LOVED it.
I will admit, I had reservations going in that they might, oh, destroy things. They didn't. It's very much true to the spirit of the books. Oh sure, they change things (Tara is now black with major baggage and attitude instead of the white owner of a clothing store ... LaFayette has a day job and has a much bigger part than in the books) but they have to. The books are first-person, the series has to show different points of view.
In this first episode, we're introduced to the handicapped waitress Sookie Stackhouse. Well, she calls herself handicapped .. she's a telepath. She can read minds, and doesn't really have the ability to control it, to block out minds.
Two years prior to the premiere, vampires came out of the coffin. There's a product developed by the Japanese, TruBlood, which allows vampires to drink it and get all their nutritional needs taken care of without having to feed on humans. And ever since then, Sookie has wanted to meet a vamp. Then, she does ... Vampire Bill pays a visit to the bar.
With her back turned, Bill leaves with the Ratts. They are low-life people who are also vampire drainers. These people drain the blood of a vampire and then sell it as a drug. Some people experience positive things while under the blood's influence. For others, it's the worst thing imaginable, it drives them insane.
We're introduced to most of the regulars - Sookie, the whore brother of hers Jason, their grandmother, Sam - Sookie's boss, Tara - Sookie's best friend and now co-worker, LaFayette, Andy, Hoyt, and a few others.
It's a great introduction to the basics of Sookie's world, but we also have a few very nice touches that I bet most people didn't even catch.
First, when Sookie arrives home after meeting Bill, Gran is reading a paperback at the kitchen table. It's probably hard for some to make out what it is, but for Charlaine freaks like me, not so much ... Gran is reading a book from Charlaine's other series, the book is "Last Scene Alive". Nice tie-in there.
Second, and it's really hard to notice this, as it's totally in the background and won't mean much for a few seasons, but ... Claudine makes an appearance. No dialog and she's all but hidden in the background, but for fans of the books, we know who she is and what she's doing there. Unless you're paying attention to the background, you won't even notice she's there.
Yes, it does move sort of slow, but it has to. There's a lot of information flying at the viewer, introducing them to this new world they've created. Go too fast and they risk alienating viewers. Go too slow and the viewers will get bored. I think they did a spot-on great job.
