Finally, I have my dark Bill and I only had to beg and plead through two seasons for him. Season one Bill was incredibly sweet with a touch of vampire just below the surface. You couldn’t see much of it but you knew it was there, especially after he threw uncle creepy into the river.
The True Blood staff writes the character of Bill Compton so well that you can watch layer after layer of suppressed emotion wrap around him, enveloping his tragic life like an ear of corn. It leaves you wondering when his usually controlled manner will snap. I was itching for a dark Bill after the start of season two. I knew the vampire was inside him and damn it, I wanted it to come out and play. Nevertheless, we just added more layers around the corn cob.
Season three hit like an unpredictable tornado and tore through True Blood-land leaving some gaping in utter shock after its wake. Then the critics came. Everything is up to interpretation and opinions run wild in the Internet world. Accusations regarding Bill’s gratuitous violence begin to filter in and I felt myself pushing my own soapbox to center stage not only to defend Bill Compton but the craft of writing as well.
After watching True Blood from the beginning, falling in love with the depth of the show and becoming emotionally tied to Bill Compton, I have an understanding of dark Bill. I have watched this fictional character push down his emotions, endure such heartache as losing his family and being forced to kill to survive until every shred of humanity he had vanished like Godric in the sun.
Struggling for a new beginning Bill crawled back to his human side, went against his maker and was willing to end his life to free himself from the cruelty of his nature. Finally, he was out; free to make his own choices on how he would feed and how he would protect himself in the vicious world of vampires. This can’t be an easy task for a vampire who desires blood. In season one we see Bill struggling with his choice of food. “Do I pop open a True Blood, or pop open the blonde?” We are glad he did both by the end because, really, why choose?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not criticizing vampires for being vicious or having blood lust, after all they are vampires. However, what draws me to Bill is that he gives you both sides of the coin. Stephen Moyer’s portrayal of Vampire Bill only makes the character that much sweeter by delivering such emotion that you feel it. This is what makes a good character great and a good TV show addictive.
Dark Bill emerged in season three, leaving fans staring at their televisions in shock and disbelief. However, if you are like me and analyze everything, picking it apart to dissect each action, then you watched with empathy. It left me cold to see more of Bill’s back-story unfold as he mourned the death of his child and let humanity slip away. If I were to place myself inside a fictional character, I probably would have done much worse to Lorena. At least Bill had the strength to stop before he twisted her neck off – I can’t say I would have done the same.
That one little scene with Bill over his son’s coffin threw me completely over the edge. I don’t know one Bill fan who watched that scene and wasn’t screaming at him not to cry, because we saw his emotions building up like a flood against a dam and we knew the dam was about to break. This would blow his, “I’m not dead” cover. This is why I love True Blood and I love Stephen Moyer’s ability to take me to the edge of my emotions, week after week, and test my own humanity.
AMEN!! You are preaching to the choir in this fan sister!! I agree wholeheartedly with everything. Well and beautifully said. Dark Bill is a more rounded character. One dimensional characters benefit and entertain no one. I said awhile ago that Bill is damaged emotionally and has been trying to reagin his humanity. He is breaking my heart this season. Bill’s constant hurt is palpable because of Steve’s portrait of Bill as a kaliedescope of emotion.
Very well written and reasoned Tincar …..have to say that i too feel like i am being put through the emotional wringer along with poor Bill but a lot of that is down to Stephen Moyer’s excellent portrayal and the wonderful writing which draws viewers in . Dark Bill is definitely a treat to watch !
As for the other side of the argument i personally don’t see the changes in Eric – still think he is a conniving so and so and nothing will convince me otherwise at the moment .
Very well written Tincar. How can every viewer out there not be invested in Bill. Steve has done a wonderful heart felt job in his portrayal of Bill. Funny enough though I don’t see Bill as dark. What’s happening to him is dark and he’s dealing with it as best he can. Thanks Lady for a great piece.
And one more “amen” to the choir. I’ve been following this as I re-re-read the books. I was a Bill fan before I saw the show and Stephen Moyer’s portrayal has cemented that love more. Lorena has tortured him over and over, not so much with the cutting and such but the emotional twisting, almost like his head, around and around, to the point you would think it will come off. The flashback to his wife and dead son caused me such pain, I have kids and grandkids and I don’t think I could not cry if I came home and found my child dead. Bill FEELS, which makes Lorena able to manipulate him even more.
I don’t know where this is going to go but I see Bill getting even darker and he may feel very much responsible for Sookie’s near death and this may pull him down further into the well.
Nice writing Tincar :) I have also enjoyed watching SM’s portrayal of this tortured character. Alan Ball has been giving us a bitter dose of what we need to see rather than what we want to see, and as bad as it has been so far I agree with others that I don’t think Bill hasn’t hit rock bottom yet.
Very well written piece, Tincar!! I agree with Aem….I think all the ‘dark’ things happening to Bill this season are causing him to react more darkly than what we are used to seeing. He has been through SO much stuff just in the first six episodes….and I haven’t seen him do anything that he wasn’t justified in doing in reaction to the characters who have been torturing him!
Stephen is SO amazing in his portrayal of Bill….he is the reason I became a True Blood fan. Beautiful AND talented….and able to pull viewers in with just a tilt of his head or an expression on his beautiful face. I was hooked from the first glance at him and Bill’s story is the single most interesting story of the show IMO. I love all the new layers they have added to the character and Stephen is playing the HECK out of every single one!!
congrats tincar…nicely written!
where some of us here prefer one character to another and that is totally fine…Im the opposite and I couldnt possibly love bill without having the contrasting eric northman next him. Cant appreciate one character if the other is not there! I love how TB have taken these characters to a new level!!!
stephen has taken bill to a new level…yes ofcourse acknowledgement must go to CH, AB and the writers..yes some acknowledgement must go to his fellow supporting cast I feel. Your character cant shine if you dont have the quality support that the TB cast obviously gives. But mostly its the talent and skill of the man…you are the man! you know who you are! The man….Mr Stephen Moyer!
This cast need and should receive some accolades quick!!! especially stevie :) hehe
Excellent work Tincar. I’m loving me some Dark Bill this season. I feel in love with a Bill in Season 1 that was struggled with finding his humanity. Dark Bill has always lurked – I have always thought this was true. Watching the evolution into Season 3 has been amazing – I look forward to seeing Bill continue his growth as he struggles to find the balance between vampire and humanity.
Thank you Tincar! I love Bill so much…so much better than book Bill! Must be Stephen Moyer…eh?
I’m just lovin’ his dark side! He’ll never measure up to “my Eric” but that’s okay…he’s a junior vamp. Can’t expect too much from the youngun’s?
I still want Bill and Eric to work things out. Become…”partners”…in fighting the big evils. Silly? I want them to continue their rivalry over sNookie too. So much FUN!
i wana see that too…they team up a little in the books when they rip apart the werewolves in sookies house…that would be cool to see our bill and eric carvin the shit out of the villains this season. They actually do want the same thing, besides sookie ofcourse…they both want KRE dead. So, I wouldnt be surprised if they team up in the season finale..Then once the job is done, probably then will they turn on each other…that would suck though…Lol! suck!! :)
Brilliant, brilliant character in the books and on the show. I am not normally a reader or watcher of the fantasy genre, but Bill’s character is what drew me in. Humans are compelled by the sexuality of vampires, and, honestly, I think that is what first lures the primary human protagonist, Sookie, into the story, but what does it really mean to redefine your human existence–for all eternity? That’s where Bill comes in. I love the romance between Bill and Sookie, but, more than that, I am intrigued by the clarity they bring to each other’s lives. For Bill, can loving Sookie and attachment to a spectral humanity redeem him? Bill gave Sookie possiblities she had dismissed for herself. Will she now grow beyond him? Or is he the touchstone?
Nicely put Karlskit: “Bill gave Sookie possibilities she had dismissed for herself. Will she now grow beyond him? Or is he the touchstone?
wonderful and insightful Tincar! I have loved “dark” bill from day one because, as you so eloquently stated, it is one of the many layers that makes him the complex, ultimately fascinating character that he is. Stephen Moyer’s portrayal of vampire bill has been nothing short of fascinanting!
Thanks Tincar – nicely writte. I will take Bill every which way!
Brilliant and bloody well put Tincar.
Bill is so amazingly layered with his dark and light. I loved him from the beginning and have only come to love him more as his layers come falling away. Or better put, stripped away by the evil that surrounds him, by the love that moves him and by his never ending desire to rise above that which was so cruelly foisted upon his shoulders.
Noble comes to mind.
Loving, devoted, feral and passionate. That anyone can call him “dead” by any sense of the word is not seeing him nor understanding him. His heart is bigger and more alive than most humans I know.
His journey through all that heaven and hell has set before him is the one I am the most compelled to watch.
HIs love and desire, his heartbreak and torment move me as no other can or probably ever will.
It is sad that the possibiltiy exists that his love and passion may go unappreciated, unreturned and thrown aside by circumstance and the arrival of the interlopers, those that will cause so much drama and pain. Ahh but that is why his story will still be worth every tear I will allow to fall.
Where will his story end? Wherever it goes I will be there to shamelessly lap up all that will be thrown my way.
Give me Bill always and forever, my light and dark passionate lover and fighter.
As an afternote, there are roles/charcters that certain actors are born to play. Stephen is Bill. His portrayal, his capturing of the essence of Bill is so outstanding and perfect. An absolutely amazing actor, gifted, talented and having the effortless ability to keep my kasloposis’ in a twist.
How fortunate we are to be blessed with him, I admit freely that ultimately it is because of him only that I watch TB.
I think that Bill and Eric have changed from meeting Sookie. Bill has fought to control the inner beast that was force upon him, to keep the new love he has found.Started out a order to know her , now a desire to hold her
He will forever protect the one who brought the light back in his life.Sookie light has touch everyone in contact with her. all will feel the power of her desire
Eric has lived in a lonely dark world for more than any man should endure. Meeting Sookie sparks the romantic man within Eric . He will struggle to keep his composer around Sookie for her powers are stronger than a man can withstand. Even a vampires charm is no match for the instinct to find your soul mate , dead or alive the feelings are a strong force to be reckon with.
For the soul never dies, Only comforted by the love another. When that is pulled from you nothing but darkness set in , who likes to be in the dark and alone
I love tb thank you to all who a part in bringing a little fantasizes in my life
I think I understand where you’re coming from, but I don’t see Eric living in a dark and lonely world. He has a money making bar, he’s got more women than he wants and he’s got a super progeny in Pam. I see he is protective of his inner self, but I don’t see that as lonely or dark. He’s got power too, as the Sheriff. I think Eric’s got it going on actually. He can have pretty much anything he wants, and if books are any indication, we’ll see that shortly, amnesia or not.
I do like your comment though, it’s beautiful and romantic, and everyone needs some of that ;)
I have to admit, without the extraordinary casting of SM, I wonder if the show would be the success that it is now. I mean let us imagine for a moment that whoever portrayed Bill wasn’t really up to the task. Would the audience have continued to grow as it has? Would the show be given subsequent seasons? The character of Bill is what drew so many people into the series and kept them turning in every week (and finding it later on DVD/On Demand/What-have-you. I am of the opinion that Those Eric Fans* ought to have a sliver of respect for the fine work that has been done with Bill. For without the success of season 1 and 2, (and now 3) perhaps they wouldn’t get a chance to view their beloved book 4 come to life.
*Those Eric Fans (TEF): People who hated Bill on sight in TB, and no matter how well written or acted, were predisposed to ignore the story being told. This is not meant to apply to most Eric fans. You can spot Those Eric fans as they’ll say stuff like, “I just wish Bill would die” and also snark on Stephen Moyer, the man, and not just the character of Bill. FYI, TEF also has a counterpart – you guessed it, TBF ;)
I am an Eric fan, but I agree with you about Bill. The story needs these two antagonizing each other in order to keep it interesting. SM has done a fantastic job to bringing this character to life. As a bookie I find that Bill goes to the back burner because he isn’t fore front in Sookie’s world (the problem with writing in the 1st person), but in the show there is creative room to explore Bill’s character growth more. Even though Bill doesn’t do it for me, I know the show would not be nearly as good without him and I don’t think anyone could match SM portrayal of him either.
Thanks everyone. I’m glad you liked the piece and share my affection for “dark Bill.” I think the character is beautifully and painfully written. To quote Mr. Moyer himself, dark Bill is delicious.
I JKEEP REPEATING MYSELF BUT I WOULD NOT WATCH TRUE BLOOD IF STEPHEN MOYER WERE NOT IN THE CAST – I AM SRUE ALAN BALL MUST HAVE SSEN HIM IN THE STARTER WIFE – YOU CAN SEE WHAT ATTRACTS WOMEN TO HIM – HE WAS BEAUTIFUL IN THIS MOVIE AND WHEN HE LEFT THAT SHOW FELL APART SO AGIAN IT IS BILL I LIKE TO WATCH – HE MAKES THE SHOW!