Everyone has heard of the sophomore slump.
This essentially means a return to form, and a lot of shows fall into this trap. After a stellar first season, the missteps and firestorms of season two had viewers revisiting their initial excitement for the show.
This happens more often than you think, and may even be a sign that you might think you’re destined for success.
After its fantastic first season, one of the shows everyone wanted to know about was Interview with the Vampire.
Anne Rice’s classic is reimagined for the small screen and delivers one of the best pilots of the past decade.
The first episode of Interview with the Vampire Season 1 is the most thrilling TV show you’ll ever see. It introduces New Orleans and Louis de Pointe Dulac, a vampire who tells Daniel Molloy about his past for the second time.
Jacob Anderson plays Louis, a vampire with a complex and devastating history who is constantly grappling with what it means to be a vampire.
Louis is the central character of the series because we see things through his eyes. He often tells his stories through writing or print.
While Louis is at the center of it all, Lester de Leoncourt, the hedonistic French vampire and Louis’ creator, is right next to him. Even in his presumed death, Lester still appears in Season 2, which picks up right where Interview with the Vampire Season 1 left off.
Interview with the Vampire Season 2 begins with Louis and Claudia, as the riveting and scene-stealing Delaney Hayles takes over the role originally played by Bailey Bass and travels through the waning days of World War II. Europe searches for other vampires.
There’s an interesting dichotomy between the two vampires during this time, as you continue to see the rupture of them as two immortal beings approaching their lives as vampires in different ways.
The most fascinating part of Morning is seeing Louis and Claudia adapt to their new reality without feeling oppressed by Lester.
They love each other but fight against each other, and when Armand intervenes, their differences become more apparent.
Armand’s expanded role in season 2 is probably the best part of it, as he plays a role in every character’s life.
He has connections to Louis, Lester, Claudia, and Daniel, which help shape all of these characters, their histories, and their futures.
Bringing the New Orleans episodes and beautiful sets from different time periods to France brings a different look to the show, which is just as visually stunning as the first season.
Obviously, it’s dark here, but it leans toward the pastel tones of a Parisian night scene, where vampires hide in plain sight.
Claudia and Louise begin to build a new life for themselves in a coven of witches that Claudia craves and Louise wants nothing to do with.
As Claudia adjusts to life in the coven, an initiation process that in some ways feels similar to a sorority’s pledge period, Louise immerses himself in the wonders of the city, her romance with Armand, and the looming Lester’s ghost, Louis struggled to let go of his.
Some fans were concerned about how much Lester would appear at the start of the season, as this part of the story details Louis and Claudia’s journey without their troubled maker.
But Sam Reed’s magnetic Lester is always present in Louis’ subconscious, lingering beneath the surface until Louis finally breaks free of him. Or did he?
Leicester have naturally taken a back seat this season.
While Sam Reed is an important part of the storyline, he also injects a level of affectation and deliciousness that is, if not better than, Tom Cruise’s performance in the 1990s Interview with the Vampire movie. Comparable to him.
The show makes the most of his time on screen, especially since he’s just a figment of Louis’ imagination.
Louis and Lester’s relationship was central to season one, but takes a backseat in season two.
The show is all the more powerful because of it, especially as it delves into Lester’s otherwise unexplored past and shows how Louis grapples with the fundamental dimensions of what this relationship means to him as a lover and through the maker bond What does it mean?
Every episode could be anyone’s “best” because the writing and acting this season are so outstanding.
Each episode feels like an incredible movie as it all leads to something bigger and bigger, until we reach the true climax of the season in Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Episode 7.
The Vampire Trial is a gorgeous theatrical spectacle, as the crowd of humans watches as three vampires are physically and emotionally defeated, while the jubilant vampire clan watches as they lose their resolve under the watchful eye of the cunning and cunning Santiago.
It was an exciting episode from start to finish, and Delaney Hales was absolutely perfect as she fought tooth and nail to fight back in a “trial” where she always failed.
Of the many questions that have arisen since the end of season one, what happened to Claudia has always been at the top of the list. The series does a good job of limiting the trial to a single episode, choosing not to drag it out when they could have done so well.
That’s the beauty of the whole season. The show knows itself well and plays to its strengths.
They have a dynamic chemistry within the cast, and it’s on full display through moments big and small in different episodes.
As Claudia and Madeleine embrace, Claudia is faced with the reality that her happily ever after has been shattered by the very group she once so wanted to join.
You’re mesmerized by Hales’ eyes as she gazes upon her creator, a child’s last look at the one she believed should protect her.
Good television can leave you speechless, in tears, or screaming in agony. It can also leave you breathless.
The image of Claudia being burned alive and her body floating away while singing “I don’t like the windows closed” is one of many scenes this season that will stick with you for a long time.
Louis and Armand have a destructive argument in Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Episode 5, in which the two vampires unleash their anger and resentment on each other after everything that happened in Paris after decades of living together.
There’s also Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Episode 8, in which Louis learns the truth about Armand, what really happened behind the scenes of the trial, and Armand’s role in it.
This all leads to Louis and Lester sharing their first interaction of the day, an emotionally devastating moment between two broken vampires who have lived several lifetimes together and endured trauma, But now I find myself stuck in a difficult situation as I move forward.
Will they ultimately choose to do it together? What will be the ending of vampire Daniel? Where is Armand?
This season presented various issues that were slowly resolved over time. It picks up the loose threads of the first season and crafts a new narrative that’s just as compelling, if not more compelling.
We’re now in the middle of awards season, and many award-worthy shows are getting their due in such a dense field between broadcast, premium channels, and streaming.
It feels like we’re in the golden age of television, and while that may be somewhat true, we’re also in a changing world of television.
Long gone are shows with more than 22 episodes, replaced by cable and streaming series, with shows of 8 to 10 episodes on long hiatus. By the time the series returns, so much time has passed that viewers forget what happened before.
Interview with the Vampire falls into this category, but that’s not a knock on it because it’s so charming that the wait will only increase demand.
Audiences were clamoring for Season 2 and it exceeded all expectations.
You probably won’t see it on the awards lists, which is disappointing, but don’t let the snubs fool you into thinking you’re not watching the best-written, directed, and acted TV show of the year.
For reasons beyond my comprehension, gothic horror dramas have never gotten the acclaim they deserve, but this show never feels perfunctory. This is not your typical thing.
It stands out in the genre, and while it may not get as much love as it deserves in terms of shining statues, that doesn’t hinder its legacy as one of the best entries in the Anne Rice universe and one of the best TV shows this year.
Let us know what you think of the series in the comments! We’d love to discuss this gem of a show!
Watch Interview with the Vampire online
