of the picture.

These three episodes, “Trouble”, “I Got a Right to Sing the Blues”, and “Hitting the Ground” were all great to watch. Not only are the main characters’ stories advancing, but we’re also seeing things with Arlene, Terry, Jessica, and Hoyt progress. I’m impressed by that young woman Hoyt’s going out with. She took the initiative to seek him out after Hoyt didn’t call her. She didn’t do it in a stalkerish manner. It was nice to see for a change.

Rating: 8

I know there are some viewers who are interested to see Tara in something new this season, but I’m not liking Tara and Franklin.  Franklin’s a bizarre dude and I’m just not feeling compelled by this kidnapping storyline.

Tara’s cousin Lafayette got himself in trouble and if it weren’t for Eric, the show would be down another character.  Lafayette may talk a big game, but there was no way he would have been able to fend off a half-dozen rednecks.  The pairing up of Eric and Lafayette has me itching to watch more.  I’m hoping this won’t be the last of these two characters.

What’s going on with Sam’s parents and little brother?  I haven’t figured these crazy people out.  They’re poor as heck, untrustworthy, and I have a lot of suspicions about these three.  Something’s going on and I bet Sam will end up regretting offering to help them out.

I enjoyed watching Jessica handle that teenager who saw her in Merlotte’s.  The fact that she was able to get him to forget seeing her without having to go ask another vampire for help is a good sign.  We’re starting to see her mature a little bit and not act like a total vamp dumbass.

Speaking of dumbass, there’s always Sookie to talk about.  Convinced she still needs to find Bill, she gets further involved in Alcide’s business.  Early on in the episode there was some sexual tension, but after the shirtless scene, I didn’t really sense anything between them.

I feel bad for Alcide.  His former lover is now with another man and has actually given herself to the pack of wolves.  There’s no way this ends well for her.  Oddly enough, I’m more interested in seeing where this goes than the eventual Bill/Sookie reunion.

True Blood doesn’t contain very many laugh-out-loud scenes, but they managed to squeeze one in early on with Eric at Fangtasia.  While watching a woman dance, Eric began having yet another fantasy about sleeping with Sookie.  It was only mildly erotic; it was more funny than anything, really.

The introduction of so many characters this year has been both a blessing and a curse.  It’s a blessing because it’s not just about Sookie and Bill anymore.  Honestly, I’m tired of Anna Paquin.  It’s too bad her character is so integral to the show.

On the other hand, it’s a curse because with so many characters happening, there doesn’t leave very much time to advance the story very far.  It reminds me of the occasional storytelling issues in Heroes and Lost.  Still, I enjoy the show and I sense things are going to get more exciting in the near-future.

Rating: 7.5

Covert Affairs centers around a young woman who is training to be a CIA agent. Played by the sexy Piper Perabo, our lead character Annie Walker is a well-traveled and has picked up a half-dozen languages or so. After a whirlwind romance with a man, the relationship ended badly. When she woke up, he was gone with a cryptic letter on his pillow, stating “the truth is complicated”, or something to that effect.

Still not entirely over the way her incredible romance ended, Annie has decided to put her language skills to some use and in the Pilot, we find her training at the CIA’s “farm.” She gets pulled out of a training mission and is whisked away to headquarters to be briefed on a mission. Her Russian language skills prove to be valuable to the agency and before she knows it, she’s neck-deep in a dangerous mission.

I have to give the writers a lot of credit for what they managed to pull off here in the pilot. First episodes rarely tell a good story and include enough information about the main characters to make them seem interesting. They hit it out of the park on Covert Affairs. There’s a lot of mystery and intrigue as to what happened with Annie’s flame. He appears to be a rogue agent of some kind and it’s got me hooked.

One of the few complaints I have about the pilot was the initial acting done by Christopher Gorham. He ends up pulling off a believable blind guy, but initially, his mannerisms were a little off. His head movements looked too much like what a ’sighted’ person would have. However, he definitely worked it out and by the end of the episode, he was totally believable.

Kari Matchett (Joan Campbell) and Peter Gallagher (Arthur Campbell) make for a heck of a couple on this show. They run their respective departments at the agency and also happen to be married. When the Campbells begin to argue over accusations of infidelity, it makes for a tense and awkward situation… especially when Joan learns Arthur likely isn’t having an affair. She had egg all over her face.

Some of the things I found interesting about the first episodes were the things you don’t normally think about when you think of the CIA. Awards are handed out, but you obviously can’t take them home because that would blow your cover. Dating within the agency is highly recommended to keep the circle of trust. They’re all quite logical.

Covert Affairs has something really interesting going and I hope that all of the mysteries aren’t solved right away. The mythology behind the series is intriguing, but not something I see lasting 5 seasons. I suspect it’ll turn stale soon after the first season, but I’d like to be proven wrong.

Rating: 8.5