Jayson > Recent Status Updates

Notes:
(1) This issue takes out two of the main antagonists—and in fairly exciting fashion—but not ideally at all.
- Basically, the Turtles and their allies win through numbers advantages—call me crazy, but it doesn't exactly come off as heroic.
- Also, multiple times, groups of allies just burst in for surprise attacks—also not very heroic.
- Where's the underdog struggle?

Notes:
(1) "She didn't know that she'd be dead by then; finally, definitely dead."
- Okay, this is ridiculous! Four titular lines, and so close together, totally kills the novelty.
(2) Chapter 17 is mainly about witches performing an ectoplasmic reconstruction... which is sort of like a "Harry Potter" Pensieve.
- Here it feels a lot like a cheat code: more reveal than clue.

Notes:
(1) "...Lorena, now also definitely dead."
- You know, there's such a thing as too many titular lines… three's really pushing it.
(2) Sookie's being irrationally hard on Bill, if you ask me.
- He had no choice but to comply when his maker called him to her. Likewise with being tasked by the queen.
- That doesn't mean he didn't also genuinely fall in love with Sookie.

Notes:
(1) "Hadley had always been a coffee freak, so I'd figured that even as a vampire she'd kept a supply of her favorite beverage."
- A goth who loves coffee? Caffeinated isn't exactly the vibe.
(2) Amelia: "...she was definitely dead, dead for the second time."
- Titular lines are always a treat!
(3) Sookie: "But he was finally, definitely dead..."
- Hey, a second one!

Notes:
(1) Sookie: "Quinn! I'm not having sex with you in this nasty parking lot!"
Quinn: "Not even a little bit of sex?"
- On one hand, Quinn is part animal, so sex outdoors does make sense.
- On the other hand, parking lots aren't very sanitary nor private—though (re: last book's packmaster contest) sex with an audience is sort of a thing, at least for werewolves.

Notes:
(1) "Betty Ford Elementary was the same school I'd attended."
- Ironic name, no? Betty Ford being synonymous with rehab.
- You know... in a town whose name means "Good Times," whose main business is a bar.
(2) "Around one o'clock, I decided to run into town for some groceries and a new bra…"
- Groceries and a bra? I'm guessing Wal-Mart?
- Later: Yep, Wal-Mart.

Notes:
(1) Well, this series ended on a whimper—albeit all companion issues.
- This issue is basically one long talk, followed by a nothing fight scene, followed by another long talk.
(2) I can only hope that there's a further payoff for all of this in the final event issues.
- Because if this is the culmination of five issues of team-gathering, it was a huge waste of time.

Notes:
(1) So, a lot of consequential stuff happens—and in very sharp and shocking ways—but it's all too rushed and lacks any sense of magnitude.
- It's like the bullet-point version of what this should be.
- The subplot with the three weasels in particular could have had some major impact if adequately seeded.
- You can't just get rid of long-term characters so cavalierly!

Notes:
(1) "Portia was going to be married, too? To that stick of an accountant she'd been dating, the guy from Clarice?"
- Sookie's awful judgy. Not every girl's the object of desire for vampires and shapeshifters... though Portia did date a vampire for a bit.
(2) Jason's finally got marriage on the brain... sort of a shotgun deal, but at least he's being honorable.

Notes:
(1) "Unlike Quinn, Sam's not a big man…"
- I feel bad for Sam: every time Sookie introduces him at the start of these books it's always about how short he is.
(2) One of the charming things about the books is how the supernatural is often so mundane.
- Here Sookie goes to a supernatural photographer and dates a supernatural events planner... you know, everyday stuff.

Notes:
(1) So, I've not read anything in a week, audiobooks included.
- More burnout than a slump, but I'm back at it now.
(2) I can tell from the cover that this features Quinn the weretiger.
- I can't remember much about him except I didn't like him. Apparently, the show didn't either—he wasn't adapted.
- Also, he looks like a "genie"—so I simply can't take him seriously.

Notes:
(1) "My cousin Hadley, the cheerleader, had become a vampire lesbian voodooienne. Who knew?"
- I find vampires and cheerleaders, oddly, tend to go together. Buffy was a cheerleader, right?—Kristy Swanson for sure.
- I don't know about lesbians though, it seems like vampire culture leans decidedly bisexual…
- But then, if the queen says no men, you can't really argue.

Notes:
(1) I stand corrected, the show did adapt one plotline from this book: the packmaster contest—if totally different.
- Here it's less backwoods brawl and more Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.
(2) In sum, my favorite of the series. Leave it to me to actually enjoy the one with the least romance and most mystery.
- The only sexual scene ended up being some leg-licking.

Notes:
(1) Sookie gets three orders of flowers at once, from Tara, Calvin and Pam.
- I'd never peg supes as flower people... maybe fairies.
- You'd think a human, a shifter and a vampire would be more different.
- Food's usually the go-to get-well gift in these books—Sookie brings Calvin over some chicken and biscuits—though, I doubt any of these three cook… Pam especially.

Notes:
(1) "...New Year's Eve resolution: I wanted not to get beaten up. Note to self: I should have included 'shot.'"
- Nah, personally, I take any loophole I get.
(2) Claude is really rude to Sookie, which sort of tracks: He's gay, and so the only male supe in her orbit who doesn't want in her pants.
- Am I saying it's why the rest act so nice?... I'm not-not saying that.

Notes:
(1) This is a kind of in-betweener issue, nothing major happens (except for the last scene).
- Everyone stops to sort out what's going on and talk about what to do next.
(2) As good as the Turtles are at hand-to-hand combat, it's simply implausible that they could run through a hail of bullets and survive.
- "Never bring a sword to a gunfight" is cliché for a reason.

Notes:
(1) Debbie's a bigger character here than she ever was.
- And she's not even in this one.
(2) "I was double rebounding. (If you rebound from the two men you've had so far, do you end up a virgin again? To what state are you rebounding?)"
- Uh, I don't think it works that way—you can't f*** your way back to virginity!
- Granted, she's still never been with a live one.

Notes:
(1) "[Dr. Tonnesen] knelt by the man and listened to various parts of his body. 'Yep, dead as a doornail,' she called."
- Stumbling upon titular lines will never not be fun :)
(2) "'I'm Sookie's fairy godmother,' Claudine said..."
- It explains why she hangs around Sookie so much—every other supe that drops by wants to get in her pants... not to say Claudine doesn't.

Notes:
(1) So, the art here's like a cross between webtoon and manga.
- I've seen similar stuff for kids' storybooks.
- While energetic and animating, it doesn't quite give off the vibes you'd want for what's essentially survival horror.
- Though, that's not all to do with the art—I doubt any art could make these would be killer mutants look any less like the Keystone Cops.

Notes:
(1) Until proven otherwise, I'm just going to presume Charlaine Harris came up with the name for pirate vampire Charles Twining whilst drinking tea.
- Twinings has the Royal Warrant, meaning it's the official tea of the British Royal Family.
- "Charles" could come from anything (e.g. Charlaine), though I'd like to think it's after Charles Grey, of Earl Grey tea fame.

Notes:
(1) Alcide: "I was so blind, I almost think [Debbie] used some kind of magic on me. Her mother's a spellcaster and half shifter. Her dad's a full-blooded shifter."
- Yes, if only we could all blame staying in a toxic relationship on ensorcellment.
- I'm skeptical. Imagine asking your mom to bewitch your ex? Awkward!
- Though he is rich... that's primo mom motivation.

Notes:
(1) "[Bill] preferred TrueBlood, the most expensive Japanese synthetic."
- If TrueBlood's the Dom Pérignon, what's the Kirkland Signature?
- Who am I kidding? It's probably called KirklandSignature. Costco has their own everything.
(2) "Red Stuff was the cheapest artificial blood..."
- Okay, there's my answer. You can tell it's cheap from the space between the words.

Notes:
(1) So, this has taken over as the high point of the series. Just a simple action issue with a single narrative—no jumping around.
- Predictable, but predictable isn't necessarily a bad thing.
- It's just more evidence, if it wasn't already crystal-clear, of the advantage Campbell has over Waltz in terms of not having to juggle multiple threads or packing so much in.

Notes:
(1) Okay, after spending pretty much the whole crossover event setting things up, we're finally onto the main event.
- Possibly it seems extra-exciting because everything's been so uneventful until now.
- I don't hate the artist, but his work is really weighing this series down.
(2) We get a Vernon Fenwick cameo! Too short though, and almost certainly a one-and-done.

(1) The most notable thing about this is that Sophie Campbell actually drew an issue.
- Past the first few Reborn volumes, she's been almost-exclusively a writer.
- That said, this may be the best art I've seen of her since her initial stint—when she was strictly an artist.
(2) As for the plot, it's weird time-travel stuff that's often confusing but comes around at the end.

Notes:
(1) "I got a little pocketknife out of my glove compartment and slit open the envelope..."
- I wonder if that's a Southern thing or a Sookie thing?
- All things considered, it might be more practical to keep a stake in there.
(2) "When DJ Duke of Death took over, the music changed to something with a beat."
- I guess, in addition to puns, vampires enjoy alliteration.

Notes:
(1) "Fairies are allergic to lemons and limes, like vamps are allergic to silver and garlic."
- I wonder if fairies get scurvy?
- Coincidentally, pirate is Claude's stripper persona.
(2) A solid cozy murder mystery—to the extent a story about strippers and crotch-shaving can be cozy.
(3) Sookie still has no clue she's part fairy.
- Apparently, neither do the fairies.

Notes:
(1) I don't remember anything about this from my first time around, except two things:
- It's the first one where the central plot/concept wasn't adapted by the TV show.
- It's my favorite book in the series—the only one I gave 4 stars.
(2) This will fulfill my last remaining reading goal for 2025:
- Read (not necessarily finish) a novel series of five books or more.

Notes:
(1) In sum: not enough of everything I like about the series and too much of everything I hate.
(2) Usually with mysteries, two seemingly-separate cases/incidents are eventually revealed to be related. With this series it's the opposite.
- I didn't like it before and I don't like it here with Jason's disappearance—it all feels very "Oh yeah, almost forgot, this too."

Notes:
(1) "The air was so permeated with scent, I was reminded of passing a candle shop in a mall."
- I was with her until she said "candle shop." That's a thing?
- Where I am, it's soap shops… suffocating!
(2) "I felt better when I had the knife, which was real pretty and felt very sharp."
- Personally, middle of a bloody battle, "pretty" would not be my initial reaction.