Episode 7, Interview with the Vampire – "The Thing Lay Still" Recap/Thoughts

 

Claudia and Louis are secretly plotting to murder Lestat. Going against the most powerful vampire against two lesser fledglings seems impossible. But Claudia comes up with a plan to lure Lestat into a trap by throwing an early Mardi Gras party. The trio have plans to leave New Orleans, why not throw a wild party for the city and give them one hell of a night to remember before the final curtain falls.

At this point, I’m surprised that the neighbors haven’t got their pitchforks and torches out and chased them out of the city. The chaos that they've caused: Claudia’s killing spree (what happened to the police investigations?) and Lestat/Louis loud fight scene should of have alerted the whole neighborhood. The part where I thought was so silly is where Claudia high-jumps off a balcony into a public crowd. I’m like: did nobody saw that!? These vampire are supposed to be discreet and there not doing a great job at that! But the neighborhood community are getting suspicious of them because they have not aged at all. People believe that they made a deal with the devil for immorality. Well, it’s kind of true.

 

The TV show differs from the book on how Claudia plots to kill Least. TV Claudia has a more elaborate scheme to get Lestat to drink dead blood, it’s deadly to vampires to drink their victims after they die. Claudia knows Lestat’s weakness (other than Louis) and a good distraction for him is to have lavish party, since he likes to be the center of attention and loves the theatrics. Claudia selectively chooses her victims to plant the poison or laudanum in their drink. She chose the twin boys as bait and invites them over, with the other guests, to their home for a grand “feast” before leaving New Orleans.

Then the massacre begins as the trio pounces on their guests (it was horrifying seeing Louis ripped off a guy’s jaw, so gross!). Claudia leaves the twin boys for last for Lestat. But the tables have turned, Lestat already knows her plans, thanks to Antoinette who is now a vampire. She’s been lurking in the shadows and reading Louis/Claudia’s mind. Lestat wants to use Antoinette as a replacement for Claudia. (As if this is going to work out any better).

 

However, Claudia is already many steps ahead of him, she fake planted the poison on the twins, instead the poison is actually in Tom Anderson who Lestat first kills at the party - check mate. As Lestat slowly dies, Louis gives him one final blow. In episode one where Louis and Lestat first meet, Louis wanted to slit his throat with his cane knife. So he does just that and it all comes back in full a circle. 

Louis and Claudia burn the bodies, including Antoinette as she burns to a crisp while still alive. They both don’t have the heart to burn Lestat’s body. So he throws his body in a trunk and left him out with the garbage. But Daniel calls out the BS in Louis’s inconsistent storytelling. He knows that Louis still loves him. It was Claudia, who wanted to burn his body. Louis stops her as he mourns Lestat’s death. He spares his life knowing that there are rats he can feed on (poetic-irony) at the trash site and he can escape - trunk with locks on the inside.

I don’t trust Louis’s re-telling of his story and he is a unreliable narrator. I question what’s in the missing pages of Claudia’s diary. We assume it’s about her assault, but the pages are not angrily ripped out. It’s a clean cut, like someone intentionally didn’t want those pages to be seen. Is Claudia worried about Lestat coming back to take his revenge on her? She must know that Louis still have feelings for him. Will his “death” hang over them like dark cloud on their journey to Europe?

Louis, tell me your a hostage without telling me you are a hostage.

 

It turns out that the spoilers and fan theories were true: Rashid is the vampire Armand (Assad Zaman). I was slightly disappointed learning this. I’ve accepted fanfic Louis and Claudia because the actors have won me over. In return, I wished Armand be Armand from the books. (I'm glad that he's aged up here). They ethnically change him to a middle-eastern Muslim. When originally he’s from Kyiv, Russia as a Christian. I have a history question: during the 15th century, were there any Muslims living in those areas? As long as the writers did their research and respect the character, then I will accept it. (I have soft spot for Armand and he is one of my favorite characters. So please do a good job!)

I am very suspicious about Armand and Louis’s relationship. WTF did they do to Daniel’s memories. Was this Louis’s idea to redo the interview or is this Armand’s doing. What secrets are Armand hiding up on the bookshelf-ceiling where conveniently, Louis can’t reach because he can’t float. Is Armand putting on a show for Daniel? The Armand x Louis x Daniel theories are going to drive me crazy until the next season.

Final Thoughts 

So far, I am enjoying the show, but do I love it… I can’t say just yet. Time will tell how the show will play out in the future. The parts that I don’t like are it broke the rules of Vampire Chronicles lore and added unnecessary things that doesn’t make any sense. On the bright side, it does carry the soul of the books and thank you for giving us Sam Reid as Lestat. Despite many character changes, they still have (somewhat) similar goals as in the books. I am cautiously enjoying the show, meaning it’s not always perfect and don’t expect to get what you want. At least, it’s entertaining and not boring.

I’ve forgotten to mention about the pacing, the story arcs goes by very fast. The death of Louis’s brother, mother and his human life should of made a bigger impact on how he carries himself. But Louis quickly gets over the grieving period in the next episodes. The point of the book’s themes are despair, loss, and the meaning of life weighs heavily on him throughout the story. That’s what makes it a gothic literature, the uncertainty and despair looms over these characters. (The 1994 film does a great job at depicting that). Sometimes it’s disorienting when time passes by so quickly and I’m like: where are we now?

On the other hand, I’ve gotten use to the fast pacing style. I want them to hurry up with the Interview arc and get to the juicy parts of series. If you’ve seen the 1994 film, then you already know how everything will play out. I’m more excited to see how they will handle the other series of the books. I want to see those stories play out because they’ve never been adapted before. (we don’t talk about the 2002 Queen of the Damned film).

I’m just grateful that the TV adaptation is made and I’m here for it! I was very worried about how it would turn out, especially when Hollywood has gone woke. But I do believe that the creators genuinely care about respecting Anne Rice’s work and making it into a good show, that’s all it really matters.

After the reveal of Armand, it sets the vibe for what’s to come in season 2. Louis and Claudia are going to Paris, meeting Armand and the Théâtre des Vampires. I am very excited-nervous and curious to see how the show will handle Armand’s arc.