The season six premiere for the vampire drama True Blood drew in a formidable audience, boasting 4.5 million viewers, although these numbers down from the previous season’s premiere of 5.2 million viewers. The season’s first episode was directed by cast member Stephen Moyer, and marks the first episode since creator Alan Ball’s departure as show runner. Although these numbers are down from the previous season’s debut, True Blood did slightly better than the network’s fantasy series Game of Thrones, which premiered with an audience of 4.4 million viewers. Game of Thrones’ audience did grow throughout the season, propelling the show’s third season to become the second highest watched HBO drama season since The Sopranos.
Some say that the decline in True Blood's audience can be attributed to the NBA Finals; the sports event wasn’t an obstacle for the show’s fifth season. There might also have been other factors affecting the show’s success. The most probable would be the significant and widely discussed decline in quality and general dissatisfaction with the series’ fifth season. Whether True Blood will have the stamina that Game of Thrones enjoyed is questionable; if it remains the same show that aired in the aforementioned fourth season, then there will likely be a sustained decline in viewership. With a new show runner, there is hope that the vampire series will make a considerable turnaround and attract a larger audience. Will you be tuning in for more vampire craziness?
