Interview With The Vampire: Season 2 Episode 3 – Review/ Recap

Armand’s past with Lestat is explored as Claudia pays her dues at the Theater of Vampires and Louis makes things bad for himself.

Plot Recap

The Founding of the Theater of Vampires – Lestat, Armand, Daniel, Raglan James

While Louis sleeps, Daniel gets some food, and that is when he runs into Raglan James of the Talamasca, an organization that tracks the supernatural. Currently, Raglan, or RJ, says they are tracking 1600 vampires and note, what Daniel is doing, he likely won’t complete. Four people have tried before him, and to prove his point, he has already hacked into his laptop and provided all the evidence of other people’s failures.

This makes Daniel a bit shaken, how vulnerable he is and being watched, but doesn’t distract him from Armand’s decision to reveal his origin story or his time with Lestat. To make a long story short, in 1556, Armand left a Roman coven to lead one in France, and while Armand is a polyglot, French was his weakest language. Around that time, he was around 239 years old and followed the five great laws of vampires to a T.

Fast forward some years, and so appears Lestat. Magnus abandoned him, or he escaped, and now he performs, using his talents, in front of humans. This breaks the fourth law of revealing a vampire’s true nature to a human and letting them live. So, Armand confronts him, and Lestat being who he is, he blows Armand off.

Time goes on, the coven Armand leads gets curious, if not jealous, so Armand makes a statement by kidnapping Lestat’s human lover, forcing Lestat to come see the coven, and Lestat isn’t impressed. It’s drab and depressing, and Armand has his people living like they are homeless. But that was the plan. Armand wanted Lestat to show the others what was possible, for he too had grown tired of living like a rat, and with Lestat, the Theater of Vampires was born, and even a short-lived romance was developed.

But, for reasons not revealed, Lestat left not too long after exchanging “I love you” with Armand and bestowed more than enough money for the theater and coven to last in perpetuity.

A Place To Call Home – Armand, Santiago, Claudia, Louis

Skipping forward in time, Claudia, who now works at the Theater of Vampires, is tickled about being part of a coven and her sense of belonging. Santiago even takes to her, which is a bonus since she is as charmed by him as the audience often is.

As for Louis? He avoids the coven, knowing his mind’s defenses aren’t strong enough to keep him from revealing what was done to Lestat. This isn’t taken well to, by Santiago or the others, especially since Santiago hasn’t forgotten what led to his maker’s demise by Armand’s hand. So, Louis getting to live his life as he pleases, foregoing the five great laws, capturing the images of humans, and feeding as he wishes becomes a serious issue.

Yet, Armand gives Louis a long rope due to his feelings, and all Louis has to say for himself is that he isn’t a joiner but is finding himself.

Judgement May Not Be Today, But It Is Coming – Armand, Santiago, Claudia, Louis

Unfortunately for Louis, his yawing at one of Santiago’s performances has made him an enemy out of one of the most influential members of the coven, and it appears if Armand doesn’t do something, Santiago and the rest might. So, on the night Claudia is welcomed to the coven and given a role that is of a child, Louis comes to the theater, and many seem to believe this is the day Louis would die.

That ends up not being the case, and we’re left to wonder, when Santiago and the others sense Louis is still around, what will happen? Never mind, as strong as Claudia thinks her mind is, she is dealing with vampires older and stronger than her, so how long will it take before fate delivers judgement?

Cast Guide

Character’s Name	Actor’s Name
Raglan James	Justin Kirk
Lestat	Sam Reid
Armand	Assad Zaman
Daniel	Eric Bogosian
Santiago	Ben Daniels
Louis	Jacob Anderson
Claudia	Delainey Hayles

Raglan James

A representative of the Talamasca, Raglan James, or RJ, has taken an interest in Daniel’s book and his assumption it would ever see the light of day.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.”

Other Noteworthy Information

1. Talamasca: oversees all demons – witches, vampires, unexplained phenomena

Question(s) Left Unanswered

1. When the show begins covering “The Vampire Lestat,” “Queen of the Damned,” and other books, will that mean losing Louis and Armand?

Review

Highlights

Armand’s Backstory Featuring Lestat

The vampire Armand, as shown throughout seasons 1 and 2, strongly influences Louis and how he tells his story. In addition, he is someone centuries older than him and as this episode shows, he didn’t spend it all in waiting. From his time in Rome to leading a French coven, his life with Lestat, and all the questions that can come of his life before a vampire, just getting a tease of what Armand’s life was like pushes the need to question how will it be handled in the future?

Will we see a spin-off, adding to the Immortal Universe, or will everyone Louis was with remain contained under the banner of “Interview With The Vampire,” even as the show moved onto other material?

The Pain You See When Claudia Lets Her Guard Down Or Is Disappointed

From recounting what Bruce did to her to the reveal that, for at least 50 years, she will be forced to play a child, you see Claudia drop her guard for a moment, which is a bit devasting. Pay special attention to when Louis presses her on what Bruce looked like, for in that moment, Hayles allows us to see beyond Claudia’s usual façade and we’re reminded, while the age of a woman, the person in us that wants to feel safe and protected never dies.

The Talamasca

With AMC wanting to present a universe of Anne Rice’s many novels, it is only natural for them to begin prepping for the potential of a crossover, whether it is with one group, the Talamasca, or a person in RJ. As of now, the idea is interesting. I won’t say it is a good idea, because the whole universe trend has ruined more stories than made good ones. However, we want to try to be positive as the show preps to go beyond its source material and transition to the next book.

On The Fence

The Spell Feels Too Easily Broken

While “Interview With The Vampire” is good in retrospect, watching it has increasingly become a bit of a drag. It is hard to say why, though. Is it Daniel’s interviews that take you out of the story? The comparisons in the back of your mind, or what you may remember from the books? Is it knowing what’s coming that makes this seem like the long road to the inevitable, or the high of seeing these characters again wear off?

Could it be because Lestat is just a memory or specter at this point? It’s hard to say, but I find it increasingly difficult to sit through an episode without pausing and distractions as we watch Louis fall for men with control issues and Claudia not knowing she is setting herself up for her own death.

Background Information

Episode Title	No Pain
Release Date	May 26, 2024
Network	AMC
Director(s)	Levan Akin
Writer(s)	Heather Bellson
Previous Episode	Season 2/ Episode 2
Series Page	Interview With The Vampire
Character Guide	Interview With The Vampire Cast & Character Guide