#his death IS the beginning of 'the end' for Louis and Claudia

[best-iwtv-scene]

ROUND 1B, MATCH 7

Descriptions/Propaganda under the cut:

Louis saves Claudia from the fire (1x03/1x04)

Consumed with guilt after instigating a race riot throughout Storyville, Louis desperately tries to help the innocent black people of his city from the violence surrounding him. Despite his vampirism, he is unable to help anyone on the street, but as he comes to a burning house, he can hear a young girl inside, terrified and bound to suffocate from the smoke around her. Louis rips through the building and jumps to where Claudia is hiding, picking her up and bringing her to the Rue Royale. This moment is seen both from Louis's perspective at the end of 1x03 and from Claudia's viewpoint at the beginning of 1x04. Louis depicts his act as one that not only saved Claudia but saved him, too, forever changing his life from that day onward. Claudia depicts it as magical, amazed by the "black angel" that saved her from death. The scene is scored by "Claudia" by Daniel Hart in 1x03, introducing her theme which is frequently used throughout the show. "I could not save the Azalea. I could not save Storyville. I could not save the aunt on the wrong side of the wall, but I could save her. My light. My Claudia. My redemption."

Propaganda:

No propaganda was submitted for this scene.

"You and Me, Me and You" (2x01)

After years of travelling through cold, war-riddled Eastern Europe in search of vampires, and after finally finding one only to watch her throw herself into a fire before them, Louis and Claudia find themselves on the way to Paris. Claudia is fractured from witnessing Daciana's death, feeling like she will never find a community or understanding in anyone no matter where she goes. In the back of a car, lit only by the passing lights of France at night, Louis promises Claudia that he will be her community, her companion, wherever Claudia goes, vowing that he will never leave the earth as long as she still walks it. Wounded by what she saw, Claudia desperately wants to believe Louis and there is a fragile kind of hope in her eyes as she looks up at him. As the monologue continues, the camera slowly pans to Claudia's right to reveal an imagined Lestat, throat slit and bloody, sitting next to her, Louis fighting with himself over who to look at as he promises "you and me". This scene is heartbreaking, particularly knowing the direction of Louis and Claudia's relationship through season two, Louis making a promise that both vampires so greatly wish to be true, but ultimately does not hold, pushing each other away as the season progresses. The scene is scored by Daniel Hart's 'The Whole World Was Ready To Return', a piece many consider to be the best on the soundtrack, the short string motifs, building and layering to mirror the hope and desperation of the promise until it reaches a climactic cadence at the sight of Paris. The piece returns in 2x08 over Louis's final monologue, playing out the season in a bittersweet moment.  "We can't be the only good ones out there... Soft words. If you were the last vampire on earth, it would be enough. You and me. Me and you. You and me. Me and you. You and me."

Propaganda:

No propaganda was submitted for this scene.

Submitted by @interviewiththevicious

[fayevalcntine]

Oh we're really deep in it now.......

[soliloqueeer]

When I first watched this episode, I was very confused about Lestat's motivations for being at the trial. During Claudia's execution, I kept thinking, why isn't he moving? Just do something. Help her.

I understand now that Lestat, at this point, is much weaker than usual for reasons that haven't yet been fully explored. From interviews with Sam Reid, I also learned that there was no way Lestat would miss this trial. However, Lestat isn't a planner—he arrived, memorized his lines, yet was utterly unprepared for what was about to unfold. The only thing he knew for sure was that he was going to save Louis. That was his sole plan.

When Claudia says, "It's never been about me," you can see the guilt and shame in Lestat's eyes. Yet, when she announces her plan to kill everyone in the crowd after her death, he's staring at her with pride.

I believe Lestat did a lot of reflecting while in his coffin, pondering how he ended up in this situation and what led his fledglings to turn against him. I think he was actually proud of Claudia for successfully orchestrating his murder. She outsmarted him, and he had entirely underestimated her. This final act of violence made them equals in his eyes.

However, I don't think Lestat ever truly saw himself as a 'father.' He had no example of good parenting in his human life and this had no idea how to treat a child. From the beginning, he was referred to as Uncle Les while Louis took on the paternal role. Then, when Claudia became an adult, Lestat was forced to regard her as a sister.

The idea that someone could look to him as a father wasn't even conceivable to Lestat. In Claudia's final moments, when she looks to him like a child looks to a parent for help, it is horrifying on so many levels. It shocks him to his core when he realizes that he is her father and that he's letting her die right before his eyes. And even worse, Claudia was right—it was never about her.

[inheroes--wetrust]

the entirety of that fucking trial and lestat looked at louis TWICE. once to acknowledge him in the beginning and once at the very end of the apology. he talks directly to claudia only when they're arguing. everything else, every scripted line that he has to say, he turns to face them for the benefit of the audience but he's just staring off into space, he's looking above them or off to the side, he will not look them in the eye unless HE is speaking to them with his own words.

god he does not want to be there and he was tortured and manipulated into it and he cannot bear to look at his family while the coven forces him to sign their death certificates

[thefairylights]

Ok so the fact that this isn’t actually the first time Louis is seeing dreamstat. He has been seeing dreamstat for years. Claudia is so used to this that she ignores Louis. She’s tired of his shit. She just wants her life to begin. But Louis cannot let Lestat go even if he is buried under five years of trash or so he believes. I can’t even begin to think about how long it takes Lestat to leave that dump.

But I’m so interested in Louis. How he plays the same scene out with dreamstat. How he apologizes and apparently ruins it every time. How he is ready for it every time dreamstat bites him. How he truly believes Lestat will come to fucking kill him the moment he finds happiness.

The fact that Louis truly believes this. That Lestat wants to come and kill them when it is the furthest thing from the truth. I kept saying, Louis is guilty, he feels bad for what he did, and having Louis say by then he killed 7000 people but killing Lestat was the only time that it felt like murder.

My god, that’s love, and it’s so deep and intense and never ending. Death and time and space and miles and oceans don’t dull it down. I feel like Lestat’s song really is silver springs. I feel so insane. Not as much as LDPDL but this is more than I could ask for.

Louis literally creates all these scenarios himself. Even with Lestat at the end, softly gazing at Claudia. It’s all Louis. It’s what he wants. You and me and me and you and you and me and so on and on and on. But it’s Louis.

I love my show. I love my ship.

[mirefireflies]

the reveal that the coven threw claudia in the rat box before they even started the trial was so . like that was just torture no pretenses or false justifications they just wanted her to suffer. they wanted to break her.. they even crushed her mind so many times that her nose was bleeding because she wouldn’t be silenced and wouldn’t give in.. the way she speaks THROUGH IT to lestat..

and the fact that in the beginning of the trial, she’s saying we, defending louis in the same breath as herself.. until lestat shows up. his presence alone opens a rift between claudia and louis. (its all lies.. right?) the way that rift disappears the second the coven drags louis away and all they’re thinking about is each other.. she turns into a little girl all at once reaching for him.. she puts on a brave face for madeline, but after she’s gone, claudia can’t help but look to her dad again… she was so scared and there was no one to comfort her.. louis was in and out of consciousness and more focused on lestat than her, madeleine was being repeatedly hypnotized into a trance, but claudia was awake and present for All Of It .. the kidnapping the rats the crippling the sentencing the humiliation.. every moment of the trial even til the end. there’s just something so tragic about her not even being able to disassociate to protect herself while her companions are being practically forced into dissociation themselves.

the way the coven tried so hard to break her and she was still defiant the entire time. she stood on cut tendons she interrupted santiago she yelled back at the audience she sang.. she fought so hard and even in death the coven didn’t manage to quell that.. claudia baby get behind me.

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 Ep8 Musings - LDPDL: Burning Questions

I was reading this Variety article, and they mentioned something that made me think of fan critiques of Louis' opaque motivations in the finale, and the fun laughs we've shared over how he's so unbothered by vamp nonsense that he never seems to ask important questions.

I'm drafting a separate post specifically about "Vampire Grace," but I wanted to focus here on only one point in particular:

PAUL.

We always talk about whether Louis chose Lestat over Claudia; "you take him with you, in HERE!" But I haven't seen talk about how Louis chose Lestat over Paul, and how that factors into Lou's habit of not asking HELLA important questions that could've saved Loustat DECADES of resentment.

Paul's suicide "opened the series," setting this whole thing in motion. Florence blames Louis for his death, making Lou feel like a failure.

--the first time we see Louis outright say to someone's face "I love you," it's mere seconds b4 Paul jumps off a roof. (The only other person we see him say it to is Armand, right after saying they're not companions. 💀)

Paul's memory is wrapped up in Louis' love of Lestat, cuz until Les showed up, Paul had been Lou's one and only companion--the sole person he could TALK to. As a closeted gay man, Lou was desperate for MALE companionship: understanding, acceptance & love.

Sure, he had Grace & Lily (& later Claudia)--all WOMEN--but:

his daddy's dead, and who knows what their deal was, but it couldn't be worse than effing Florence. So there's a lingering want of a father-figure; someone older/wiser who could teach & guide Lou when he was feeling "lost...in a dark way" (*cough* Armand *cough*)

a father or brother is still not the companion Louis REALLY wants/needs, so ofc there's things Lou can't tell Paul, or have with him. Les's an upgraded Paul-- a HUSBAND, not a SIBLING (*cough* Claudia *cough*).

(deep down) Lou was jealous of how candid & honest Paul was; regardless that Paul's lack of a filter was a side effect of his mental illness & religious fanaticism (cuz vampirism's an allegory for sexuality--and even in gay mecca Paris & SanFran Lou was still tryna "find himself" as the Zodiac Killer *cough Daniel *cough*)

Paul's dying wish was for Loustat to never be together

and Lou felt he'd betrayed Paul; that he'd lied/hadn't kept his word

folding like a leaf rather than saying NO, or killing himself like he'd implied (suicide by vampire instead of cane-sword/alcohol poisoning)

(and Queen Claudia called Lestat the "Father of Lies" (aka The Devil), and she ain't never lie a day in her life, either)

So the Catholic guilt was extra strong, cuz Saint Paul was right about Les; but Lou chose Les anyway--in the church, on the altar--after Paul died trusting that Lou WOULDN'T take him back.

Instead, we get this boatload of excuses from Louis about the "vampire bond," when the only bond that matters is LOVE. But this is the crux of Louis' personality/problems, and why the interview took so long for him to attempt either the 1st or 2nd time around. Cuz Louis is a hypocritical coward stuffed to gills with self-loathing & GUILT. He runs away from the truth, he runs away from his issues, and he hides from himself and everyone around him.

So OF COURSE Louis doesn't ask important questions. It's not that he doesn't care--it's that HE'S SCARED of asking, and terrified of what the answer is. So it takes him forever to even BEGIN addressing the elephants in the room.

Louis ALWAYS suspected. But he was:

Scared of the answer/truth

Scared that Les would LIE

Scared he'd forgive Les regardless

Paul died in 1911. It had been 26 YEARS until Lou finally piped up in 1937 (the end of Les's Grovel Era). But this was the PERFECT chance to call Les' bluff & get some honest answers out of him for once, cuz:

If Les (unapologetically) caused Paul's death, he can just stay gone

It's in Les' best interest to tell the truth regardless, cuz he's been desperately tryna get back in Lou's (& Claudia's) good graces for 6 years, and being sincere will earn him more cookies (he'd also be banking on Lou forgiving him regardless, cuz he's been missing Les so bad, even after being beat into the next decade & dropped a billion miles in the air)

If Les IS lying, how would they even frikkin know if they can't read his mind? Lou just wants to see what Les will say

(In 2x6 he waited to ask Madeleine if she only saw Claudia as a replacement for her dead sister--a question he should've asked BEFORE he Turned her, but... 🤷 Moot.)

So in the finale, there's 2 painful truths Lou has to contend with:

WHY is he doing the 2nd interview?

WHO saved him during the Trial?

It takes Louis 77 YEARS to reclaim the "pieces of myself" he'd lost/forgotten. He ALWAYS knew things weren't adding up with Armand. He KNEW there were things missing. Even in SanFran, BEFORE the mind-wipe, he was already losing his mind/memories--PTSD from all the awful things he'd been through.

Even book!Louis knew about Claudia's diaries for a decade b4 he finally got the courage to ask the Talamasca if he could read them & speak to her ghost.

Although Lou's naive AF, he's not an idiot--he HAD A HUNCH that Armand knew more than he was letting on, which is precisely why he kept ignoring Armand every time he asked to stop the interview.

However, for once, Lou actually wastes VERY little time with this one:

As soon as he learns the truth about "Banishment," he divorces Armand, and runs back to NOLA to find Lestat. Memory is a monster Lou'd been running scared from all this time. He's tired of running away, wasting so much time, wasting the gift, when he could be actively tryna solve his problems to make life bearable/better. The hellish prison he'd lived in was by his own design--only he could chose to stand up, take control of his life; and finally ask the burning questions. "Truth and reconciliation."

Lou could finally make peace with the memory of the two people he'd been avoiding for so long; whom he felt he'd let down the most:

For once Lou chooses to be "companion enough for myself," and live with/for himself, not relying other people to save/fix/determine his life for him anymore. That's really the only way he'll be able to be with Les in a healthier, guilt-free relationship in the future.

[yearnerspermit]

SPOILERS FOR 2x07 VIA THE CLIPS RELEASED

Im seeing a lot of people kind of upset that amc released such a big “spoiler” and the implication seems to be some people think this is Claudia’s death scene. I am almost positive that is not the case

The clip begins with Daniel asking “who wants to start,” and Louis begins by describing it as an abduction. This is a direct continuation of them being grabbed at the end of 2x06. I’m willing to bet this is literally the first few minutes of the ep. The other clip reveals them on stage already tortured and brutalized. The abduction clip is that pre-trial brutalization.

When Claudia is put into the rat box she doesn’t look hurt yet. When Louis is fighting his way out of the sack he doesn’t look hurt yet. On stage they are all visibly injured

This is not the clip of the execution that would be. Absolutely insane for them to release. Honestly this is worse. because that? The screaming the pain the visceral horror I feel watching it? This is most likely our introduction to the trial. For this to be our baseline…. I can’t describe the amount of dread that makes me feel for how horrendously impactful and heart wrenching the rest of the season will be

[danlous]

I've probably said this before but when considering the unreliable narration in iwtv i think what we don't see is much more important than what we see. Like i think people have been since the beginning focusing too much on what is a 'fake' memory or narrative or lie. Especially Lestat fans have a tendency to do that when trying to explain away things he does saying that isn't 'real Lestat'. But there is actually very little in these first two seasons that contradicts Lestat's established characterization; what we lack is Lestat's point of view and more information. It's not about the existence of all the negative things and memories, but the absence of positive ones. We know there were good things in Louis and Claudia's relationship with Lestat but we see very little of it. There is nothing in Lestat's abusive and cruel treatment of them that contradicts that he loved them and that good things existed too. Even if he had been a hundred times more abusive it wouldn't have dimmed the reality of his love in the slightest. But that love, especially the love he has for Cladia, isn't necessarily clear for viewers or characters other than Lestat in the show because it's not shown.

When we get Lestat's version of the story in s3 it's going to be different than Louis' or Claudia's or Armand's version - but i think probably less so than most people assume. In 2.07 we already see that Lestat's version of the revisited scenes is more like an extended version and doesn't really even contradict Louis' and Claudia's story. In Lestat's version of Claudia's night of turning Louis begged him more desperately and he warned Louis more strongly, but it's actually very similar - we just didn't see everything they said. In ep5 flashback he's vague and doesn't tell everything he did (if we only got Lestat's version you'd have an impression that the assault was less violent than it was) but doesn't deny anything either and openly admits that he 'broke' Louis to hurt him. The additional scene is just what Claudia didn't see because she wasn't in the same room and it doesn't change anything, it just tells us more about what Lestat was feeling. In the same way i think Lestat's narration later is going to give his perspective and clarify his motivations and emotions, but it's not going to erase anything we've seen before. You can already guess that Lestat felt extremely lonely and abandoned and paranoid, and that he was worried and protective of Louis and Claudia and tried to control his fears and insecurities by controlling his fledglings. We'll see much more of him being vulnerable and loving and learn a lot about his past and trauma. But none of that means that everything we've seen didn't happen, and likely Lestat isn't going to claim it didn't happen either. And it most certainly doesn't excuse anything.

For example in 1.06 when Lestat forced Claudia to return, in addition to dragging her home so that Louis would stay with him i think he was also genuinely trying to protect her because he knew that other vampires in Europe would likely kill her quickly if and when she found them. But that doesn't make the way he treated her in that scene any less horrendous and abusive. The depiction of Lestat and Claudia's relationship in the show has actually been in line with their book relationship, where in Interview Lestat is often cruel to her, threatens to kill her, and indicates that he only made her to keep Louis with him. We only learn later from Lestat's own narration that he actually always loved her. The scene at the end of Interview where he's crying while clutching Claudia's dress after her death is arguably the first time we see proof of him loving her. I think it's pretty likely they're going to include that in the show, with Claudia wearing a similar yellow dress and Santiago pointedly snatching it from her ashes, and that is going to be a reveal to viewers that Lestat's feelings for Claudia were much more complex than shown so far.

I think Lestat's love for Claudia, which i'd argue is a core part of his character in the same way his love for Louis is, is the most significant part of the story that has been erased, and that erasure makes sense since Armand's narrative relies on the presumption that Lestat hated Claudia and wanted to kill her. But it's Lestat's own doing that narrative is so believable that even Louis believes his husband wanted their daughter dead. This is a tragedy that Lestat created himself. The greatest horror of the story is the continuous coexistence of deepest love and deepest cruelty. The most upsetting thing isn't that Lestat was a victim of some false narrative and didn't actually do the things he was shown to do, or that he didn't really love Louis and Claudia, but that he loved them, both of them, and still did those things

[best-iwtv-scene]

ROUND 1B, MATCH 4

Descriptions/Propaganda under the cut:

Armand betrayal reveal (2x08)

After Louis declares the end of his story halfway through the final episode, Daniel reveals an original copy of the trial's script, littered with notes from Armand in the margins. Barely containing his emotions, Louis flicks through the script, realising that the trial- and Claudia's subsequent murder- was led by his companion of seventy-seven years. Additionally, Daniel reveals that Lestat was the vampire who saved Louis from execution in the trial, rather than Armand, adding yet another lie to their relationship. Daniel is almost feverish from being able to unpick the mystery of the Dubai interview that has been haunting him since 1x01, Louis is enraged from realising the last seven decades of his life have been based on a lie, and Armand is desperately trying to hold onto the broken parts of their relationship, despite the fact that it has been in pieces from the very beginning. Louis throws Armand against a wall and thanks Daniel, a bond forged between the two, and burns his laptop, destroying it, but not erasing the interviews entirely. The scene is scored by 'Which Ever Way Your Nose Bends', composed by Simon David Rackham and performed by Piano Circus. This piece also features heavily in 2x05, the unique six-piano arrangement used to represent fragmented memories coming together and plays throughout the reveal in 2x08, building in intensity as it progresses. "Where does the bullshit start, Armand, Amadeo, Arun? You were supposed to die with Claudia. He didn't save you, Lestat did!"

Propaganda:

No propaganda was submitted for this scene.

"Rest" (2x05)

After five days trapped in the San Francisco apartment, Armand finally goes to drain Daniel completely. Armand tempts Daniel into an "easeful death" in a similar way to how Santiago is seen to seduce his victims into death during the theatre's performances. An exhausted Daniel tries to resist, quietly saying that he is "a bright young reporter with a point of view", in an attempt to refute Armand's claims of a mediocre and disappointing future ahead of him. Eventually, Daniel gives in, holding onto Armand as he leans in to bite his exposed neck. For a few moments, the pair embrace while Armand drinks from Daniel, until he is interrupted by Louis stumbling into the room, saving Daniel's life. The scene is oddly loving despite its dark nature, particularly due to the high tension of the episode so far, and it shows the strength of Daniel, able to resist Armand's seduction even for just a moment. This scene is scored by an unreleased track, incorporating the piano motifs of Armand's theme, with a string melody over the top, drowning out the piano as Armand zeroes in on Daniel's neck. "An easeful death [...] It'll feel like a bath. Rest. Like honey on your tongue. It is the comfort we all long for... the end." "... Rest." "Rest. Come, come. I'll hold you. You rest now."

Propaganda:

No propaganda was submitted for this scene.

[fayevalcntine]

The thing about Louis's relationship with Claudia is that, yes it's not on the same level of Armand and Lestat's, but you're making a mistake in even equating the latter two in some way. One is her maker, the man who was also her parent, who failed in parenting her and taking care of her emotionally (even when he severely rejected turning her before giving in), who abused her physically and emotionally, while the other is a coven master who never promised her any support or protection in the first place and took part in hazing a vampire who is the equivalent of a child to his age (and I don't say this to excuse his behavior).

Louis's relationship with Claudia also isn't just marred by parental neglect when he's also in the same line of men who put his hand around her neck. He physically abused her the same way Lestat first did, and for that he even threatened to tear Lestat's head off, yet in a moment of turmoil, didn't hesitate to replicate it. But even taking that aside, the parental neglect is severe on both his and Lestat's end. During the opening scene of 1.05, Louis makes no mention (in past scenes) of knowing she was self-harming, yet Lestat mentions she self-harmed for attention during the trial. So who exactly knew? Was it both of them? And even if Louis didn't know, it's pretty blatant within the symbolism itself in 1.05 that he takes part in this neglect until cops knock on their door over the dead bodies found as a result of Claudia's instability. They both avoid confronting the issue until they literally can't anymore, and even then, their argument turns from yelling at her to yelling at each other. Same thing that happens later in the ending fight scene: even in these horrible moments of conflict, she's never the center of it even if her wants and needs are in the beginning of it.

This is what she means when she tells Louis that she's been "a third, all my life". Even when Louis promises "it's you and me", it doesn't end that way. Even if he's conspiring with Armand to keep control of the coven for her, or trying to twist his relationship around into having more control for her, none of it ends up centering her and what she wants. This is true even when it comes down to her being turned: Louis drags her body around like a lifeless doll while dangling the promise of never leaving Lestat to him just so he can agree to turn her. Even if they considered the consequences of turning her, it didn't matter because Lestat ended up doing it anyway. In this, Claudia is angry at both of them because from her perspective, when exactly was she prioritized as the daughter? When Louis wanted her turned for the sake of dampening down his guilt? When Lestat turned her for the sake of keeping Louis close? When both of them ignored the glaring issue of her emotional instability and loneliness? When she nursed Louis back to health only for her abusive parent to still be let back in the house? When even in his supposed self-sacrifice, Louis hurls "go sit with your choices!" at her? And this doesn't even touch upon the diaries and Louis's need to editorialize them to alleviate his guilt, when they're the last remains of her existence.

Louis didn't orchestrate the trial or sit in as witness testifying against her, but he feels guilty over her destiny all the same, because he's directly responsible for when she was turned ("created") in the first place. It's not about the men he chose "over her" or even just how his own parenting mirrors that of his family's treatment of him. "Hey, it's not on you. You hear me? I carried her home. I made you turn her. And saved her from a fire… so a half century later she could…" - this line isn't him simply absolving Lestat from his guilt over her life/death, it's him expressing his own guilt and viewed culpability in how he failed her.

[cbrownjc]

On EP 2x03

So yeah, that wasn't my favorite episode of the season so far, but not bad. And I laughed my head off at the flashback at the beginning when Armand was telling Daniel about his "relationship" with Lestat. Really, I could not stop laughing during almost that whole thing. And yes, that very much does come from me having read the books and so knowing how that all really went down.

Seriously though, when Armand and Lestat started kissing in that balcony box -- with Nicki shooting them death glares as he played his violin! --I was doubled over in laughter! 🤣

Oh Armand, you so wish that was how it all happened. I'm not even mad he lied about almost all of that because his unrequited love/desire for Lestat does tend to make Armand act kind of pathetic.

But yeah, a nice story you told Daniel there, and clearly have told Louis at some point as well. I mean, it's not like there is anyone around to contradict you or call BS on any of it is there? 😏

Claudia, dear . . . when you heard that line about children can never be made vampires . . . are you now beginning to see the danger for yourself? After having missed the danger signs last week? Especially after they gave you that little baby dress. Although, maybe you think not being a child but a young teen excuses you, since they didn't kill you on sight. But there is for sure disillusionment settling in isn't there? Especially when they gave you that baby dress.

Louis . . . oh Louis. You pretty much are headed toward where your book counterpart ended up wrt Armand next episode, I suspect. (And yeah I knew he was actually killing a human when he started beating Dreamstat's head against that wall).

Daniel, Raglan James, and the Talamasca intrigued me the most wrt this episode Yes, I actually paused the screen and tried to read the names on the files James sent to him. Right now I most want to know if James is still in the Talamasca or if they've already kicked him out.

All in all, this episode was mostly set up for things coming in the next three episodes, leading into the final two. And I'm glad Assad had already let slip that Armand's full backstory would come in a later season during the press tour, or I might have gone into this episode with different expectations about the opening flashback. Because Armand's true, and full, backstory is much weightier than what we saw here, even with the glimpse at the Children of Darkness stuff. (And I'm so glad they called it the Children of Darkness -- its original name in the books -- in the show btw. I'm sorry, I think the Children of Satan name would have been a bit too camp.)

[savagewildnerness]

At some point I am going to write more fully about this scene. But, for now I just want to articulate that this moment, right here is both exquisitely beautiful & simultaneously is my personal problem with S1E5 The Drop.

Lestat is a monstrous vampire, capable of extreme violence and intentional evil. He often tries to kill the evildoer, but he enjoys killing good people too - he enjoys taking life, in love. And when he is threatened, he can lash out. He can even hurt those he loves, though he feels deep shame afterwards.

But Louis... Louis. Lestat would die before he watched Louis die. It's important because it's part of the tension in the books: from the moment he first sees Louis, Lestat would die before he watched Louis die and he would die if Louis died. He would die to save Louis.

But Louis, in the first few books...

He stands by, passively and lets Claudia murder Lestat

He burns Lestat, impulsively, in fear

He leaves Lestat to rot in a swamp

He doesn't stop to listen to what Lestat needs to explain at the trial (Absolutely understandable, this one)

He visits Lestat (this meeting) when he is in such a broken place that Louis perceives it as Lestat suffering a slow, mortal-esque death, akin to old-age. Lestat begs Louis to stay and help him, and though Louis is moved, he leaves him and as he leaves him he lets us know that he thinks Lestat may never go outside again and may die and he may never see him ever again.

When Lestat becomes a human and begs Louis to turn him back into a vampire, Louis refuses - implying he absolutely never would do that, even if it meant watching Lestat die.

The whole tension, as I see it, between Lestat and Louis is centred around the fact that even if Lestat isn't sure how much Louis loves him, and Louis himself at first isn't sure... we, the readers can feel Louis loves Lestat, as Lestat loves Louis.

But, through the first few books, Louis would not sacrifice himself for Lestat as Lestat would for him. In fact he would actively think Lestat was going to die and would not do any thing to try to prevent it. This creates a tension as gradually we the reader and Louis himself begin to feel and Louis begins to know and show the depth of his love for Lestat too.

The Drop occurring (and I 100% believe it did occur on the show now) negates this aching emotion.

I am glad, though, that this scene, in S2E8 conveys this feeling from Lestat towards Louis now though. Lestat could not cope with Louis hurting himself. He could not bear it. No matter how far away he was, he would hold himself accountable for not protecting Louis. He holds himself even more accountable because Lestat knows how dangerous Armand is, of course.

This isn't articulated well, but I'm just reflecting on it and I guess I'm trying to work out my complicated feelings.

Incidentally, I am not saying that Louis ever loves Lestat less than Lestat loves Louis. I think Louis takes longer to know his own love and also it does grow gradually... but a lot of Louis' inaction and stance isn't from a lack of love towards Lestat. Rather it's from a combination of his own personality - Louis has a tendency towards actively desiring his own non-existence so it's sort of like he'd never take that chance away from anyone else. And in some of the above cases, Lestat has wronged him, or Louis thinks he has.

Lestat is an endurer... although he does seek to end himself as often as Louis, if not more often, he dwells less in the imagining of it and appears, at least as much as he shares it to either suddenly leap into it, or to fall into it through a deep depression.

It isn't that they don't have the same leanings, just their timescales and the way they get there are different.

But Lestat would never put Louis in (im)mortal danger: not even in his greatest rage. I cannot believe it. Though, on the TV show, I believe he did it. But book-Lestat would never.

[thedailydescent]

Going back my post about the fight (you guys left so many good tags!)

I'm not completely sold on the idea that Armand purposefully and methodically planned to trigger Louis into a meltdown/suicide attempt (which the rescue of would be delayed) for the purpose of keeping him by his side in a weakened state, not because it would make what he said and did any less wrong, but because it goes against what we know about Armand as a character.

From what Assad Zaman said, Armand is a guy who actually has less control than he appears and wants, and is sometimes without a full/correct assessment of the people around him. Just because one has all the power, that doesn't mean one's own insecurities or overestimation of self can't get in the way of effective control. He did leave his partner and the "homewrecker" alone together this episode thinking everything would be fine, after all; that does not spell out someone with great calculation skills. He also has this pessimistic passivity to him. He will see trouble coming, but because of his past experiences, feel there's no use in stepping in to prevent the situation because it will only delay the inevitable. He then tries to convince you and himself afterwards that he could not have prevented any of it from it happening (as @rosesocietyy said, his commitment to deniability will choke him one day). He's not a man who can prevent an implosion, but he is a man who can commit to the clean-up afterwards (see how controlled he appears during his fight with Louis vs him playing 'nursemaid' afterwards).

I feel like when we talk about abusers, it's pretty easy and even dangerous to see them as ones who plan everything out from the beginning, who always know what's going on/what's going to happen, and are always in control (it goes back to the whole 'Armand planned Claudia's death from the beginning to trap Louis', 'Armand abracadabra-ed how Claudia died who Lestat really was from Louis's head', "Armand has been mind-controlling Louis to stay with him for 77 years" "Armand actually planned this interview because he wants to break up with Louis/get with Daniel' theories). Not only does it paint a portrait of abusers as one-dimensional villains even though anyone could be one, it also misses the point of why something or someone is abusive in the first place. It's not about whether you intended your actions to have consequences or not, whether your past trauma has compromised your skills to self-regulate or connect with others, or whether you have control all the time or not. It's about how your actions have hurt the other/made them feel helpless regardless, and whether they're (rightfully) afraid it's going to happen again.

During that fight scene, I see Armand's facial expressions and behaviour change multiple times during that fight. I see the look of anger slowly turning to regret then worry when Louis runs out of the room. That didn't look like someone who planned any of that to happen or is plotting to delay Louis's rescue, but someone who was coming off the high end of their subconscious/released pent-up emotions. Armand to me is honestly scarier because of that unpredictability and lack of clear thought-process. With Armand it's never really about boiling his decisions down to one reason; it's about the effect someone as powerful as Armand has when he feels he has no control.

[eyestrain-addict]

I just realized why lestat marked Tom, like the big stupid idiot I am

(I know everyone else probably already figured this out, but this is MY blog and I get to post whatever deranged thought crosses my pea brained mind.)

When I watched that scene in episode 5 where they're at the bar talking to Tom, I was confused as to why exactly. Why does Lestat mark Tom? If he's marked to kill, why does he wait almost 2 decades later? Well I realized, as all realizations come, in the shower.

Lestat has been planning on killing Tom the whole time.

(Warning before you click read more, this post is a lot longer than I first intended holy fuck)

Well not the whole time. Just right when Louis realized that Anderson and Fenwick had screwed him over. Maybe even longer if he knew it was a trick ("ridiculous of you to mix human and vampire business it always ends poorly"). Notice how he's upset with louis when he kills the guy who's microaggressive with him, cus lestat wasn't there (even if he was there I have my doubts Lestat would understand microaggressions, but he would have definitely killed him for touching Louis.) But tells Louis he's proud of him for killing Alderman. I think this has to be because he witnessed the disrespect first hand. He didn't give a fuck about the money, what he DID care about was that those two disrespected not only him, but Louis.

Even with Lestats little understanding of race relations of the time in America, he did understand hierarchys. He's from 1700s France for God's sake. It's no coincidence wanted to be king of mardi gras. Lestat came to New Orleans and saw himself as the king, even if no one knew it. And he wanted Louis to be his queen. Honestly I could make an entire other post about how Lestat almost literally saw himself as if he was a King and Louis his beloved Queen, which is why he thought it was okay for him to sleep with other women (mistresses and playthings of the king should mean nothing compared to the queen in lestats eyes) but that's getting off topic. I only bring that up because I'm trying to paint a picture of how I think Lestat sees disrespect done to Louis. To him that goes beyond disrespect or rudeness, it's irreverence.

You begin to notice if you watch scenes with them together. Because while I wouldn't say lestat is good at controlling his anger, he's definitely great at concealing it until it erupts (props to Sam Reid have to be given here) lestat is always on the verge of fury when talking to Tom. It starts as a distaste then as he begins to fall more in love with Louis and become more protective of him, his anger builds. Claudia was wrong about one thing, it was no petty slight that was the reason Lestat killed Tom first, it was a loooonng time coming.

I could list every detail I think supports this but I'm sure you get the gist by now. My main point is really the layer of complexity this adds to not only the story, the characters, but also lestat and louis' relationship. Consider it for a second, Lestat saw all his violence as justified, everything he did one can see it through the lense of him punishing the disrespectful (take a shot every time I say disrespect in this post jesus christ). "I bring death to those deserving" indeed. Lestat has a god complex out the wazoo, and every attack, torture, and death he caused was righteous to him and thus enjoyable. Louis on the other hand didn't see himself so highly. He may seem confident but if you look through the cracks it's apparent Louis's self worth in near nonexistent and he's horribly insecure. I think lestat thought when Louis was made a vampire he would see himself as Lestat saw himself, and as Lestat saw Louis. But again, another post for another time.

Despite Louis' insecurities (or perhaps because of them) louis revels in the violence lestat commits for his sake. That's probably why louis is so quick to forgive lestat about the priests. For a brief moment Lestat truly said the truth to Louis and Louis could forgive him because of it. As lestat says, he doesn't kill the priests to intimidate Louis, nor does he do it just because he enjoys it. He does it because he sees them as humiliating Louis, charlatans that don't deserve Louis' sorrow. Louis didn't want the priest's to die, but he could understand why lestat killed them, simply because for once in his goddamn life lestat told the truth, and louis loved that truth. That truth being that lestat killed and mutilated and committed such horrors not just because he liked it, but because he did it out of a fucked up sense of protection. Him killing the priests was essentially a knight killing a dragon to earn the princess' hand in marriage.

The worst part is that Lestat doesn't even realize it. Not fully anyway. Let's be honest with ourselves, lestat doesn't understand Louis. Obviously there's the race, background, culture differences that lestat doesn't understand nor seems inclined to try, but there are better posts about that made by smarter people than moi. I'm mostly talking about lestat doesn't understand louis' mind itself (louis' mind in a vacuum I suppose you could say) he understands Louis' desire for violence sure, but he doesn't understand the core of that want. Honestly I'm on the fence of if he ever understood that Louis loved it when lestat was protective in the first place. I guess it can be dumbed down to Louis wants Lestat to kill to protect Louis and to protect the family (and anyone who deeply disrepects them), lestat perhaps understood a little at one point, but since he sees everyone as a threat and everything is a slight to him, he has no trouble and qualms with delighting in the torture of people Louis views as innocent. Louis' heart is a bit dark, but ultimately human, so he's disgusted by lestats violence towards the undeserving. Lestat can no longer read Louis' mind and even if he could, Louis doesn't quite understand the difference himself (that's why he tries to hunt for criminals briefly) so the cracks of miscommunication starts to form, and neither of them even realize there is miscommunication.

Therein lies the importance of Tom Anderson for season 1. Not much of a character, more of a plot device in human skin. Claudia can see that Lestat hates him, but doesn't understand why, nor does she care to get to the depths of that. (*Mr house voice* understandable) I think it's notable that Louis rarely brought him up, he didn't understand the depths of lestats love. Nor did he know about Lestats 3 decade long grudge, all because Tom disrespected Louis.

Now I'm not excusing Lestat's actions, I just think it's interesting how this one throwaway character reveals a whole level of complexity to the relationship between him and Louis, and better sheds light on not only Lestats personal philosophy but louis' as well. Even Claudia to a degree.

Anyway, uh. End of essay. Bye.

[loustat-0]

INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE SEASON TWO PREDICTION & POSSIBLE SPOILERS =========>>>>>>

2x1 is going to be about the revenants & Claudia & Louis being bitter towards each other in Europe . Louis seeing Lestat's hallucination .

2x2 arrival to Paris meeting the vampire Armand & the coven of theater the vampires .

2x3 Flashbacks to Armand & Lestat relationship & Nickolas . Parts of Lestat backstory & Armand's back story told by Armand in Dubai to Daniel .

2x4 Armand & Louis's relationship starting to form Lestat present in their relationship Louis & Armand hook up . Claudia as an actress & Louis & Claudia's fight about Louis choosing someone else over her . Claudia meeting Madeline after her show in the theater . Some bitterness shaping between Louis & Armand at the end of the episode in the Dubai timeline . Claudia starting to resent the vampires in the theater . " FUCK theses vampires " she will start resenting Armand too .

2x5 Flashbacks to the 70s . The first interview between Young Daniel & Louis . With Armand also present there . Louis's & Daniel's conversation starts heating up When Daniel tells Louis that he doesn't even know the meaning of his story & hinting to his story having missing pieces & he's not reliable so Louis gets in a fight with him . Some parts of Armand & young Daniel relationship which most people who got the screener said it was so interesting & intense & they were specifically asked not to spoil this part anywhere . Which makes me even more hopeful about the possibility of Devil's minion happening . But not fully . At least we'll get some hints of how Armand & Daniel's relationship started . ( Hopefully ) . Some Alice hints

2x6 Claudia demanding Louis to make her a companion because she feels Louis is gonna leave him & that she's in danger from Armand & the others . And then it leads to Making of the Vampire Madeline or so called the " woman vampire" by Louis & Claudia both . And Louis & Armand & Claudia & Madeline going to celebrate the new fledgling & new beginning . And Then Louis will finally be informed by Armand that it was him who used his powers on Louis to make him want to make Madeline & Louis . And Louis will try to leave Armand out of Anger & when he does & when he goes back to Claudia & Madeline the vampires of the theater arrest them & take them to the trial . This episode will end with Louis seeing the REAL LESTAT for the first time . And that would be the cliff hanger . + A new character will be introduced either from the Mayfair universe or one of the oldest vampires under cover . Or maybe just a new character .

2x7 it will be Santiago asking questions as the judge but being nasty about it . Some truth will definitely come out . Claudia's hatred towards Louis will become more vivid . She will blame Louis as much blaming Lestat . Only 1x7 will be revisited to reveal it was actually Claudia who killed Lestat . And the reason she chose Louis over Lestat as a companion . All her manipulation & her using Louis . Lestat's crimes are also gonna be called in as well . Like making a vampire so young . Like abusing Claudia & Louis & probably Louis & Claudia saying their maker ( Lestat ) never taught them any rules . But Claudia won't beg for mercy & that's her doom . She will probably say Lestat deserved it & she would do it again . ( Foreshadowing to what her ghost told Louis in Merrick ) Claudia will be called guilty & so will Louis & Madeline . Claudia & Madeline will be executed. And Louis will seek revenge & burn the theater down by the end of Ep 7 .

A : 2x8 you might say that while Louis knows everything about Claudia's death then why is he with Armand still ? I think the answer to this question is because Louis himself still doesn't know what Armand actually did to Claudia or what he could have done with Lestat back in Paris after her death . There are probably many things Louis is definitely going to see more clearly after episode 7 . The diaries will gather together Louis will know the real truth about Armand possibly Cutting Claudia's head & attaching it to another body & that how much she really resented Louis . 1x5 will most likely be revisited in the last episode as well because it wasn't mentioned in any reviews about Ep 1_6 . we'll get to see if Armand tampered with that memory or it was all really just from a different POV ? ( My anticipation is , it was hugely Armand's tampering with that memory ) . This will make Louis act out badly . BUT my dilemma is whether this will end to his suicide or him Going back to New Orleans to find Lestat again .

B : If the NOLA scenes & loustat hug scene are from 2000 then the suicide is more possible . BUT IF the NOLA reunion is in 2023 then I didn't think Louis would have a reason to commit suicide other than Claudia's resentment or Lestat's rejection to have him again . Also I noticed something that I think some other fans noticed as well . in the reunion scene there seems to be blood in Lestat's head it's like sticky blood on his hair when Louis hugs him Louis also has a cut on his finger which hasn't healed fast so that might have happend when Louis tries to hurt Lestat believing he's hallucinating him again but when Lestat bleeds & probably starts falling down being in a weak state & doesn't disappear after a long time Louis will realize that Lestat is actually real . But something important happens after this . Which will reveal the real Lestat as a big ending & possible opening for S3

. C : we'll also probably get hints of Armand & Daniel's relationship too in the last episode that hints at what actually happened between them . And what will happen to their relationship in 2023 & hopefully in S3 .