Greetings, fangbangers. As per usual, Sally, Thomas, and I weigh in on Sunday’s episode below the cut, where there are spoilers, recriminations, and much discussion of eye candy.
And now for the weather. Tiffany?
TRIGGER WARNING: This recap includes discussion of rape and violence against women.
Sookie and Bill are back together. Again. Sookie calls Bill out on his creepy, spying ways, and Bill is mostly able to convince her that he’s on the up-and-up. In the meantime, he is surprised to find himself bathed in sunlight at Claudine’s, where Claudine accuses Bill of drinking all of Sookie’s blood, and Bill is able to convince Claudine to tell him what kind of supe Sookie is. Cliffhanger!
SALLY: I was disappointed that their break-up lasted less than a day and just the next day her only “you’re a creepy creeper” moment lasts just a few minutes. Why couldn’t they have at least held out more than an episode? They would’ve had that complicated sex scene and then after an episode or two, she could think deeply about everything and then reconcile.
But the cliffhanger! That was way cooler! I’m still a bit confused at how Bill ended up in dreamland, but if Claudine told him about Sookie, then that’s a nice little turn of events there.
THOMAS: Sookie said what I most wanted her to say: that to protect her, Bill has to treat her as an adult and tell her what’s going on, instead of hiding things from her and treating her like a child. I agree that they have resolved the issue way too quickly. However, I don’t believe Bill for a second, and lying to her right after she gives the big speech about being honest and telling her what’s going on should be fatal to their relationship. I suspect it won’t be, in part because the show wants to keep Paquin and Moyer together due to their offscreen relationship, but for the show it should be.
LAUREN: I actually just died of boredom.
As Russell Edgington rallies against assimilation, saying that humans and vampires are no equals, Nan Flanagan and The Authority give Eric permission to have his revenge against Russell, as long as he dispatches his plans quickly, quietly, and under the human radar, lest this ruin their chances at achieving the Vampire Rights Amendment. Russell has no plans of giving up his crusade to turn a world of humans into an all-you-can-eat vamp buffet, or of keeping his plans private. Eric, meanwhile, has to figure out how to best a vampire who has 2,000 years of strength and experience over his own.
LAUREN: Also, the Authority’s police force looks like a bad Robocop remake. The Robocop costumes are all I can remember of this episode after seeing Russell conduct a national newscast with an anchorman’s spine in his hand, declaring himself “the true face of vampires!”
SALLY: Those Robocops were awesome. I kept hoping they’d do more fancy, robotic moves, or perhaps break into a choreographed dance number or something.
THOMAS: Given my character preferences, this was a nearly perfect episode for me. The only thing was, as the end neared, I was thinking that there were not any surprises. Then Russell pulled a guy’s spine out on live TV. I was surprised.
Russell is courtly and loathsome. I think the show has been playing with imagery of the antebellum South and the horrors of slavery to set up a subtle message that Russell is worse that we could possibly imagine in all the ways that we should loathe the antebellum South. You’ve discussed that before, and I didn’t much like it; I thought those were fucked up images to let pass without commentary. But they finally sprung it, and whatever one thinks about how it was handled, it wasn’t an accident. Russell addressing the camera was mean to be indistinguishable from a slaveholding, plantation-owning advocate of succession. The parallel is really muddled and perhaps ill-considered, but it’s not accidental.
LAUREN: That is a wonderful observation, Thomas. It’s one of those nasty parts of American history that gets glossed over and cleaned up because it’s more fun to imagine the wealth and grandeur and manners of the Old South than it is to face the brutality, torture, and vast power differentials that propped up the facade. Russell is a charming character in that he is wealthy, mannered, educated, and worldly, just like we imagine the upper crust of the antebellum period. But when the way they gained their wealth was exploiting the bodies of a class of people — as Russell desires to do — and denying them their humanity by advocating their inability to live according to the standards of the ruling class, it ain’t so effing romantic. I agree it’s an awkward metaphor, but it is a good move in my opinion to reveal the mannered gentleman as a monster. The catch is that Russell’s screed against humanity will strike a positive nerve with many folks in the audience who have knee-jerk reactions against yuppie cultural markers.
THOMAS: I do have a plot question, though. Eric implied last season that Godric was the most powerful vampire in the Americas, and I understood Godric to be about 2000 years old and a human contemporary of Jesus Christ. Russell is over a thousand years older. Eric didn’t say Godric was the oldest, and perhaps he meant that Godric was more powerful or more respected. Or perhaps Russell was in Europe at the time, though it seems this season that Russell has been King of Mississippi for a long time. The two are not necessarily inconsistent, but they appear to be inconsistent. Is it a continuity error?
LAUREN: Eric said something in this episode that kind of cleared that up, in that he said he thought Russell had met “the true death” some years ago. Thus since Eric didn’t know about Russell, we didn’t know about Russell, and so forth.
Now, we can’t go on without discussing Russell carrying around — and talking to! — his beloved’s guts in a crystal urn. IT LOOKED LIKE AMBROSIA SALAD. I’ve been mooney-eyed about this character all season, and truly, Russell Edgington is the best villain committed to the small screen I’ve seen in a long time.
THOMAS: Say what you want about Russell, but he loved Talbot. Say what you want about Eric, but after staking Talbot, when he was questioned, he owned it.
SALLY: Russell is magical, he’s simply too hilarious for words. I loved how he turned the urn when showing Dead BF the Robocops, because, OF COURSE, that’s where his face was! DUH! As for his actual speech and world domination plans, that had to be one of the best True Blood moments ever. Especially when he licked the blood.
But poor Eric has quite the task, doesn’t he? I hope it all works out okay and there’s no need for too much more ambrosia salad. The nice moment between Eric and Pam had me a bit worried that she might die before the season ends, but that’s mostly paranoia given what this show has put me through.
THOMAS: Russell made a huge tactical mistake. Eric got what he wanted, a free pass to kill Russell. But as Eric understood, he was at a huge disadvantage. When Russell scuttled the VRA on purpose, he badly misplayed his hand. Instead of a one-on-one with a weaker, isolated Eric with the Authority holding the ring, now he’s made enemies of everyone who is anyone and Eric probably gets support from the Authority, of from powerful members thereof. Also, this all saves Sophie Ann’s ass, though how is not clear. I suspect she actually survives.
LAUREN: To be determined, definitely. There primary thing about this storyline that I have enjoyed this season is that We The Audience have had to commit to the exploration of what the world would really look like if vampires lived among us, and it’s not all blood, guts, and sexy time. This exploration of power dynamics in vampire world, and how the vampires’ institutional powers are as clumsy and corrupt as ours can be, has been contrasted by various human reactions to vampires, from intrigue to cultural tourism to bigotry to fundamentalism.
It’s interesting to me to see how the show tries to pull together all these elements with some success and some failure. Ultimately I think the show’s legacy is dependent on the show carrying on a larger theme and storyline that will carry though the life of the show — one that has NOTHING TO DO WITH SOOKIE AND BILL’S ROMANCE — and whether the show will start to dig into these cultural hot spots that it is so fond of. If they can’t figure out how to tell a story without peeping into Paquin and Moyer’s bedroom, and without committing to this social justice story that it keeps hinting at, this is just another throwaway popcorn show.
Tara is learning how to deal with the trauma of Franklin’s violence against her, and begins attending a recovery group for women who have experienced sexual violence. Tara struggles with learning how to trust people again, and is conflicted about her relationships with Lafayette, Sookie, Jason, and others. We also learn that Holly, the new waitress at Merlotte’s, is part of this recovery group.
THOMAS: Three cheers for Tara, and three cheers for the writers for dealing with Tara’s experiences as rape. She was kidnapped and raped by a sociopath. She knows she can’t just open up to those closest to her, but for all her dismissal, she figured out that working through it will people she doesn’t have so much history with is exactly what she needs to do, and she is doing it. When Franklin came back, she almost died but she never cowered. She found something in herself, and it won’t leave her. When I saw that it was Jason who saved her, though, I knew exactly what was in that shotgun, and I thought, “noooooooooooooo!” Tara’s crush on Jason is going to come rushing back, and there’s nothing they will do with that that I am remotely interested in. Worst development in the season, from my perspective.
SALLY: I was already worried about that when she saw him talking to Crystal and got a “hey, I used to love him” look in her eye. Do not want.
LAUREN: It’s interesting to me that we had two mentions of rape in this episode, one where the show is brave enough to label Tara’s rape and kidnapping as such, but then punctuates this with Crystal false accusations of rape and kidnapping against Jason.
THOMAS: I understand Crystal’s conflict; all her options have fallout in multiple directions and it’s neither easy to forsee it nor to live with it. She’s not on a path at all, she’s just dodging trees at very high speed. This can’t end well, we just don’t know how bad yet.
SALLY: I also noticed this and was impressed that they called attention to Tara’s rape multiple times. It was more than I expected of them. Her encounter with Franklin was a really strong moment for Tara, and seeing her stand up to somebody again after what she’s been through this season was the highlight of the episode.
LAUREN: I’m conflicted with how Franklin was handled. He was a fun character, briefly, because of the good work of the actor and some silly writing, but the silliness relied on us not taking the rape and kidnapping of Tara seriously. I kept waiting for some wacky one-liner to bubble up on Sunday, but it didn’t. Which was good. But still.
SALLY: I’m happy that Holly is helping everyone, but something about her seems off. Now, that could be because almost every nice person in this show turns out to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but I just thought I’d throw that out there.
THOMAS: Sally, I am so with you on that. What is it about Holly? I feel like her severe features are supposed to be a tipoff about her, and like Merlotte’s can’t just hire a waitress who is normal. I feel, as a viewer, like I’m being set up.
We are reintroduced to sex-crazed, dishonest Tommy, who is back to backtalking Sam and stealing from Arlene at the bar after briefly being kind and vulnerable. He continues to stick up for Jessica, whose relationship with Hoyt is still stricken and unresolved. Meanwhile Sam has a violent and uncontrolled outburst at the bar that puts Crystal’s father in the hospital.
THOMAS: When Sam beat up Crystal’s father, I cheered. The scene somewhat paralleled the one in Fight Club where Tyler beats Jared Leto’s character’s face into pulp, and the whole crowd thought it was overboard, except for Tommy. Except for Tommy, and me. Call me a big meanie, I think that if an abusive father comes to collect his daughter by force and make her go through with an arranged marriage, he deserves to get beat into a coma. They had threatened Sam in his own place before.
SALLY: These storylines are boring me. Aside from the cute moment between Hoyt and Jessica, I found myself not caring what happens to these people. I think these plot points are taking too long to connect with each other or were boring for one too many episodes.
THOMAS: I love Sam, but he mishandled Tommy’s loud party. He came off as a scolding parent when he could have just said, “Tommy, it’s great to see you having a good time, but I rent to the folks next door and if you have the music up and make a racket while their kids are trying to sleep you’re making a problem for me. Have fun, but keep it down.” Tommy’s capable of reacting to anything like an asshole, of course, but that provides him a lot less fuel. However, and maybe because I like Sam and I sympathize with Tommy, I am in no way bored.
SALLY: I can certainly agree about Sam, especially since he was already coming off as old party-pooper before. Even worse, though, was him letting himself get worked up because of what Tommy said to him. I guess it’s good for him to finally let his aggression out, but he really should have thought all of that out.
LAUREN: I’ve got to see this act as something else, but what I don’t know. Is Sam mourning the second loss of his parents? Does he miss Tara? Is he just pissed about Tommy and these abusive dickheads telling him what to do in his own bar? I don’t know, because the character isn’t getting fleshed out. He’s just out there floundering while season guest stars happen to him over and over.
Lafayette and Jesus continue to be adorable. Do we want them to have narrative drama, or are we content with them indefinitely being adorable?
SALLY: I’m sure at some point I’ll want more, but I’m really enjoying the lack of drama at the moment. I think the chaos and bad news all over the place is becoming too much. For example, the very small but sweet moment when Tara told Lafayette she was happy for him put a huge smile on my face.
THOMAS: Alfre Woodard is a master of her craft. Watching her work is just a joy. Ruby Jean is so layered and so interesting, and it provides a great look at what is below the surface of Lafayette.
LAUREN: She really is. I think it’s a dangerous spot to be in, playing Crazy Black Lady on a show with so much racefail, but Woodard is able to build a full character with so little. It is truly a joy to have her on the show. If she isn’t able to take on more presence they are wasting her talent.
It seems Nan Flanagan’s preferred snack is also attractive young women. Just female bodies for display, or part of he vampire world?
THOMAS: The woman-on-woman sex and biting seems cheap. If they want to show Pam getting down with a woman I’ll watch as much as they’ll show me. But it seems like there isn’t a powerful woman vampire on the show who doesn’t log airtime with her fangs in a skinny, conventionally attractive naked woman. Obviously the show is less shy than any since maybe Oz about man-on-man sex, so it seems more balanced than it otherwise might, and the show revolves around providing fantasy fuel in various combinations. Perhaps the writers are making an argument for inherent vampire bisexuality, but Sophie Ann and Pam appear to have favored females as partners mostly or exclusively for a long time; and Bill female partners, which would be counterexamples. Do vamps have a sexual orientation? If so, why are all the women queer but only a few of the men?
LAUREN: Yeah, I’m a little confused by the sexual dynamics of vampires. To date, bisexuality has been used as a way to denote sexual sophistication. “Bisexuality” doesn’t even seem like the right term. Perhaps “pansexual”. Ha, or “Dionysian.”
There are only three episodes left in the season, and a lot of storylines to resolve. Predictions?
SALLY: Well, I’m assuming Sam and Tommy are going to need to fight Crystal’s family. Jessica and Hoyt will need to get back together before the season ends, or at least kiss again or something.
LAUREN: Either Sam and Tommy are going to fight Crystal’s family, or Sam and Tommy are going to be key to fighting the werewolves. Alcide can’t be gone yet either. Eric and Pam will be amazing, but I fear Pam will get staked before the season ends. Russell can’t, or shouldn’t, just be a monster of the season since this is a story that could easily go on for several.
THOMAS: It looks like Hoyt and Summer are about done, which is about right. She’s annoying enough to make a play for Jason next, which would be like a Gojira versus Mothra of annoying. Hoyt and Jessica belong together. Jessica was made so young that she hadn’t really learned to be a person, and now she hasn’t really learned to be a vampire, so it’s a steep curve for her. But she and Hoyt have been through a lot and they both have had to relearn much of their lives from scratch recently, and I think they’re good for each other. I wonder if, a few years down the road, Jessica turns Hoyt and they ride off into the moonlight together. He’d make a dapper vamp.
I’m inclined to believe that the writers know what they’re doing 95% of time. So, I was sure the plantation imagery was absolutely not a mistake and truly intended. As Thomas saw it pay off, so did I. It’s a reflection of Russel’s ideology.
I love the way they handled Tara. I continue to love her & Rutina more each episode.
I’m very shocked at the way they’re handling the Hot Shot story line. It’s absolutely different from the books. Calvin Norris is sort of a noble protector and Crystal’s not running away b/c of abuse. I’m wondering where it’s going. Being so different from the books is what keeps it interesting for me.
There sure WAS a lot naked breasts this epi. I saw the naked, conventionally beautiful lady in Nan’s car as a reflection of the kinda vamp she is. Socially powerful, politically powerful, & on TV. It’s not clear if she prefers women or is pansexual/Dionysian. Sophie Anne & Pam however DO prefer women as Talbot & Russel prefer men
About the homosexual sex scenes missing from Lala’s & Jesus’ relationship:
I wonder if the writers are concerned about having too much of one thing to close to another. What I mean is, in the books Sookie fights & kills Lorena, but they changed that in show…I think the reason for that is they had the fight with Debbie at the end and didn’t want two female (sookie involved) fights in the same episode. So I’m wondering if the holding back on the Lala & Jesus love scene is b/c they want distance from the ugliness of the Eric & Talbot scene?
You could ask, “well then why two sookie + bill sex scenes back to back?” Cause both served a thematic purposes necessary to the story?
…..Yeah, I’m not sure how much I buy that either. Just a hypothesis…but I do find the lack of a Lala+Jesus sex scene suspicious. If it doesn’t show up soon, I will ask Nelsan Ellis when I see him at Dragon*Con
Well, I’ll say this. Before TB, the answer to “Nelsan Ellis” was “who?” That will never be the answer again. He may get typecast as Lafayette, or he may have a varied career as a character actor, but he will never again be a nobody.
I don’t remember that episode of Mr. Show.
I’m surprised no one mentioned the conversation between Holly and Arlene. The way they discussed abortion on this show was refreshing, no judgement, no speeches about it being right or wrong, just one women mentioning the possibility of abortion and the other rejecting it because of her personal conviction. In fact no mention of god. I’m tired of all television shows that attempt to discuss abortion discussing the morality of it so thank you True Blood for not doing that.
Person, I also enjoyed the judgement-free discussion regarding abortion, too. I also suspect that when Holly asked the question “Do you want the baby,” and Arlene replied she that didn’t, Holly asked because she might know of other ways for the Arlene to end the pregnancy. I wouldn’t be surprised if Arlene had some sort of accident in an upcoming episode, and I will hate to see how that impacts Terry.
Does anyone know what “Don’t let him take your light” means? As Bill could be in the sunlight unharmed after draining most of Sookie’s blood, I suspect that taht has something to do with it. Also, if that change could be permanent for vampires, it could be an interesting plot device, especially with Russell’s desire to subjugate humans. Right now, the only things people have going for them are 1. vamps not being able to go in the sunlight and 2. vamps needing invites to get into human homes. If being in the sunlight could be a permanent change and Russell (or any sunlight-missing vampire) finds out about Sookie, she could be in more danger than I thought. (And I was glad to see that the writers went ahead and made it clear that Eric is still protecting Sookie, at least from Russell).
I loved the last scene and agree that it was a “huge tactical error” on Russell’s part (although I wish I, too, could use human spines to make more convincing arguments. Especially during my diss defense. But oh well). I suspect Eric will get all the backup he wants now.
And finally, if Claudine was looking out for Sookie all this time, it’d've been nice if Claudine had given her a head’s up as to who she is and what she can do. I enjoyed watching Claudine almost effortlessly fend Bill off in a big ball of (unfortunately unburning) light. It’d be nice if Sookie could do the same for herself.
I have to say, the more I watch, the more I wish it were possible for Sookie to be killed off. The character is much more likeable in the books, but the show writers seemed determined to make her character into the helpless female. Granted, she had some win last episode, but in the book, she has much less help for that fight.
Here, what really cheesed me in retrospect is the idea that Claudine revealed Sookie’s nature to Bill. I hope that ends up being false. In the books. Sookie learns it on her own and its her secret to tell.
Russel was the star this episode. I like your interpretation of his ideological connection with Antebellum South.
I was thinking today about TB’s take on queerness. It is refreshing to see so much gay/lesbian vampires. Why is it a problem that there is more gay than straight? If they were all straight most people wouldn’t even notice, as that’s “default” of our society. It is possible, statistically, that a given group happens to have more gay persons than straight, so why even comment?
What is problematic to me is how still stereotypically they show gays. Have you noticed we see no gay werewolves? no, they are macho, they can’t be gay! But the clean, sophisticated, well dressed and rich vampires just happen to be pansexual?
But I like they show not just fun-sex (Pam or the VRA lady) but also long term, committed gay relations, and romantic, charming and sweet gay scenes. It is truly refreshing.
I was very positively surprised with their take on rape and abortion. Mature, with respect and seriousness.
I don’t think there is room for Tara and Jason. I think Jason will feel guilty enough of Tara’s gratitude, that he will tell her about Eggs. It looks like Jason is killing off Tara’s lovers – wanted or turned evil.
Being able to go in the light! That must be what Sophie-Ann wants with Sookie. I would guess that she is going to get a hold of Hadley’s son and drain him so that she can go in the sun. Russel already knows about Sookie. He saw the light-fingers, that must be why he was so happy. If Sophie-Ann did send Bill after Sookie, she must not have given him a lot of intel, because he was surprised that he could be in the sun.
If Sophie-Ann really is working with Russel…I bet she still has something up her sleeve to put herself on top in the end.
I think Russell’s “miscalculation” was a really powerful way of demonstrating the way in which white supremacists think. Every white supremacist I’ve ever met has really and truly believed that most white people think just like they do but are simply afraid to say it. Russell thinks he’s starting the race war: instead, he has isolated himself.
I saw Nan Flanagan as being positioned as funhouse mirror Pam.
I have been waiting for a convo like this. I so agree with most of the things that were brought up! Lauren- Dionysian–> Love it! I have been intrigued myself with the bisexuality of vampires and have concluded that they dont have a true orientation as though in a sense sexual orientation wouldn’t apply to them as they supersede all animals anyway. The notion of sex for the vampire is just pleasure since there is no reproduction to induce. But then vampires aren’t really alive might give them this pass to have no true orientation- Dionysian! That discussion could go on all day! However, I have thought as to why most vampires choose women is maybe their blood is a lot stronger- I mean we do reproduce and estrogen might make a stronger ingredient! I’ve also noticed that most of the eldest vampires make up Dionysian- not really have to much care, evoking the notion of what it is to be mortal and immortal… It seems you have to be old to contemplate that notion as to where the younger vampires just live in the moment- until they are thrown into the ring to make a vampire- the convo of Eric and Pam. Bill and Lorena, in this sense, seemed to had a mid-life crisis!
I too was ecstatic that the Franklin and Tara situation was established as rape! The depth that the show took the situation before this episode seemed as if they were going to leave it as another “Fucked up Tara” situation which eventually would have had me pissed because it seems that the show was allowing all her situations become the resignating stance she made in the beginning of the series- “Cause all yaw see is a black girl…” For me, her character was being ignored as do the struggle of the black women in the south as always. What is even more disturbing is that I had never thought about that impact until now! What satisfy the entirety of Tara is that she didn’t allow the Franklin shit tear her down again as all the stuff she has been in before. She accepted the shoulder from Sam, she was apologetic and congratulated Lafayette on his relationship even though in that same moment we saw that she was pissed that she “misses” that feeling of being happy with someone else and that she will seem to never have a good long term relationship!
In that same breath- what is up with the Holly helfa? yea i called her a helfa cause she looks ominous and i don’t like her! My friend made the recollection that she was the waitress at the diner where Bill and Sookie had pie in the first season- that she might be some kin to Rene- but after thinking about that and if its true- she could have gotten raped by Rene??? idk- someone help with this!
As a German viewer of TB I was enjoying your discussions for one month now because apart from showing great insight into the series you also made connections I was unable to make due to my different cultural background.
To me the whole abortion discussion was nothing special because in Germany it is not a controversial issue. There was a heated debate in the 1970s but now the right of women to interrupt a pregnancy is generally accepted. Before an abortion women have to go to an abortion counselling where they get information about alternatives and possible physical and mental consequences are explained. The two great churches, the Catholic and the Protestant, often participate in this system. Your discussion gave me an better understanding of the points AB was trying to raise. The same applies to the Laf/Jesus relationship.
As future political scientist I really enjoy the way in which TB deals with vampire politics. I often read comments where people claim that RE is not such a bad guy because his intentions (stoping humanity who destroys the earth) are pure and valid. I am pacified that at least you were able to see his “real” character. I missed the Old-South ideology parallels and saw him mirroring the ideas of National Socialism or Fascism. But I guess all three have in common that people who belong to another group due to their gender, colour, religion.. were devalued and exploited with the “excuse” of a greater good.
My opinion of Bill gets worse every episode. I hate his blame shifting strategy. He never takes responsbility, it is alway the fault of Lorena, Russel Edgington, Sophie-Anne or Sookie. Examples:
- he blames Lorena for his lost humanity. But when she releases him thus has no more power over him he joins Diane, Liam and Malcom and later works as pimp, sorry procurer, for the queen instead of redeeming himself.
- He kills Uncle B. because he loves Sookie so much, he has to create Jessica as punishment for protecting Sookie from Longshadow but honestly: Why did he not simply restrain Longshadow? Was Uncle Bartlett still a danger and is self justice the right behavior for a mainstreaming vampire?
His perception of women is also rather disturbing to me. He often interrupts Sookie when she says something, he shows violence against woman and loses control really fast (his reactions to Jessica visiting her parents/making out with Hoyth, violent sex with Lorena as a mean to express hate, torturing the woman in the Chicago flashback), he neglects Jessica, he is patronising towards Sookie, he is unable to feel empathy for the captured Tara, he perceives women with revealing clothes as slatterns, he believes that protecting a woman justifies telling her lies. All these single incidents paint a real dark picture of Bill Compton.
Interesting comments. Honestly, I didn’t think of Russel’s speech as being akin to a White supremacist. I agree the imagery of his mansion and his style of dress, certainly the scenes of Tara fleeing, do allude to slavery. But in the show, vampires are the ‘outgroup’. Vampires are the ones fighting for equal rights and seeking to be incorporated into mainstream society. So I see Russel’s violent outburst/mentality to be more akin to militant leaders within a disenfranchised/oppressed groups.