Why straying from the book is better
All of you out there who have read and loved the books and continue to stay faithful to the show no matter what they change, you are true fans. When a show or movie is adapted from a book, there is no way in hell that they are going to be the same. And with these particular books, I believe that it is better to make it different. 
With this series, a ton of what is making the fans keep watching and waiting is the mystery of it all. If it followed the books directly, there would be no surprises and everyone would know what is going to happen next. With the show, they keep the outer skeleton of the book plot, but they add so much more depth and twists to the show that you are hooked on it. Stephen Moyer said himself: “I’ve never been somebody who wanted to read a book and then see it enacted in front of me. When I read “Harry Potter,” I don’t want to then go and see Harry Potter shot frame to frame. I don’t understand the point of it. If somebody is going to put something in front of me, I want it to be different.” And Alan Ball has certainly done a fantastic job with that, he won’t give the characters what they want, he creates conflict, and that is part of the true beauty of this show. When conflict, plot twists, new characters, and utterly confusing things that generate tons of discussion are thrown into an adapted tv show that attracts millions of fans every week, you know that there is something special about it and that there is a reason they changed the story, otherwise there would be no tension, and everyone needs to experience that thrill of turning on your tv 10 minutes early so you are sure not to miss the beginning, and gasping when something shocking happens and how brilliantly executed the entire show comes across. I mean really, we all need a little excitement…
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I do love the way they do the show and expanding on characters. I <3 Layfeyette in the show because you get to see how much more there is to him. And I love the Jessica-Hoyt romance…..I do love the books, and part of me wants to see the books to be brought to life, but I guess you do have to add some more dramatics and such to keep people entertained….I just hope they make as many seasons and there is books, so we will be enjoying the supernatural action for a long time<3
well i personaly like it when the movies go right with the book. i found the last few harry potters awesome, yet exteremely dissapointing for lack of book based facts. when i read a book i picture how scenes play out, that’s why i want to see the movie, to get a visual. it just sux when they change parts i was counting on seeing. seems like every book-based movie really sux compared to the book. hearts of atlantis was an awesome book, movie was way off in left field. clan of the cave bear, that movie should’ve be shot, it was pitiful compared to the book. anyway that’s my 2 cents.
I don´t have the books yet but I want to read them.
The show I really love it, and I expect too that they make so many as the books too!
I haven’t read the books but if I had I would prefer that the show would stray from the novels because it definitely gives more of a element of surprise. Why would you want to know step by step what happens, apparetly LaFayette died in the novel but instead it was miss Jinette (not sure how to spell her name) that died instead which is great because I’d hate the show to have lost such a key character. As much as I like “movies” to stay true to the book I think that a television series needs that cliff-hanger effect or else it’ll lose the audience that reads the books because they already know everything.
I do wish that the television show followed the series better, however I’m not going to start complaining because I adore the show. After reading half of the Sookie Stackhouse Series (I’m going to the library to get out the rest!) I was still in a mood for them, and the library was closed for the week. So I decided to check out the show, which I watched online for four nights straight, moving from this site to other sites whenever the time limit would pop up. I wasn’t disappointed. I loved the books, and they will always be better than the show, but it’s still amazing.
My favourite book, I don’t know which number it is, but it’s the one with a brain-washed Eric in it, will be amazing as a show, if they make it to that book. I really do hope Godrick/Godfrey lives up to his description in the book, too. He was one of my favourite characters, along with Eric, Sam, and Alcide. I can’t wait for Alcide to come in, too! Hopefully this show goes on until the last of the books; I want to see all of the action before me again, just as I did when I read the books.
And the changes were understandable, anyways. It gave more character to everyone.
I love the show and look forward to reading the books. One film adaptation I was not pleased with was Ella Enchanted, sorry I know this is a true blood site but it has to be said. The book was dark but amazing and the film was a joke. I think it’s great that the show true blood is different to the books that way it’s still interesting for everyone.
When Trueblood came out I tryed to watch it but couldn’t keep up untill recently. As soon as I found out what the show was based off of (after one episode) I began simutanuously watching the show (slowly) and reading the books. I got hooked! I do wish that they would make the show more like the books… but I still love it! The only thing about reading the books is there are too many spoilers! I know what major events are going to happen between characters. Therefore I hate Bill and a few other characters. My favorite characters are Pam, Sookie and Eric. Especially Pam! I don’t want to spoil anything though…
OH! and I agree with you Molly (:
That is my favorite book too!
Thats why I like Eric so much. (But at first I hated him, and Pam)
I love Pam too…she slowly crept up as my favorite charactor in the books. One thing I love though about them not following the book to a t is the element of surprise! I though Lafayette was toast the end of last season because his death is so important in the books. So Im looking forward to what happens now that he is still alive.
“When a show or movie is adapted from a book, there is no way in hell that they are going to be the same.”
Um… no. There are multiple films that stay extremely faithful to the original story that have had great success. Ken Kesey’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” was nearly adapted word for word. So was Hunter S. Thompson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” when Terry Gilliam made a film version in 1998. For those of you with short-term memories, there was “The Watchmen” (Written by Allan Moore in 1986) that came out as a film late last year (2008). These films were all superb and stayed intellectually honest to the original writings.
“With this series, a ton of what is making the fans keep watching and waiting is the mystery of it all. If it followed the books directly, there would be no surprises and everyone would know what is going to happen next.”
Ha! So, you’re saying that it is “mysterious” when multiple minor sub-plot-lines are changed but the main plot is left untouched (or at least it was for Season/novel #1)? You are kidding right? Take your nose out of Allan Ball’s ass! True Blood holds the aura that it does only because our society seems to value television nowadays more than it does books. I will guarantee you that most TB followers aren’t even aware that TB is based off of 9 novels! BTW, nobody should give a rat’s ass what Stephen Moyer or Allan Ball think. How many novels have they written collectively? Zero.
The difficulty with adapting any novel to a film/show is time. A good rule-of-thumb for screenwriting is that you have about one page of text per minute of film. This is why the earlier Harry Potter movies were better than the last few; The first novels had less pages, ergo the director could include more of the novel in the film version.
HBO executives have confined the director to twelve 60 minute episodes, which means that anything over 720 pages from the original novel is bound to get cut. However, I do not think that “The Southern Vampire Mystery Novels” are more than 720 pages each. This means that the directors/producers are more than able (if they wanted to) to stay faithful to the novels, but they do not.
I am letting the main point escape me.
The reason that the show does not adhere strictly to the novel is a blend of ego and marketing.
The producers want to market the show towards people that purchase HBO; the novels are not written with that age demographic specifically in mind. So, if they add something new (that in their mind appeals to the HBO demographic), while cutting something out (that in their mind does not appeal to the sought after market) this in their minds equals $$$.
The writers (Screen writers) need to make up (write) something new (include something new into the original story) and are all too happy to write whatever the producers tell them because… #1.) they want to keep their jobs, and #2.) They want to have a writing credit to assist them in finding another job later on down the road. It is difficult to justify their (ridiculous) salaries if they are merely transcribing the novels into a workable screenplay.
Does any of this matter? Not really. However, we can do without unintelligent ass kissing blog posts that (poorly) attempt to justify slight deviations of novel adaptations by falsely claiming that doing so enhances the original story. I am tired of seeing “based on a story” stories. Give me the story or don’t. Adding or subtracting things from a story does not make someone creative; if anything it proves the opposite. In other words, if someone is adapting a novel into a film or series they should go all the way or create their own original piece of work. Anyone whom has taken a honest look at comic book film adaptations can and will tell you, intellectual honesty is the best policy. Usually this cannot be completed due to time constraints (most films are 2 hours). True Blood on the other hand has more than enough time. Unfortunately, TSVMNs were written for people whom cannot afford to subscribe to HBO and your Almighty Allan Ball has bills to pay.
i agree partially with you dan.
i have read all of the books and personally prefer the books over the show. I wish that alan ball would remain more accurate to the books BUT what you seem to be forgetting is that the second book (the one the show is currently on) is 291 pages long- that gives the writers about 24 pages of script per 50 minutes of show. this means that they need to be ADDING stuff to the script- which i would like to point out that is all the writers did
like people have said they are trying to keep the show going and to do that they need to make money- how? to make sure that there were a few things noone knew.
for instance i was all bracing myself to see lafayette dead (he became one of my favorite characters on the show)and was estatic to find out he is not dead
i do however think that the way that they have been portraying eric and jason is horrible and extremly innacurate. based on the storyline in the books how they are portrayed is going to come back to bite the writers in the butt
about how the ‘creature’ who scratched sookie not revealing her self (one of the things that was taken out) the show has taken 4 episodes to really get started this season to really tell you what the mystery is, so they needed to come up with another one
another point id like to touch on is
HAVE YOU READ THE BOOKS???????
i ask this because you seem to be ranting about the differences(not knowing what they are) and ignoring similarities
I agree partially with Dan too.
I like that they aren’t exactly like the book. Like you said it does make it more mysterious. However, there are certain parts of the book that I think is a MUST to have in the show and it must replicate the books. That may be just me though. There are just certain parts of the novels that I’ve pictured in my head and I wouldn’t want writers changing that up AT ALL because it would ruin it. So far I am okay with the changes they’ve made though. Like I said before there are only certain things that I’d be disappointed if they changed.
I am sorry to anyone who percieved this as an ass-kissing post, but I am just trying to express my opinion, and write about what fans have asked me to write about. As for movies and shows not being the same, although Dan gave me three examples for movies that are copies word for word, those are the exceptions, but really there are going to be changes in almost all adapted works and you just have to make peace with that fact. And yes, I do call making minor changes to the sub-plots mysterious, they keep the core of the story, and then when something changes drastically, like Lafayette living, most fans are quite intrigued. It keeps you guessing, and I don’t see why you have a problem with that. Adapting, or based-on, does show creativity. It shows that someone found a book or an idea with potential and molded it. And I am by no means saying that these changes “enhance the original story,” I am merely saying the changes give new elements to a story. Some people think Lafayette living enhanced the plot, and some people hate that fact. It is all based on the opinion of the fan. And yes, alot of it is about money, but the entire cast and crew of TB have created a hit show that people love, and they see that, and work hard to keep it great. The writers have done a great job adapting these books in my opinion but they stay true to the core story, and to a lot of fans, that is all that matters.
It’s okay to stray from the book a little bit, but why the heck did they put JASON in FotS? They should’ve put someone that *spoiler* won’t eventually turn into a supe! *end spoiler* Other then that, everything is great
Both the books and the show are awesome and I agree that watching the book word for word is pointless, you could just read the book. So the show is really cool because even if you have read, you still get a refreshing story that is familiar yet surprising. Ooo and Spoiler thought: I wonder if when they bring the supes into the FotS deal they’ll just change Jason then and save the whole Crystal thing for later.
I have read all the Sookie Stackhouse novels (except book 9 & of course 10 because it isn’t out yet) I love the books and the show. Eric looks like how I pictured him. I think he should be with Sookie instead. At least he tells it like it is and doesn’t keep things from Sookie. Unlike Bill. I would rather be told everything up front instead of finding out later. If Bill had told Sookie why he was there to begin with it might have saved their relationship. If you haven’tread the books yet I hope this show last a long while so you will know what I’m talking about.
The show and the books are simply outstanding, I think that having the series stray from the book’s events and character development helps expand the world that we have been introduced to. Personally, I enjoy the differences, it is as if the stories are exploring the avenues in which they could have gone in the books. An outstanding job has been done on both fronts.
I agree, if the show was just like the books I would know what was waiting for me around the corner, with this the writers of the show (there are multiple writers) add in extra suprises (AKA Godric being Eric’s maker, I don’t remember that being in the book… correct me if I’m wrong).
All in all the books and the tv show are both perfect!
dan u are a dumb ass i dissagree completely with dan the show should NOT follow along with the books because then we would know what would happen next! no suprise! that would suck
Just a reminder to those that have and have not read the books, the novels are from one persons view point. How boring would that be if all we saw was what Sookie did 24/7 in the TV show. I have read the books, including the newest one (book nine for those not keeping track) and I am still fascinated by the show. I like that they (the writers) are at least sticking to the main plot of the book, and throwing in some twist along the way. It’s like getting to dive into the novels and see what else would have possibly been going on at the same time. The character development has really brought the characters to life more so than the books could have. I love the fact that Lafayette is still alive, so is my husband. Overall I do hope that the TV series continues to do a book a season, that way it should be on for at least seven season possibly longer.
side plots thanks for assisting me in saying what i wanted to say. the whole part about sookie 24/7 is exactly what i was getting at(in books its less confusing in 1st person; in shows it is dull
i do also want to remind those of you who have read the books of how important certain characters are.
needless to say i will be extremely upset if they do not continue to follow the plot. adding characters and scenes is great because those of us who have read the books would otherwise get bored. taking away characters/ scenes, or changing important them in certain ways, that are important (or might become important) pisses me off.
i am becoming afraid that they may start to do this and will not watch this show anymore if the damage the writers have made become irreparable.
mo you read my mind! that is word for word how I feel about it! However I will watch even if they change just to see how it all comes out
CAN ANY1 TELL ME THE 1ST COUPLE TRUE BLOOD BOOK NAMES SO I CAN GO FIND AND READ THEM PLEASE?
THANX
~bRITTANY~
Brittany,
Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris in reading order:
1. Dead Until Dark (1st TB series)
2. Living Dead in Dallas (2nd TB series)
3. Club Dead
4. Dead to the World
5. Dead as a Doornail
6. Definitely Dead
7. All Together Dead
8. From Dead to Worse
9. Dead and Gone
Happy Reading
Brittany,
Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris in reading order:
1. Dead Until Dark (1st TB series)
2. Living Dead in Dallas (2nd TB series)
3. Club Dead
4. Dead to the World
5. Dead as a Doornail
6. Definitely Dead
7. All Together Dead
8. From Dead to Worse
Happy reading.
9. Dead and Gone
Well, I have read the books and watched the show, and so far I prefer the Tv show. It has more layers, and more character. The books are a pretty straightforward read, with not alot of time invested in the other characters. Sure there are things missing from the books that arent on the tv but its a different medium entirely, and one that deserves more respect that it gets.
I think some people need to get off their soapbox and stop being so snobbish about television. Some of us are capable of reading a book and watching the television – realising the value of both mediums and enjoying both. Do I want to watch a scene by scene representaion of a book on the small screen? Not really no, and this is not realistic. This is television, most series have several arcs and most writers tend to try and split the stories over 13 or even 24 episodes. I respect people for bringing new ideas for a different medium, because at the end of the day I can always read the books. Let people be creative however they want to be, lots of people enjoy the books and the tv show.
Lastly I do not see the point in promoting books over tv or whatever because there has been significant progress in the quality of television in recent years and HBO are usually responsible for said quality – the Wire, Band of the Brothers, Sopranos, Mad Men off the top of my head. All great television shows. I see little to be gained comparing a great book to a great tv show, they are both great!
I just finished the first book and I completely agree. While there are some books that I prefer over the movies, it doesn’t mean that I can’t enjoy the the film version as well.
And I definitely agree with the layers of characters you mentioned. For instance, I love Tara and Lafayette, but Lafayette barely had a paragraph about him and Tara was nonexistent.