After a surprisingly tight season that saw a lot of major plot points come together nicely in the beautiful, touching, well-executed penultimate episode, only to watch them implode in a finale that, quite honestly, wasn’t all that necessary, HBO’s True Blood is apparently closing up shop after seven seasons. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 7th season of the show will be its last.
“True Blood has been nothing short of a defining show for HBO,” said HBO president of programming Michael Lombardo in a statement. “Alan Ball took the books by Charlaine Harris, assembled a brilliant cast led by the magnificent Anna Paquin in the role of Sookie Stackhouse, and crafted a show that has taken its many devoted fans on an unforgettable journey. Alan passed the baton to Brian Buckner, who led our fantastic writers and crew in crafting a spectacular sixth season, and he will lead us through the seventh and final season of this amazing show. Together with its legions of fans, it will be hard to say goodbye to the residents of Bon Temps, but I look forward to what promises to be a fantastic final chapter of this incredible show.”
Added Ball, who stepped down as showrunner ahead of the drama’s recently concluded sixth season: “From the moment I read Charlaine’s books, I thought there was potential for something really special. Then our amazing writers, cast and crew brought her world to life in a way that exceeded my wildest expectations. I’m deeply grateful to HBO for being true partners and collaborators, and, of course, to the viewers who chose to spend Sunday nights in Bon Temps with us.”
Awwwww, I’m actually kind of sad. True Blood may not have been as tightly-woven a show as Sons of Anarchy or Archer, but I have a soft-spot in me for shows that go for broke, even if the gamble doesn’t always pay off in the end. I can never say I was necessarily bored watching an episode of True Blood. Confused? Sure, occasionally, but never bored.