S01.E04: ...the Ruthless Pursuit of Blood with All a Child’s Demanding

[Mr. Sparkle]

In his penthouse, Louis gives Molloy access to Claudia’s diaries, which offer a fresh and contemporaneous account of the creation of the young fledgling vampire and how her Vampire guardians adjust to their new family of three.

Streaming on AMC+ 22.10.16 and airing on AMC 22.10.23. 

Proceed at your own risk for spoilers before the AMC airdate.

[AngieBee1]

Each week I think, "This is a my favourite episode." Then a new episode airs and I think, "No, okay, this is the one." Here it is again - my new favourite episode.

Fantastic choice to have the episode from Claudia's POV as she is truly the only one who could tell her story. Bailey Bass is a fantastic Claudia. I also love that her impulsive nature isn't just because she's a vampire or a child - she's had a terrible childhood and has now, due to becoming a vampire, has found her power. She's a perfect blend of her vamp!Dads.

Them treating NOSFERATU like a comedy was peak comedy.

Louis was so desperate for a Band-Aid Baby that he didn't think about the realities of what an immortal life would look for a child. Just as he keeps throwing in Lestat's face that Lestat took his life from him, he took Claudia's (while saving it). Maybe he thinks it's a different scenario because unlike Uncle Les(tat) he was going to take emotional care of Claudia and be a better sire than Lestat has been to him. Be that as it may - as she laments - she is trapped in this child's body, frozen in amber losing out on so much of life.

I can't quite fault Grace for being frosty with Louis considering his absence from her life and his increasing unhinged nature around the family, but acting like she and Levi should get the house because Louis is rich and doesn't need it is pure entitlement. And if you're asking the retain the roof over your family's heads, maybe don't sneer (and dripping with such disdain) about your brother's "white daddy". You need more grace, Grace when you're coming with hat in hand.

The mystery of Rashid deepens.

[Glade]

I loved seeing the trio laughing hysterically in the theatre while watching Nosferatu, and later Louis and Claudia blissfully rowing in a little boat.  Louis and Lestat have a terrible relationship, but I still root for them to be happy.  But it doesn't seem Claudia has very much love for Lestat, which is understandable given the absolutely horrific scene where he makes her watch her would-be lover burn to death.  Being eternally fourteen would indeed be very difficult, locked in the emotional volatility of early puberty and never being taken seriously by adults.  This was very well done and I loved that they changed the POV.

The preview for next weeks episode...

Spoiler

looks very grim.  Claudia becomes a serial killer collecting body parts?  Or is she trying to set Lestat/Louis up for those crimes?

[PurpleTentacle]

This episode they mentioned that the original Interview was in 1973. So I guess that answers my question if this is a sequel to the book or the movie. I guess the reporter would have been 20 back then, if we are going by the age of the actor. Fits pretty well.

[AngieBee1]

They established in the first episode that the first interview was conducted in 1973. 

[dwmarch]

I loved Louis' response of "I was going to say... something else. But yes." to Daniel's band-aid snark. I also liked Louis' response to Claudia's question about love between two men. He has to take a moment to think about it because he's never been asked that question before (at least not in a legitimately curious way as opposed to mockery) and after a moment he basically says "love is love". Daniel may dismiss her as a band-aid but she's the only character so far who absolutely accepts Louis for who he is in all regards, as a queer Creole vampire.

Interesting that we got a tiny bit of background on Rashid. So he is indeed a devout Muslim to which Daniel commented "I thought Louis was your God". I'm glad they came back to that since I was confused about it since the first episode.

Another thing I found confusing was Louis' library where the bookshelves are way up off the ground. I guess that means Louis can fly which is cool. Well, there are also these things called ladders which I have heard of but I didn't see one sitting nearby.

Claudia is adorable as an enthusiastic vampire with ADHD. Once again they mention the "don't drink them dead" rule but Claudia does this later and suffers nothing more than angst for it.

Louis and Lestat have got to be kidding themselves if they think Claudia can't hear everything going on as they are snuggling. This show has already established that vampires can hear people down the block. They might as well just speak at normal volume.

Why does Lestat's house have a shutter that lets in focused sunlight? If it came with the house you would think he would have had it covered by now. It's not like he has trouble getting up on the roof. Is it for the specific purpose of burning vampires? If so, it's a weird setup.

[jenrising]

Initially I wasn't sure about this older Claudia but she's wonderful. She's the best and worst of her new fathers. 

I'm really enjoying the tone of the show. The balance of laughs and horror and drama is really working for me. 

[hatchetgirl]

I'm definitely more comfortable with Claudia here than in the movie. I appreciate her age better. The actress is doing a wonderful job. I've been struggling with the show. The episode made it more accessible.

[raeb23]

I'm enjoying the series so far...changing Louis' background and the time period has made the story more layered. So has ageing Claudia up. Her childhood trauma, eternal puberty and having Louis and Lestat as parents make for a voilatile mix.

6 hours ago, jenrising said:

I'm really enjoying the tone of the show. The balance of laughs and horror and drama is really working for me.

Me too. The show's pretty dark but doesn't take itself too seriously. The humour was unexpected but welcome.

Louis needs to cut ties with his family. Also, I feel like Grace should have known about Claudia before the wake. Even though they don't talk much, Louis lives less than a mile away from her. Two prominent local businessmen taking in an orphan girl seems like something that would be gossiped about. 

[Keywestclubkid]

20 hours ago, hatchetgirl said:

I'm definitely more comfortable with Claudia here than in the movie. I appreciate her age better.

That was the whole point of making someone soooooo young into a vampire tho 

[Chaos Theory]

There is no curse worse then being a 14 year old girl.  This show has taken a lot of dark themes and dark curses so an eternal  female puberty is quite fitting.   Vampires are somewhere in between life and death and Claudia is in between child and adult.

Edited October 24, 2022 by Chaos Theory

[Blue Castle]

I'm also really enjoying this show - I would say it's almost ranking up there with Succession for me, which is my favorite current drama.  It's also really surprising because I never had much interest in the books and thought the movie was so-so (I might have to read at least the first few books now).  I feel like all the changes they've made so far (Louis and Claudia now being black, moving the time period to the early 20th Century, making Louis and Lestat's romance explicit, aging Claudia to always be on the verge of adulthood) have really made the story more interesting to me (at least compared to the movie).

This episode was pretty heartbreaking - to see a young woman at first happy with her new life as a rich vampire, but then to slowly realize she is trapped in an isolated existence for eternity.  It was interesting how her diaries focused only on happy moments until Charlie's death.  I got the sense that she was even hiding her loneliness from herself (cannot imagine spending your teenage years with no one your same age to talk to).

[Mr. Sparkle]

Just a reminder as the story develops, to bring all discussion about the books, including how the characters are different in the book vs. the show, to this thread.

Episode threads should be about what happened in that episode only. 

[hatchetgirl]

On 10/17/2022 at 2:06 PM, Keywestclubkid said:

That was the whole point of making someone soooooo young into a vampire tho 

I hear you but this is a retelling and I think making Claudia a 14 yr old is more palatable. 

[Zima]

On 10/17/2022 at 5:06 PM, Keywestclubkid said:

That was the whole point of making someone soooooo young into a vampire tho 

I agree. I'm loving everything still so far, but Claudia being 14 took me out of it a little bit.

And now, I have a question, since 14 is old enough to start one's period...do AFAB vampires menstruate? 

[Ohiopirate02]

On 10/20/2022 at 5:15 PM, Zima said:

And now, I have a question, since 14 is old enough to start one's period...do AFAB vampires menstruate? 

I have never come across a menstruating vampires in any of the lore.  Menstruation is something that happens off screen or off page unless the plot demands.  It's something that happens 25% of the time or less.  Odds are, an AFAB individual would not be menstruating when turned.

That being said, Claudia was most likely malnourished along with being abused.  We see her lament being stuck in a body that had not started to grow breasts or pubic hair.  This leads me to believe she had not started yet.

[Scarlett45]

I’m a week behind you all but I loved this episode quite a bit. Telling the story from Claudia’s perspective was well done. What Louis said about hearing how you failed your child in vivid detail, and the shame in that, with Claudia Louis was a parent. 

On 10/16/2022 at 3:21 AM, AngieBee1 said:

I can't quite fault Grace for being frosty with Louis considering his absence from her life and his increasing unhinged nature around the family, but acting like she and Levi should get the house because Louis is rich and doesn't need it is pure entitlement. And if you're asking the retain the roof over your family's heads, maybe don't sneer (and dripping with such disdain) about your brother's "white daddy". You need more grace, Grace when you're coming with hat in hand.

I didn’t quite get what Grace was asking- with her mother’s death did the family trust dissolve? Or does Grace want the house out of the trust so she doesn’t have to deal with Louis any more? That’s probably for the best. Louis needs to let go of his human family, now it might be easier. I have a bit more understanding for Grace than you did, her brother has gone off the deep end (as she can tell) and refused to participate in family life but shows up randomly at night speaking in riddles. You’d think he was in a cult or had an addiction if you didn’t know he was a vampire. She probably feels angry and hurt and abandoned by him after Paul died; to care for their mother alone. 

On 10/21/2022 at 7:06 PM, Ohiopirate02 said:

I have never come across a menstruating vampires in any of the lore.  Menstruation is something that happens off screen or off page unless the plot demands.  It's something that happens 25% of the time or less.  Odds are, an AFAB individual would not be menstruating when turned.

I would assume not, @Zima as vampires don’t have working reproductive systems. Also I don’t think they use the bathroom either (again like @Ohiopirate02- only if the plot demands). 
 

/shallowbus Can someone do something with Sam Reid’s hair? It’s awful and stringy! He’s so handsome why?????

[peridot]

It was terrible, but I laughed when Lestat said he wouldn't know where to bite since Claudia was so charred.  Lestat is a creepy character.  The way he stared at Louis when he was begging for him to save Claudia was something else.

The way Claudia refused to feed off the drunk guy and went to bait someone else should have given Louis and Lestat pause.  She gave up the "easy" kill to play with the cop.  It's terrible that her adolescence causes her to be hungry all the time.

The episode went by so quickly, I didn't realize that she was supposed to be 14.  That guy Charlie was talking out of both sides of his mouth - Claudia was too young, but he decided to take her out on a date and make out with her anyway?  I'm not sure if Claudia is all there - when she previously fed on people, they all died.  When she decided to take a bite out of Charlie, what did she expect?

By the looks of it, what Lestat forced her to see caused her mind to splinter entirely.

[AngieBee1]

2 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

shallowbus Can someone do something with Sam Reid’s hair? It’s awful and stringy! He’s so handsome why?????

He said that he was growing his hair out while filming so they had to have a weave while it grew. They should have used a better quality of hair.  I am sure doing a color match was hell on the hair they used hence the stringiness.

[Scarlett45]

Just now, AngieBee1 said:

He said that he was growing his hair out while filming so they had to have a weave while it grew. They should have used a better quality of hair.  I am sure doing a color match was hell on the hair they used hence the stringiness.

OH!!!!!! They couldn’t have given him a wig? It just looks like he went camping and didn’t style it. 
 

Thank you though!

[Snow Apple]

That started fun and turned tragic. 

The funeral director was all "The poor child" to "Something isn't right" to Lestat heaving a sigh and Chomp!

A little thing I thought of is that Claudia never tasted ice cream before she turned.

Poor Louis getting rejected by his sister. I understand Grace don't know what's going on and thought Louis abandoned them but I suspect he provided money throughout the years even if it's not in person. Also, they (especially his mother) made him feel unwelcome every time he tried to visit. Now that he signed over the house to Grace and her family, he needs to cut ties for both their sakes. Although I'm hoping Louis go back for one last visit when Grace's time is up as an old woman so he can confess and try to make peace. I'm sure his family already suspects.... something....but Grace still look pretty young too so they probably willfully ignore it. However, he can't get away with his appearance much longer.

[Scarlett45]

11 minutes ago, Snow Apple said:

That started fun and turned tragic. 

The funeral director was all "The poor child" to "Something isn't right" to Lestat heaving a sigh and Chomp!

A little thing I thought of is that Claudia never tasted ice cream before she turned.

Poor Louis getting rejected by his sister. I understand Grace don't know what's going on and thought Louis abandoned them but I suspect he provided money throughout the years even if it's not in person. Also, they (especially his mother) made him feel unwelcome every time he tried to visit. Now that he signed over the house to Grace and her family, he needs to cut ties for both their sakes. Although I'm hoping Louis go back for one last visit when Grace's time is up as an old woman so he can confess and try to make peace. I'm sure his family already suspects.... something....but Grace still look pretty young too so they probably willfully ignore it. However, he can't get away with his appearance much longer.

Its been about a decade since Louis turned by the looks of things, I agree with you, his lack of aging isn't suspicious- YET, but in another 5yrs? It was my understanding that Louis was in charge of the family trust which was supposed to provide for them, but his father had mismanaged the funds and thats why Louis had all of these business ventures (his father was in sugar) to keep the family head above water. Best thing would be for Louis to just fund the trust and step away, appoint a bank as trustee, so at least Grace's kids will be able to have their education provided for.

[iMonrey]

I really enjoyed Claudia, and I didn't think that I would. They did a great job with casting there. The first half of this episode was practically comedy. I've seen episodes of What We Do in the Shadows that weren't as funny as this. It took a dark turn at the end but most of it was hysterical. 

[Ohiopirate02]

47 minutes ago, Snow Apple said:

Poor Louis getting rejected by his sister. I understand Grace don't know what's going on and thought Louis abandoned them but I suspect he provided money throughout the years even if it's not in person. Also, they (especially his mother) made him feel unwelcome every time he tried to visit. Now that he signed over the house to Grace and her family, he needs to cut ties for both their sakes. Although I'm hoping Louis go back for one last visit when Grace's time is up as an old woman so he can confess and try to make peace. I'm sure his family already suspects.... something....but Grace still look pretty young too so they probably willfully ignore it. However, he can't get away with his appearance much longer.

Grace does know some of what is going on with Louis.  She knows he and Lestat are in a romantic relationship.  The kind of romantic relationship that is illegal and in their mother's mind immoral.  I can't get a read on how Grace feels about Louis's queerness.  She greatly dislikes Lestat, but that could be because he's white.  She also will have valid concerns about Louis living as out as a man can in 1920s New Orleans.  

[Scarlett45]

36 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

Grace does know some of what is going on with Louis.  She knows he and Lestat are in a romantic relationship.  The kind of romantic relationship that is illegal and in their mother's mind immoral.  I can't get a read on how Grace feels about Louis's queerness.  She greatly dislikes Lestat, but that could be because he's white.  She also will have valid concerns about Louis living as out as a man can in 1920s New Orleans.  

Yes, Grace knows that Louis and Lestat are in a relationship, which is dangerous for both of them (but more so for Louis) on so many levels. Lestat is rich and white, if anyone is going to suffer the brunt of this (or when it ends in her mind) it is going to be Louis. From what I gather Grace isn't in love with the idea of Louis being in this relationship, but his behavior (leaving family life, only showing up at night, acting WEIRD AF) hurts her more. He destroyed the door in a fit of rage, she is now scared of him and cannot figure out why he is different. She likely blames just the relationship with Lestat.

I am sure she can tell that Lestat does NOT like them. This is a very different situation that if Lestat was a rich white man Louis had taken up with, but Louis was still acting like "himself" (whom he was before Paul died). She might not like it, but I doubt she would be openly hostile like their Mom was. From what we saw in episode 1, the siblings had a good relationship, and Louis was looked up to as the eldest brother.

[Snow Apple]

I agree with the above. Grace and her husband seem to like Lestat at the dinner party in the first episode but when Louis yelled at him to "stop that" to Paul, they must know something was up. And even if they wouldn't mind a same sex relationship (don't ask, don't tell), they sensed Lestat is not normal and very controlling. 

[Eeksquire]

I am reserving judgment, because overall I have loved this series, but I didn't love this episode. It was simultaneously rushed and too slow as to Claudia's development as a character (though I did like the actress very much and boy, those contact lenses are really something on her in particular!). I am watching on cable, and so a week behind, but if we shift back to Louis' story for the rest of the season, I wonder whether the diaries will resurface at any point later in the series.

[kassa]

I assume we're supposed to think their eyes are like that 24/7 (Louis wears glasses to hide his). What about their appearance WOULDN'T freak out regular folk? Maybe in 2022 you see that girl's eyes and think she's wearing some kind of super creepy contact lenses, but I bet you take a step back before you think of it.  But 100+ yrs ago, your previously normal brother takes up with his new boyfriend with the inhuman eyes and suddenly his eyes are like that too, and then they add an adopted child with the inhuman eyes as well?   Run away!

Then again, that guy was sweet on Claudia as she flirted with him with those big dead eyes, so maybe people CAN'T see them? 

[Scarlett45]

On 10/26/2022 at 2:28 PM, kassa said:

I assume we're supposed to think their eyes are like that 24/7 (Louis wears glasses to hide his). What about their appearance WOULDN'T freak out regular folk? Maybe in 2022 you see that girl's eyes and think she's wearing some kind of super creepy contact lenses, but I bet you take a step back before you think of it.  But 100+ yrs ago, your previously normal brother takes up with his new boyfriend with the inhuman eyes and suddenly his eyes are like that too, and then they add an adopted child with the inhuman eyes as well?   Run away!

Then again, that guy was sweet on Claudia as she flirted with him with those big dead eyes, so maybe people CAN'T see them? 

I think it’s one of those things that is only visible when the plot calls for it. 

[ferjy]

Bad move, making a teenage vampire. Teens are evil little creatures at the best of times! (Weren’t we all.) 

Edited October 30, 2022 by ferjy

[TheGreenKnight]

I had got behind, so only watched these last four episodes this past Sunday night. I wasn't sure I liked the actress for Claudia to begin with, but that ending monologue was so good. I honestly thought this episode had implied

she committed suicide at the end of it (opening the ceiling)--it seemed like a natural progression to everything else that happened and her dialogue.

[Enero]

On 10/24/2022 at 10:54 AM, Scarlett45 said:

Its been about a decade since Louis turned by the looks of things, I agree with you, his lack of aging isn't suspicious- YET, but in another 5yrs? It was my understanding that Louis was in charge of the family trust which was supposed to provide for them, but his father had mismanaged the funds and thats why Louis had all of these business ventures (his father was in sugar) to keep the family head above water. Best thing would be for Louis to just fund the trust and step away, appoint a bank as trustee, so at least Grace's kids will be able to have their education provided for.

Yeah. They're all on borrowed time, including Claudia. Claudia I think even more so than Louis and Lestat being that she is a child. People will start to suspect something is off if she never physically matures beyond her current age, which could mean trouble for Louis and Lestat even before their lack of aging of becomes an issue. They can't continue to live in New Orleans, especially as well known individuals in society circles and not age. 

 

On 10/23/2022 at 11:21 PM, peridot said:

The episode went by so quickly, I didn't realize that she was supposed to be 14.  That guy Charlie was talking out of both sides of his mouth - Claudia was too young, but he decided to take her out on a date and make out with her anyway?  I'm not sure if Claudia is all there - when she previously fed on people, they all died.  When she decided to take a bite out of Charlie, what did she expect?

By the looks of it, what Lestat forced her to see caused her mind to splinter entirely.

Lestat was harsh, and what he did will undoubtedly affect Claudia in a very negative way, but I couldn't blame him for not sugarcoating the situation. She seems on some level to want human expeerinces, but that's not possible considering what she's become. I suspect this incident will lead to more problems for the family considering how the episode ended. 

I enjoyed this episode. I really liked the family interactions between Louis/Lestat/Claudia. I also enjoyed watching her spend time with both dads, and both experiences so aligned with who they are as individuals. Louis takes Claudia on a peaceful boat ride, while Lestat takes her out for a night of vicious killing. Lol.

I agree with others. Grace should've shown more humility when asking for the house. I know she is angry with Louis for being absent and acting unhinged, but he doesn't owe her anything. Moreover, I thought it was strange that they didn't ask for ownership of the house sooner. Why wait until the mom died to ask? Also, Grace always complained about Louis never coming to visit, but did she ever try and visit him? I know that Louis would not want Grace at his and Lestat's home for obvious reasons, but that didn't prevent them from meeting at a local restuarant or in the park. Though it would be strange if they met only at night. It seems as if the interaction he had with the family in this episode was the final break (I hope). I hate to see the relationship with his sister completely severed since they were so close before his transformation, but there is no other way. He can't continue the relationship being what he is, unless they learn the truth and accept him, which will never happen.