True Blood’s ‘Truebies’ put the 'fan' in fanatic

Spoiler alert: Have you not caught up with the "True Blood" episodes on your DVR? Do you not currently watch "True Blood" but think that one day in the future you might? And do you NOT want to know what happens at the end of season four?  Well then stop reading this!

Fans are still buzzing over the shocking season four finale of HBO’s ‘True Blood.’  Melissa Lowery, co-founder of True-Blood.net can attest to that.

The "Truebie" fan site launched in March of 2008, with Lowery and her friend Liz Henderson at the helm. As a fan of Charlaine Harris' "Sookie Stackhouse" vampire novels, the news that HBO (which, like CNN is owned by parent company TimeWarner) was going to create a TV series out of the stories made Lowery eager for the chance to discuss the episodes with other fans on the internet.

As of now, 450,000 True Blood fans visit True-Blood.net a month. Here's what they're talking about:

CNN:  What are fans saying about the finale?

Lowery: They are floored by Tara being shot at the end – that came out of nowhere.

Most of the responses we've seen so far have been of the "Oh my god!" variety.  This is a change from last year where people were like, "Really?"  This time they're actively speculating and they're excited about what could come next season.  Then you have the fact that Russell Edgington is free and Rev. Steve Newlin coming back as a vampire.  We’ve also had a lot of excited comments over the fallout from Sookie killing Debbie.

There are, however, the fans who only watch the show for Eric and Sookie or Bill and Sookie – they're not pleased.  She chose herself which I think was exactly what she needed to do.  If you're looking at the narrative arch, you've seen what this character's been through and it's only been nine days since the beginning of the season in their time, so it was the right decision, but there are people who are watching for one thing and they're not happy.

The ones who are so pro-Bill are basing [their feelings] on what they've seen on the show and the ones who are so pro-Eric are the ones who are basing it on the books.

CNN:  Which leads me to the inevitable comment section battle of the book purists versus those who’ve embraced the liberties Alan Ball has taken with the show…

Lowery:  I just wish that fans could enjoy both of them for what they are because I feel like they're short changing themselves by not being able to appreciate the show as what it is: Alan Ball's interpretation and expansion on what Charlaine Harris created.

The books are a wonderful insight into who Sookie is.  I'm just thrilled that I’m getting Sookie from two different perspectives and it's getting expanded one way, through the TV show and I’m seeing it in another way through the books.

CNN: Is there a character on the show that is universally loved?  Is such a thing even possible?

Lowery: Pam, hands down. I cannot think of a single time that someone's said, “I don't like her,”  “I hate that character,” or “She needs to be killed off.”  That's pretty much been said about every other character on the series.

CNN:  Talk to me about Tara.  Fans really seem to guzzle the Tara haterade. [sic]

Lowery:  She's kind of a lightning rod.  Liz and I are both big fans of hers – especially during season three.  She didn't have as much to do in season four as we'd hoped, so a lot of the furor that erupted in season three kind of died down because she wasn't doing as much.  Some people are saying they're glad her character is allegedly dead and they're justifying that by saying were too many storylines or because there were too many characters.

CNN:  Do you think there are too many characters?

Lowery: Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.  I'm not watching for any one character in particular, but I do feel sometimes that a character's storyline has been shortchanged because they needed to service something else.

CNN:  Give me an example.

Lowery:  Sam. I'm Team Sam.  I would like to see more of him and more of him and Sookie interacting like we saw in the finale.  I love their friendship and we don't get to see that very often.

CNN:  What’s the best thing about your community of fans?

Lowery:  They’re incredibly passionate.  They put the fan in fanatic, but they're respectful, for the most part.

We wanted a place where a place where other fans could come and discuss the show without name calling and hair-pulling.  I think the fans who have come to our site and stayed there and who haven't packed up their crayons and left because we were strict with them, they have really helped build a community which is what Liz and I set out to do in the first place.