I’ll be honest, as thrilled as I was to be watching the premiere of AMC’s Interview with the Vampire last week—and I was pretty darn thrilled—I was really just kind of impatiently waiting to get to the part where Louis and Lestat are vampire husbands. In Episode 2, though, we’re in full-on fang-bang mode. Louis is (un)dead and… well, maybe not loving it, but Lestat sure seems to be having a blast in the past.
But first, present day times: Daniel is still in Dubai looking at a pretty painting that one of Louis’s super snooty 2022 alive servants tries to art-splain to him. Apparently, it is by some dude named Marius who literally no one anywhere has ever heard of ever at all. (Happy Easter, Vamp Peers, that is an egg for you!)
Anyway, over dinner, Louis tells Daniel all about how right after turning into a vampire in 1910, he started to feel all wonky.
“Oh, that’s just your body being wonky because you’re dead now,” Lestat helpfully explains in 1910 as they dispose of the also dead—but, like, really dead—bodies of those priests he murdered. Also, he’s like, “Pro-tip, don’t drink blood dripping out of dead people or else you die too but for real.” Got it. No dead blood…
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Wait wait wait… Literally, we just saw 2022 Louis about to eat blood out of a ziplock baggie!
But now is not the time to worry about that I guess, because in 1910 Louis is like PEAKING on vampire blood. Like 2 AM at the rave, everything’s glowing, and you’re definitely 100% going to feel this way forever peaking. Plus, he has to learn how to kill people, only Lestat won’t let him murder the dummy thicc sailor he wants. Instead, they take home this boring tractor sales-nerd in brown tweed who looks like he probably tastes like, I dunno, birdseed or something.
After that, though, Louis is suddenly like, “Oh, wait, no, this actually suuuuucks, I should go home now,” like it’s 10 AM after the rave. But he can’t do that because it’s morning outside and the sun starts burning him to death, just like it does when you’ve been inside a rave for eight hours. So he…pours some milk all over himself (???) and runs back to Lestat’s house, where Lestat gets fully naked and is like, “Get on top of me in this coffin, babe.” And now I am officially deceased too because of Sam Reid’s lethal hotness.
Meanwhile in 2022, Daniel is like, “Hey guy, your dynamic with Lestat seems pretty messed up due to race, etc.” Which, yeah, fair. And Louis is like, “But, daddy, I love him.” Which, also fair, I guess? Then he sucks all the blood out of an alive screaming fox.
Back in 1910, it’s, I guess, a few months later? And Louis has learned how to read minds now. So, he goes to try it out on his alive family and learns that his mom still hates him and his sister is preggo. Also he’s still trying to do his business deals which is opening a new night club. Except remember how all those business moustache guys from poker were racist in Episode 1? Well, they are still racist and continue to d*ck him around. But then he remembers that he’s a vampire now and so he kills one of them.
That pisses Lestat off because obviously the New Orleans constabulary will be like, “Hey where did that important white business moustache disappear to???” And they get in this big fight about how Lestat doesn’t get what it’s like to be a Black vampire in America. But then later they’re in their coffins (tragical not naked this time), and Lestat is like, “Baby, I’m sorry.” And Louis is like, “So buy me that fancy brothel where I used to go hang out with my sex beard Miss Lilly (R.I.P.).” Which Lestat does even though he’s like, “Maaaaaaybe we shouldn’t draw so much attention to ourselves due to murdering people for food every night?”
Then it’s five years later and Louis is jazzed about owning a Jazz Age music club. But things are even weirder with his family due to him being a nocturnal murdering gay person. Also, it doesn’t help that when he does go visit his sister, he almost eats her infant baby.
“I don’t kill human people anymore tho!” Louis tells Daniel in 2022. Then this foxy dude shows up and Louis takes a sip out of his neck—Louis has a thing for foxes, am I right!?—while foreshadowing to Daniel about how shit’s getting wild for all the vampires in 2022. Apparently, they maybe want to turn everyone into vampires now because… the pandemic? (Which, like, then what would they eat?)
The foxy dude hilariously stumbles away and it’s back to 1917 or whenever, where Louis is depressed due to almost murdering his baby nephew. “Waaaaauuuggghhh, I’m a monster,” Louis cries. But Lestat is like, “No, baby, you’re beautiful and more special that anyone ever and I love you the mostest. Let’s go on vacation!”
Instead, they go to the opera, where poor Louis has to pretend to be Lestat’s servant because racism. But Lestat is so sweet and moved by the music and vulnerable about how lonely it can be being a nocturnal dead murderer forever that Louis falls in love with him all over again, for five minutes.
Except then one of the singers sucks, so Lestat decides to take him home and torture him to death. And Louis remembers that he’s in a relationship with a sadistic narcissist, but also I guess he’s still mostly d*ck-matized by Lestat (whomst among us wouldn’t be???) so he helps drink the singer’s blood too but feels real bad about it the whole time.
In 2022, Louis is like, “Yeah, I dunno, I kinda suck at being a vampire?” Then he tries to sadly eat an actual real dessert with Daniel I guess to punish himself? Which is kinda the most Anne Rice thing ever LOL.
Final thoughts: Jacob Anderson continues to be just lovely in this, but MOTHER OF UNHOLY F*CK does Sam Reid outdo himself in this episode! He’s, like, consistently finding these blithely funny notes in everything he does, and giving Lestat this whole comedic dimension that I’m not sure I ever appreciated in the books. Just walked away with this episode, which, yeah, that’s Lestat!
lather
Two thumbs up for this recap. Kinda makes me want to see it, but not subscribing to another streaming service. I bet the recap is just as much fun as the series. Thanks.
dbmcvey
It’s on AMC, basic cable.
inbama
This is an absolutely first class take on Rice’s work.
Casting Eric Bogossian as the unquestionably straight and very mortal reporter putting himself in danger to interview Luis was brilliant.
Terrific writing, great cast, absolutely stunning sets, costumes and jazz age New Orleans.
And yes, no holds barred gay passion.
Hktop
I was obsessed with Anne Rice books in my younger days. The reboot of this is so much better than the Tom Cruise movie.
Great casting and art directions with some misfires in the dialogue, remember what time period your character is speaking in, but all in all, hot and enjoyable.
dbmcvey
I am enjoying the show, however, as opposed to the “fang-bang” thing, I didn’t find anything sexy about it. The killings, and even the sucking during dinner were more sad than sexy.
It also brought up some things,
POSSIBLE SPOILER
Louis kills someone who Lestat says will be missed, the farmer has children and a wife, the singer is in a touring production–all of them would arouse suspicion but nothing comes of it.
Also, I think Jacob Anderson is okay in the period parts but in the conversation with Bogosian he’s really not that great. Bogosian is so natural and sounds like a person, Louis sounds odd–maybe that’s on purpose but It’s not working for me right now.
Joshooeerr
Jacob Anderson is, indeed, just okay. But Sam Reid is sexy as hell. The real problem is that Reid is so much the better actor that they’re scenes together are unbalanced. I care way more about Lestat that I do about Louis, which is surely not right!
XannaDont
This show is excellent on many levels, including its unexpected humor. When I saw the side by side coffins I thought of mid-century sitcoms with twin beds.
SumSay
Fantastic show, very well written and multilayered. Loving it so far despite A LOT of changes from the source material, but it stands on its own. Jacob and Sam really know their roles and the chemistry between them is amazing.
Wheelerman
I’ve read the Anne Rice novels. The article writer apparently has not. Marius de Romanus is a 2000 year old vampire. His story is told in Rice’s novel Blood and Gold.
Otherwise, I am enjoying this new interpretation of Interview. Both leads are exceptional. The book has Louis telling his life; that’s why he’s more front and center now. If AMC goes forward with the series; Lestat will tell his story from the book The Vampire Lestat.