#s2 discussion

[vampirepressclub]

How did the strikes affect S2's viewership? I keep seeing that brought up, but S2 was released in May of 2024, and they were out promoting it as usual prior to that. The writers' strike ended September 27th of 2023, 8 months before S2 premiered. Can we just admit that season was a drag and a lot of people who watched S1 didn't watch it because of that? It also has the worst episode of the entire series as its season opener. It won't hurt to admit that TVL is more successful, and that the writers' strike that ended nearly 3 years ago is not why S2 flopped. Also, Netflix had nothing to do with TVL doing well, because IWTV never even cracked the top 10 there, when a dud like MW did. It's just pure cope from people who have spent months bagging on a season that did better than the one prior, that they glaze endlessly because their fav was lead that season.

And TVL is not on Netflix everywhere. As far as I'm aware, it's only available in Brazil as of now.

No. I disagree with you. The timeline for the show was absolutely affected by the strike. Additionally, the industry itself was in a bit of recovery for a time which affected networks. Everything isn’t just cut and dry—impacts like an industry wide shutdown have invisible longer term impacts.

The first episode was slower but the first part of the season was only a drag to non-readers (JMO)

[vampirepressclub]

Rolin is trolling about Lestat's involvement at the trial. His final troll before he leaves. He said there will be revisits in this tv guide article and in another article. He lies about stuff so they can surprise us with the plot in the show. They did that last season too.

I am choosing to believe what was actually shown on the screen. Lestat having bruises in his hands during the trial, looking like he was being controlled at times, swaying back and forth, looking strained and tired when he was not from Armand's pov.

Lestat was visibly irritated and screamed defending Claudia when he was rehearsing for the trial. He took digs at Armand for the trial in his song. Lestat didn't like Sam Barclay and was in defensive mode when they first met in season 3 and Barclay had to tell him that Talamasca put him in the theatre de vampire. He still didn't like him and Gabriella used his hate for Barclay (for being involved in the trial) to keep Lestat on his toes when she included him to work on Lestat's music after the shooting.

Sam (Reid) said Lestat came to the trial because he had to be there when something like that was happening to his family and that he had to do something about it. Not because of revenge. He didn't really know what or how to go about it. He did what he could. Jacob said he would have saved Claudia too if he could but he was too drained at that point. Sam said they'll revisit it too in his season 2 interview with Autumn.

Thanks for this recap, Anon. I’m sticking with this very belief until something else crosses my screen in a future season for me to analyze.

[vampirepressclub]

https://www.tumblr.com/vampirepressclub/822889444298440704/this-sounds-quite-reasonable-to-me-very?

"Accounted for possible drop in viewership by cutting the budget"

That's not how it works. Networks slash production budgets when a previous season don't do well. Season 2 wasn't as successful as season 1. It wasn't on top AMC lists every week like season 1 was. That's why they slash budgets. Season 3 suffered because of season 2 's numbers. Season 2 only picked up after it went on Netflix. I was here when season 2 was airing and despite the good fandom engagement, the casual fans found season 2 quite boring until it picked up in the last episodes. Casual fans matter more because the dedicated fandom is still quite small. Barely even 500 dedicated active fandom accounts on places like twitter. It was even less 2 years ago when season 2 aired. Even some invested fans felt that season 2 was boring until the last episodes. Season 3 has its faults but it was on the top lists on AMC every week. Was one of the top 10 subscription shows in apple tv. Did well on Amazon too. Mixed reception but people are watching it.

It was slow, but that part of the book/film is slow, too. So I stuck with it. Glad only Ep 1 was in Eastern Europe…. It wasn’t just slow… it was depressing

[vampirepressclub]

https://x.com/i/status/2068939760002023717

https://x.com/i/status/2070561848873857114

https://x.com/i/status/2068856650493215111

I like this theory

Ooohh, I totally missed it. Lestat is so married 🥰

[vampirepressclub]

https://www.tumblr.com/vampirepressclub/820353405161783296/

The glory hole in his mouth, the darts in the crotch, the paper stuck near Lestat saying "squeal..squeal". Captures how Lestat get viewed. When the Fang Gang members approached him in the toilet when he was all drugged up by honey trap Baby Jenks and invited him to their lair they already had much much worse things planned to do to him. They suck.

I’m so glad they are dead. The Theatre Des Vampires are now looking so much better

[vampirepressclub]

Jacob just 🤯 with a fresh take…

Parallels between Loumand and Louis + Florence’s dynamic. 👀👀👀

[vampirepressclub]

you're so good at explaining things, can you explain to me why lestat is considered the reliable narrator when he basically said before the Louis and Daniel scene that he had no idea if this is what happened but this is my version..??? I'm confused

Lestat is not at all reliable 😅

I saw an interview where Sam said this and it has helped me to see that Louis is not “a liar”, and yet we are moving on from the “unreliable narrator” trope:

Louis is unreliable because he can’t always remember the details, or because he has rose colored glasses he sees things in a slightly distorted way. we can see this in the way and rich things that Louis remembers are “off,” either there’s no music, or we see a scene later where what is actually happened is debated or visibly incorrect. For example, he misremembered that Lestat spoke to him in his mind while stalking his first kill; he also could not remember whether it rained or not the night he was with Jonah.

Lestat is [unreliable] because he withholds. He tells only what he wants the audience to know, when he wants them to know it… mostly because he is not yet ready to be vulnerable. We see this for example and the ways in which he told the audience that his family was attacked by peasants, but in his memories as he was singing, we see the truth he and his mother destroyed the cabbages 😭. Another example: Daniel and Lestat, have a conversation about why Daniel continuously asks about his stutter— because he knows that Lestat isn’t being authentic. what’s that is totally capable and willing to say I don’t know if this happened and I’m letting you know now I’m making this 💩 up. lol

[vampirepressclub]

I prefer Delainey in a way because she captured a sensitivity and loving nature to the character that Bailey didn’t. I did enjoy Bailey’s viciousness though.

Well, Delainey got to play a more grownup version of herself enjoying life post-Lestat.

I would have loved to see how Bailey would have handled it.