Interview With The Vampire: Season 2 Episode 4 – Review/ Recap

As Santiago grows jealous and causes discord, Claudia clings to what little she has to avoid throwing herself into the fire.

Plot Recap

Asking The Right Questions To The Wrong People – Daniel, Louis, Armand

With Daniel having information not supplied by Louis or Armand, he finds himself occasionally stumbling onto topics that are touchy – like the Vampire Theater burning down. However, it isn’t just his questions but what seems to be suppressed memories that are getting to him.

He may not be alone, though. Louis too finds himself questioning why pictures not taken by him are part of his archived portfolio, and with Daniel having headaches which force him to question the events of San Francisco, when he met Louis before, he decides to really push for answers, despite how that may make Armand react.

What Am I To You? – Armand, Louis, Santiago, Claudia

In Paris, Louis’ insistence on being a loner only makes things more difficult for Armand, especially as Santiago has begun fracturing the coven. As for where Claudia stands? She sees the dynamics and how Santiago is increasingly taking note of her – maybe as a means to weaken Louis. Yet, she tries to deal with the situation as best as she can, even though playing Baby Lou, which has become an unfortunate hit in Paris, has become worrisome – especially after over 100 performances as this mockery of a character.

But while Claudia is only beginning to be miserable, Armand is in a weird place. He is embarrassingly rejected when he publicly tries to claim Louis to the coven. Then, when alone with Louis, he is told the sweet nothings he wants to hear. Louis even says he loves Armand.

Yet, there seems to be an issue here Armand can’t get past. Maybe it is in Louis finding himself, defining himself, having a second coming of age, while Armand has never gotten that? From what we’re told, from being sold by his parents, working as a sex worker by force, and then being pushed off to run a coven, Armand has long lacked control over his life, who he is, or even his own name. But, with Louis being so free, it seems he may try to turn envy into inspiration – if Louis lets him.

The System Doesn’t Work Unless We’re All Miserable – Claudia, Louis, Armand, Lestat, Santiago, Madeline

Envy may turn into inspiration regarding Armand finding himself when it comes to Louis but for Santiago? His envy of Louis leads him to take to the inspiration that Armand instilled regarding being absolutely brutal regarding his underlings. So, with his followers, he watches Louis and Armand, takes note of the surroundings of Louis’ home with Claudia, and Santiago himself breaks in.

While there, he finds a journal, likely detailing what happened to Lestat, and that might be what will end Claudia’s life. Though, throughout the episode, we saw her already dying by a thousand cuts. After all, as noted, playing a child was a smack to the face, no matter how popular it is. Add in she made a friend in a woman named Madeline, only for Armand to forbid her to see them since Madeline was coming before the theater? The insults continued.

However, perhaps the most hurtful thing Claudia has to deal with is Armand revealing that he knows about Lestat. That creates a sense of betrayal, and Claudia feeling like Louis chose someone over her once again. As for how Louis feels? Honestly, he is just at the point of letting Lestat go and letting Armand in, and seems to not take the coven as seriously as he should and regarding Claudia? He has dealt with her fits before and knows this too shall pass.

Cast Guide

Character’s Name	Actor’s Name
Madeline	Roxane Duran
Daniel	Eric Bogosian
Louis	Jacob Anderson
Armand	Assad Zaman
Santiago	Ben Daniels
Claudia	Delainey Hayles
Lestat	Sam Reid

Madeline

Madeline is a seamstress who, due to having a tryst with a German soldier, a lieutenant at the time, has been marked as a traitor and finds herself constantly harassed due to that romance.

Review & Commentary

Highlights

Claudia’s Need For Her And Louis To Both Be Happy

Many could see Claudia as selfish. Her need to be happy and Louis’s need to be happy exist in that order. But, what we can never forget is that Louis is far more easily content than Claudia. He has experienced a happy home before being turned, owned a business, had prominence, an adulthood, lovers, and what has Claudia have? Louis.

Finding a lover who isn’t looking for a child is a challenge. Family? Beyond Louis, both in this life and her past one, that has been hard and adulthood and all that comes with it? Even when she joined the theatre of vampires, they decided to make her into a child, with the punishment of performing as such for 50 years at the start.

So, can you blame her for wanting herself to be happy first? The stability in her relationship with Louis is solid. He may waver, seemingly wanting to move on from Claudia being his only thing, but all she needs him to do is wait before she can release him and be comfortable with the idea of their separation.

In many ways, it is like Louis is her safety net, and before he stops being the thing to catch her when she falls, she has to learn how to balance who she is with what life has given to her and find an eternal form of happiness. Which, with the ability to live for centuries might seem like a lofty goal, but it seems, despite what she has been through, there remains some form of hope still alive in Claudia, and whether it is innate or based on seeing Louis happy, she wants that for herself.

Armand’s Spell Breaking

While there are signs of sharing dominance and influence in the relationship between Armand and Louis, the question remains: How much power is given to Louis to feel he has a fighting chance? As there is repeatedly a push that not only Louis’s but perhaps Daniel’s memories have been messed with, we’re pushed to know the truth.

Is Louis an unreliable narrator, or has Armand been watching the strings he has pulled become frayed and unable to fix them without being noticed?

On The Fence

The Beginning Of The End For Claudia

Santiago is likely going to bring Claudia to trial and be the one who gets her killed. The only question will be, how devastating will this be and considering Claudia’s death being the height of both the book and movie, how will things proceed from there?

I don’t know if an Armand and Louis relationship can hold down the show. Claudia is such a larger-than-life character, I just don’t think either can fit into her shoes, and even though Lestat is Lestat, and his continued presence has been welcomed, there is a need to question if Louis and Armand should or would step aside so we can see Lestat take center stage.

Background Information

Episode Title	I Want You More Than Anything In The World
Release Date	June 2, 2024
Network	AMC+
Director(s)	Levan Akin
Writer(s)	Coline Abert, A. Zell Williams
Previous Episode	Season 2/ Episode 3
Series Page	Interview With The Vampire
Character Guide	Interview With The Vampire Cast & Character Guide