i got that gravedigger confidence

apéritif

ref: zendaya on vogue brasil

Things they kept ambiguous that they shouldn't have (and only clarified in interviews):

Lestat's role in the trial. Interviews later established that Lestat participated willingly in the trial, but the show never really grapples with that. Dramatically, that's incredibly underwhelming. If he knowingly took part, that isn't just another one of his many failures; it fundamentally changes how the audience should view his guilt and responsibility. The show needed to address that head-on and give him a much bigger reckoning than it ultimately did.

Armand erasing Louis' memories. Interviews also clarified that Armand only erased Louis' memories once, and that Louis explicitly asked him to do it. None of that is properly addressed in the show. Instead, the series leaves viewers wondering how often it happened and under what circumstances, which drastically alters how people interpret their relationship.

Things that didn't need clarification but got one anyway:

Armand replacing the Stein with Louis' photographs. We already knew Armand was manipulating and gaslighting Louis about something significant. We didn't need confirmation that he was also lying about relatively trivial things. Leaving the Stein ambiguous worked because it created suspicion and tension around Armand without definitively assigning blame. Once it's confirmed, it doesn't deepen his characterization; it just makes him look worse over something that wasn't the point.

Claudia lying about Lestat threatening her on the train. I understand that this was probably meant to show Claudia could be calculating and manipulative, but I don't think it actually adds much. Whether Lestat explicitly threatened her or not doesn't change the fact that she felt unsafe around him, nor does it change that he forced her to come back for Louis' sake. We already knew Claudia was capable of manipulation. She literally orchestrated Lestat's murder. Revealing that she embellished this particular event doesn't meaningfully change our understanding of her character or the broader story.

louis + grounding armand when he starts to spiral

spied a potential tank top under that shirt and alas, i am but a weak mortal...................

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My 11-month male cat lets my foster kittens nurse on him.

portrait of amadeo, by armand