Our Interview with the Vampire Season 2 recaps continue with episode 6, “Like the Light By Which God Made the World Before He Made Light.” Catch up on our previous recaps for the first five episodes right here. Beware: spoilers below!
Eating dinner with the vampires’ human servant Rashid (Bally Gill), interviewer Daniel (Eric Bogosian) wants to know how he got the tapes, since there was no postage. Rashid refuses to answer and leaves for the bathroom. Raglan James (Justin Kirk) from the vampire-watching Talamasca organization pops up.
Raglan says the Talamasca will help Daniel get his book published – they think the revelations about vampires would be better coming from Daniel Molloy’s book than governments issuing statements. They have questions they want Daniel to ask, but Raglan thinks he should ignore these – he thinks Daniel is doing a masterful job. He makes a reference to “if I were in your body, I’d be running the Talamasca by now.” Daniel’s body would hardly help – it’s Daniel’s thought process that Raglan needs – but it’s a hint of things down the road.
Rashid returns and says it’s time to go. Raglan says Daniel would like to stay alive. Offering a rare opinion, Rashid says that Daniel should have thrown away the tapes (from the Talamasca).
In the present, Daniel looks at one of vampire writer Sam’s (Christopher Geary) plays for the Théâtre des Vampires. Louis (Jacob Anderson) and Armand (Assad Zaman) argue over what Armand originally thought of the play, a meditation on what it means to be a vampire.
In flashback, we see that vampire actor Santiago (Ben Daniels) sends fellow actors Celeste (Suzanne Andrade) and Estelle (Esme Appleton) to the human lawyer (Ed Birch) for Lestat (Sam Reid). They ascertain that Lestat hasn’t communicated with the lawyer since 1914.
In the present, Armand berates himself for his foolishness in concentrating on the play and not seeing the plotting around him. Daniel doesn’t buy it – Armand can read minds. Armand protests that he was in love. Louis says that Armand was loving “in those days.“
Armand asks Rashid if anyone spoke with Daniel during their dinner. Rashid lies and says no. Given that we’ve just been reminded that Armand can read Rashid’s mind, this seems very odd.
Daniel reads what appears to be Claudia’s (Delainey Hayles) last diary entry: “Diaries are friends of last resort. I have found one not made of paper and glue. Fuck these vampires.“
In flashback, Claudia’s human friend, dressmaker Madeleine (Roxane Duran), is attacked and sexually assaulted by a young human gang. Claudia arrives and kills all the gang members. From seeing Claudia feed, Madeleine deduces Claudia is a vampire. She is shocked, but not horrified.
Louis comes to Armand’s office, excited after buying a painting he knows he can resell for a large amount of money. He dreams of investing, getting rich, and wants Armand to strip, right now, so they can have sex.
Madeleine wants Claudia to drink from her. Claudia refuses, and while Madeleine persists, Louis enters, furious. Claudia was supposed to run Madeleine out of town. Claudia says she likes Madeleine. Louis asks if it’s romantic. Madeleine says, “Not yet.“ Claudia says she wants to pick one thing for herself, and it’s “a weird white lady I met by happenstance.”
Claudia knows from previous failed attempts in New Orleans that she is too small to make a vampire, and she doesn’t want Lestat’s blood for her companion.
When Louis and Claudia ask Armand to turn Madeleine, he’s livid. Louis asks Armand what their existence would be like if Louis didn’t have “the burden of her.“
Armand goes to see Madeleine. She says she wants to be with Claudia. Armand warns Madeleine that she’ll be a monster. Madeleine says she already is.
Alone with Louis, Claudia asks if he meant it when he called her a burden. Louis replies that he said it to get Armand out the door, and does it matter? But Armand refuses to turn Madeleine.
In the present, Louis and Armand explain that Armand has never made a vampire. Armand says the idea repulses him. Louis and Armand quarrel over whether Armand ever told Louis about this (Armand says he did, Louis says he didn’t).
In flashback, director Armand and actor Santiago clash over Sam’s play. Playwright Sam defends the idea that the character of Guido never appears (it’s like Waiting for Godot in that way). Guido represents hope, and there can be no hope.
Louis continues arguing with Armand about Madeleine – Armand responds that vampires will always despise those who made them (Armand despises his maker, Claudia despises hers). Louis says he’ll turn Madeleine.
In the present, Louis recalls that Madeleine welcomed his fangs. Claudia, present for the occasion, guided Madeleine, promising nothing would go wrong. Claudia drank with reverence, Louis drank with obligation. Louis saw Madeleine’s life, including horrors of war, but also saw Claudia as Madeleine perceived her. He knew that Madeleine would be a better companion to Claudia than he had.
In flashback, Louis tells Armand that Madeleine survived the turning, and that she and Claudia are headed out of town. He can feel Madeleine, and doesn’t even care that he’s losing Claudia. Armand says they’ll find their way back to each other.
Armand has news of his own. He has broken with the coven. Armand says they gave him a choice, and he chose Louis.
In the present, Louis doubts that Armand was being truthful at the time. Armand counters that Louis remembers attempting suicide in San Francisco and is angry with Armand for previously wiping his memory of the event. Armand insists that Louis asked for the memory wipe. Neither Louis nor Daniel believes this.
Armand insists that he failed Louis once, and removed those pages from Claudia’s diary to protect himself from Daniel. Armand didn’t want Daniel to know his shame. Armand has spent the rest of his life trying to make up for it, but Louis “forgave me for it.“ Daniel counters that he hasn’t forgiven Armand.
Armand says that drugs did more damage to Daniel’s mind than Armand’s mind-wipe. Daniel has a mind as sharp as any human alive. Armand says he wants it on the record that he was a coward.
In a flashback, Louis and Armand are at a restaurant with Claudia and Madeleine outside of Paris. Everyone seems very happy. Armand says it’s bliss not to be dealing with theatre gossip and crises. Madeleine can tell that Louis loves Claudia and that he loves Armand. Louis protests at her saying this. Armand gets up and goes outside. Madeleine asks why Louis doesn’t want Armand to know how much Louis loves him, and Louis says that’s personal.
Then Louis senses something is wrong. He, Claudia, and Madeleine are kidnapped by the coven. Armand stands by. The coven gave Armand a choice—he chose. At the Théâtre des Vampires, there is a one-night-only performance of Trial. Santiago announces to the audience that tonight, the vampires (whom the audience believes to be regular humans playing vampires) will turn the spotlight on themselves.
The curtain rises on the battered Louis, Madeleine, and Claudia, all tied to chairs. And in the dressing room, preparing for his entrance on stage is Lestat.
Even viewers completely unfamiliar with Anne Rice’s novels know from Season 1 that Lestat would come back at some point. In a horror story, if you don’t destroy the body, you’re pretty much asking for a return – which, of course, Louis was, although subconsciously.
The episode again answers a few questions while bringing up a lot more. How has Louis and Armand’s romance survived the obvious crisis at the theatre, only to be apparently falling apart now? What is Armand’s hangup about making other vampires? And why did Armand wipe Louis and Daniel’s memories? Like Daniel, we don’t buy Armand’s explanation.
Meanwhile, it’s nice to see a bit of friendly egalitarianism between Louis and Claudia, however briefly, and to get to know Madeleine (also briefly). It seems like Santiago and the coven could have simply let Armand go, but since Santiago seems particularly spiteful, perhaps that’s all the reason we need. Even though they say it’s the quiet ones you need to watch out for, spiteful vampires seem plenty dangerous.
Watch new episodes of the Interview with the Vampire TV series every Sunday on AMC & AMC+. For more, catch up on our Interview with the Vampire episode recaps. We’re getting more of The Talamasca, building to AMC’s recently announced full-blown expansion of their Anne Rice Immortal Universe with The Talamasca series.
