Interview with the Vampire is a rare show driven not by narrative or characters but by interpersonal relationships.
There are romantic ones like Luomand or Loustat, platonic ones like Louis (Jacob Anderson) and Claudia (Delainey Hayles), or professional ones like Louis and his business associates in New Orleans or the Theatre de Vampires.
The best advantage is that it is very easy to hide the true story behind some of these relationships. Every relationship has an element of secrecy because of individual desires and self-preservation.
The obvious problem is that some relationships can’t withstand much of anything.
In Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Episode 4, “I Want You More Than Anything in the World,” cracks that we suspected existed in all the relationships begin to show in one swift fashion, which is bound to change the rest of the story.
Despite the episode’s exhilarating beginning as Claudia puts on her show for the city, things go south quickly when it gets old.
The episode spotlights relationships, and it is only befitting that we examine them from that angle.
Louis and Armand
It is the core relationship in the show this season, and the episode develops it, finally delivering all the missing pieces.
The dynamics become evident in Paris when Armand (Assad Zaman) bares himself out to Louis, almost to a fault. He’s become so engrossed with Louis that he’s forgotten he’s a leader of a very volatile species.
Armand unknowingly allows Louis free range, but that comes with a cost.
Vampire covens are highly hierarchical, and breaking threatens the whole group. Playing favorites is looked down upon, especially when you’re the leader.
Yet Armand can’t help himself when attracted to someone like Louis. He knows he can’t control Louis, and any attempt to do so might alienate him.
Now, that is something he wouldn’t want. When he tells Louis, ‘I want you more than anything in the world,’ it is true and not a ploy to give us a dramatic episode title.
In Dubai, they have been a model couple.
Listening, responding, anticipating, gazing, touching, caressing — all the things couples do. It is easy to take that for love, and one would love to believe it is; otherwise, they’re very good actors.
Yet, even the acting has cracks.
When Molloy (Eric Bogosian) asks them about Claudia’s play, they give wildly different answers, which is a point of contention for them. Even more, Armand seems to have the upper hand. He is wildly powerful, and it seems like he hasn’t revealed the extent of his powers.
The perfect couple gets into a huge argument when Armand seems to toy with Louis’ mind, which begs the question: why?
While Louis has the upper hand in Paris, Armand runs the show in Dubai. What happened? We can’t answer that yet, but know nothing is the same.
Louis and Claudia
This is the relationship that saved Louis — well, saved him for the thousandth time.
Every time he faces a new crisis, he latches on to a new relationship and abandons old ones. Claudia has always felt it, which informs her desire to seek a bigger community or more relationships.
In their sister and brother act, Louis had taken it literally and forgot he’s this child’s father, and he needs to take care of her.
He becomes so engulfed in playing with Armand that he forgets she’s hurting.
Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Episode 3 was Sam Reid‘s time to shine, but this is Hayles’. She captures the innocence and frustrations of a woman in a child’s body who needs an adult to navigate the world.
Louis made a promise in Episode 1 but failed to keep it by taking another lover, more or less Lestat.
Will Madeleine (Roxane Duran), who’s hurting as much as Claudia is, be her savior? Is it the beginning of a trauma-bonded relationship?
Armand and the Coven
If you’d asked Armand his feelings about the coven, he would tell you it’s a drag.
If he had been in a better place when he was turned, he would have refused the responsibility. It drains his soul and kills his already dead cold heart.
As we said before, he’s trying to escape it by attaching himself to Louis, the free spirit he wishes he were.
The coven also senses that, so Santiago begins challenging Armand and his lover.
Will it resolve well, or is a bloodbath inevitable?
Louis and Lestat
At some point, ghosts must go.
Lestat is one crazy sonofa, and he will be missed, but it is time for him to go.
That unique disposition and the gleeful ‘ha!’ he utters when offended will be missed.
A lot of what happens on that bench is some of the Interview with the Vampire‘s best work. It is a great moment to say goodbye to the past and welcome the present and the future.
Louis decides to let his past go and focus on living in the moment. That includes taking on responsibilities, paying attention to his man, and trying to avoid the world by any means necessary.
Might he regret immersing himself back into the chaos?
The Journalist and His ‘Interview with the Vampire’
At this point, the interview has gone off the rails.
Daniel usually had control of the situation, corralling the vampires whenever they went off-script and keeping it professional.
But his mind is failing him, and he’s about to expose himself.
They’ve overpowered him as they stare emotionlessly at him, and Armand does something.
Armand is not to be trusted. He has corrupted (or preserved) Daniel’s mind and memories, but the reason for this is unclear.
This relationship between the interviewer and his subject has also begun to show cracks.
Why is he here? Why him? Is he in full control? What happened in the past between him and these vampires?
As we arrive at mid-season, the narrative accelerates as they reveal a lot at once. The purpose is to dive into the season’s conflict in the second half and do that without wasting time.
There are a lot of questions now, some of which might not get answered this season, but we’re sat.
Interview with the Vampire Season 2 Episode 5 is titled “Don’t Be Afraid, Just Start the Tape.” What’s in the tape?
The episode airs next week on AMC.