‘True Blood’ recap: Sookie gets new power; Bill sees a fiery future

It’s a family reunion for Sookie (Anna Paquin) and Jason (Ryan Kwanten) Stackhouse in “True Blood” Episode 62 (“The Sun”) when they discover a mysterious stranger, Niall (Rutger Hauer), is their faerie grandfather. And not just any faerie — he’s king of the fey, making Sookie a princess. As for earnest but dim Jason? Well, the faerie genes skipped a generation.

We learn that Warlow, perhaps the world’s oldest vampire, massacred Niall’s village long before murdering Sookie and Jason’s parents. Niall then tracked Warlow over the centuries, “like an intergalactic bounty hunter,” as Jason puts it.

Now Warlow has escaped a dark realm and entered sunny Bon Temps through an invisible portal in Sookie’s bathroom — depressing real estate values, no doubt. Sookie has a secret weapon in her faerie arsenal, however: She can channel light into a single ball of vampire-killing energy.

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But there’s a catch: Because Sookie is a “halfling” — a human/faerie hybrid — she can use this special power only once. “After that, you’ll be fey no more,” Grandpa cautions.

Speaking of halflings, Sookie encounters one named Ben (Rob Kazinsky) who fell victim to a vampire. After treating his wounds, Sookie walks Ben toward a safe haven. When he asks her for a date, Sookie declines. “I shouldn’t be taking walks with handsome strangers,” she says. “It never ends well.”

Meanwhile, at the Fangtasia vamp bar, Tara (Rutina Wesley) screams in pain after being shot by government forces. Vampire Eric (Alexander Skarsgård) digs out the bullet, which is made of silver and emits UV light. It’s a new kind of ammo invented to slay vampires.

This revelation freaks out Pam (Kristin Bauer van Straten), but Eric maintains a steely resolve. “If the humans want war, we’ll give them war,” he vows.

To that end, Eric poses as a nerdy staffer with Wildlife and Fisheries and tries to “glamor” Louisiana Gov. Truman Burrell (Arliss Howard) into halting his vampire vendetta. But hypnosis fails because the governor now wears anti-glamoring contact lenses. Who knew?

Eric has more luck with the governor’s lovely daughter, Willa (Amelia Rose-Blaire), who removed her protective contacts before bedtime. She sees Eric hovering outside her window and invites him in. Not a good idea, Willa.

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At Merlotte’s Bar and Grill, out-of-town customer Nicole (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) seeks out restaurateur Sam (Sam Trammell). “I know what you are,” she says. “You’re a shifter, right?”

Nicole, the granddaughter of civil rights pioneers, is on a mission to ease the violence between humans and supernaturals. Sam can help, she believes, by exposing his true self and inspiring others to do the same. But Sam wants to maintain a low profile.

“People are dying out there,” Nicole pleads. “You can’t just sit this one out.”

Along with his other responsibilities, Sam cares for Emma (Chloe Noelle), the werewolf daughter of his deceased girlfriend. But the pack wants Emma back, demands werewolf leader Alcide (Joe Manganiello), who pummels Sam and takes the child.

Elsewhere in Bon Temps, Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) — now a vampire god of sorts — has terrifying visions of his subjects being tortured. “I can feel all of them,” Bill laments to his progeny Jessica (Deborah Ann Woll). Slipping into a trance, he communicates with Lilith (Jessica Clark), the mother of all vamps.

“Events have been set in motion,” Lilith tells Bill, and he must finish the work she started. “You will know what to do,” she assures him. “Trust what you see.”

What Bill sees is a horrific future in which Eric, Jessica, Pam, Tara and other vampires are imprisoned in a room filling with deadly sunlight. “They’re all going to burn,” he reveals, as the vamps suddenly burst into flames!

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