Ron Does Stuff

It’s the penultimate episode of the season! Let’s get right into it!

Things were definitely building up to this season’s finale in the previous episode, as we finally saw Akasha, and also witnessed Armand telepathically push Larry to his death. With this being the last episode before the finale, there’s no doubt that the tension is going to be ratcheted up even further.

But before we get to that, we see Lestat looking at Pitchfork’s savage review of his album, as well as his lead single’s low placement on the Billboard Hot 100. I’d say it was a respectable placement for an independently-produced album without big label connections, but that’s not the point. We find out that Lestat did turn the rest of the band, but Larry’s death does not endear him to Alex.

Lestat is also listening to a voicemail from someone named Mary Rick, but I think this is an automated transcription, since the subtitles and the actual text on the phone are different, so I am guessing that this is Merrick Mayfair. Oh, we’re getting a Mayfair crossover several books ahead! Merrick and Lestat are meeting, and Merrick had Lestat prepare ~items~, which I am guessing is for her witchcraft.

We hear from the narration that the album flopping with the mortals isn’t really that important, since it was made for vampires, and as Lestat says, thousands of them were now descending on Montreal to hear him sing it live. And we also find out that Louis is with Lestat again! Yay! Toxic and unhealthy relationship dynamic, yes, but that’s my toxic and unhealthy relationship dynamic.

I know that something horrible’s about to go down, but can I just say how adorable these two are as they banter like they used to, when things were good between them? Sam Reid and Jacob Anderson really have wonderful chemistry.

The two of them finally arrive at their destination: one of Louis’ restaurants that just so happens to be so close to where Lestat lives in Montreal. The host who meets them at the door is a Mr. Blackwood, and since we already have Merrick Mayfair, my mind immediately thought that this person could be related to Tarquinn Blackwood, but the show really doesn’t confirm this. And they don’t confirm this because I am an idiot. Louis was telling the host to call Lestat Mr. Blackwood. I’m sorry, okay!

The restaurant is full of vampires, who clap for Mr. Blackwood once he makes his appearance. He is a rock star, just not to the humans. Louis and Lestat are here to meet Daniel, who calls them Taylor and Travis, whic is hilarious. Daniel wants an ending for his documentary, and both Louis and Lestat are refusing to share the really juicy details of their reunion because Daniel already broke their trust.

I thought Daniel would hurl something explosive at them, since he already knows the truth between Lestat and Gabrielle, but he doesn’t. When will he? He did hint at it with telling Lestat if he’s ready to eat one of his own as they drink the blood of a distant descendant of the Lioncourt line.

You do sense that the show is priming the audience for that reveal, because we get Lestat and Louis being domestic in the car, and even doing some fan service for some fans. Lestat looking so fondly at Louis? Them laughing together? And then Lestat calling himself a monster? Oh, there is going to be drama down the line.

The tension continues to increase as the show progresses. Louis and Gabrielle finally meet, and it’s a very congenial meeting that just lays the ground for an even more devastating reveal later on. And then when Lestat sings to Louis and Gabrielle’s face is all “the fuck?” It’s almost enough to get me to forget how great Sam Reid sounds as rock star!Lestat. And then when Lestat refuses to go with Gabrielle to Cadiz and fobs her off to Alex? Oh, baby, this is going to be messy.

And the mess starts on the way back to his Montreal home, as Louis shows him the documentary? Interview? That Daniel just released not only revealing that Lestat is having sex with his mom, but also providing video evidence of the act. MES.SY. The confrontation between Lestat and Louis is messy and raw and so well-acted. I’ve never seen a vampire have a panic attack and Sam Reid did it so well. I need them to find a way to keep Louis in future seasons because Jacob Anderson and Sam Reid just work so well together, and this scene is just one of the many times they’ve shown how good the two of them are together.

Then we finally get introduced to Merick, who does her thing and allows us to see Delainey Hayles deliver fantastic work. The anger, the heartbreak, the malice, the resentment? I don’t know how long that scene was in the script, but Delainey ate all of it. I was holding my breath throughout that whole seance scene.

And then the debrief after, where Lestat and Louis digest everything that just happened. The show successfully lulled me into complacency with one of its more underappreciated assets: its dark humor. Because it really was a shock to me to see both their heads sliced off after I was just laughing and imagining a happy life for the two of them in the desert. I do think that they included that here, despite that never happening in the books, because they need to set the stage for what’s going to happen to Akasha if they get to adapt The Queen of the Damned.

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