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Maryann Forrester

Maryann Forrester
Appearances
Season(s)
1, 2, 5
First seen
Last seen
"In the Beginning" (flashback)
Appeared in
16 episodes (see below)
Mentioned in
Biographical Information
Also Known As
  • Kali
  • Gaia
  • Isis
  • Lilith
Status
Age
3,600+
Turning age
{{{Age1}}}
Vampire age
{{{Age2}}}
Date of birth
Unknown
({{{BirthEp}}})
Date turned
{{{Turned}}}
({{{TurnedEp}}})
Date of death
2009
Origin
{{{Place}}}
Profession
  • Social Worker
  • Dionysus Worshiper / Follower
Religion
Greek (Dionysus)
Gender
{{{Gender}}}
Family Information
Supernatural Information
Species
Powers
  • Superhuman Strength
  • Superhuman Speed
  • Poisonous Abilities
  • Controlling Abilities
  • Spreading Lust/Madness
  • Channeling Abilities
  • Immortality
Has shifted into
{{{Shifts}}}
Notable Progeny
{{{Progeny}}}
Notable kills
{{{Kills}}}
Cause of death
{{{Cause of death}}}
Killed by
{{{Killed by}}}
Physical Appearance
Height
{{{Height}}}
Hair color
{{{HairColor}}}
Eye color
{{{EyeColor}}}
Portrayed by
Actor
{{{Actor}}}
Actress

[[:Category:{{{Images}}}|Images]]

"All that fake civilization bullshit just fell away so they could dissolve into the infinite, so they could lose themselves and unite with their God."
―Maryann Forrester[src]

Maryann Forrester was a Maenad on the HBO original series True Blood. Played by American guest starring actress Michelle Forbes, Maryann makes her debut on the episode "I Don't Wanna Know""​ in the series' first season. Donning a bull's head helmet, Maryann was a mysterious and powerful immortal being who worshiped the god Dionysus. Possessing the power to transform into a clawed bull-like monster and manipulate human beings, Maryann was the main antagonist through the series' second season. Playing a recurring role through the series' first and second seasons, Maryann meets an untimely demise on the episode "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'""​, at the end of the series' second season, and was seen once more, in a flashback on the episode "In the Beginning", in the series' fifth season.

Biography[]


Personality[]

Maryann is found to be very sadistic when it comes to the people around her. She showed this many times whenever she committed a heinous murder by cutting out a victim's heart. The creature showed us this once more when she discarded the present Tara's mother sent for her.

At first she is very warm and kind to Tara after she is abandoned by her mother in jail. She invites Tara to her temporary home where she dances continuously and throws frequent parties and smokes what seems to be an unlimited amount of weed which numbs Tara to her true darkness.

Powers and Abilities[]

MaryannGIF

As the only maenad seen thus far in the series, the true scope of Maryann's power was not revealed, though it is suggested that she possessed numerous unique and rare supernatural abilities. Daphne Landry implied that Maryann could do different things to different supernatural creatures; it was stated and shown that supernatural creatures can resist and/or be immune, to her hypnotic abilities.[1] Maryann also was shown to be unafraid of vampires and these creatures often stayed out of her way. Sophie-Anne Leclerq, the Vampire Queen of Louisiana, also stated that "fortunately" Maenads showed little interest in the vampire species and warned Eric Northman to not get involved with Maryann, further implying Maenads were powerful beings, even when compared to vampires.[2][3]

As a maenad, Maryann was effectively immortal. She did not physically age (retaining the appearance of woman eternally in her late thirties to early forties) and was immune to conventional injury (disease, poison, etc.). The only known way to kill a maenad is when she willingly lets down her supernatural defenses; the only known time a maenad does this is when they believe Dionysus has come to "ravish" and "quite literally devour" them.[3]

In addition to being immortal, Maryann was shown to be remarkably durable and resilient to conventional damage. This was shown in an instance where she effortlessly deflected a bullet fired at her with the palm of her hand. Also, when Bill and Cooter were met with Sookie's photokinetic powers later in Season 3, they were knocked several meters back through the air and experienced some degree of pain, whilst Maryann was only moved a step or two back, and she showed delight and had fun because of the experience. Ironically as long-lived as others claim Maryann to be, she didn't know what Sookie's power was exactly, but she did know that this power had something to do with the forces of nature. Regardless, it is unlikely that Sookie's latent fairy powers dealt any lasting damage, as Maryann was shown to enjoy it and even later requested that Sookie jolt her again. She was able to regenerate from damage sustained on her body and appears to be superior to even the likes of a vampire.

Maryann also possessed some degree of superhuman strength and speed, as shown when she lifted Sookie up with one hand a couple of feet of the ground, moving faster than Bill's eyes could follow. Due to being a Maenad, Maryann's most prominent feature is the ability to morph each of her hands into three razor-sharp talons that secrete a powerful toxin known to instantly paralyze humans, while the bacteria slowly poisons and kills the host. Unless the victim receives immediate and expert medical attention, even vampire blood is ineffective in healing those exposed to this toxin.

Maryann also proved to be impossible for vampires to drain, as her blood was made up of a black, corrosive and/or poisonous substance. When Bill bit her he was subsequently poisoned by her blood, which caused him to vomit and gag with pain. This left him in a noticeably weakened state, though he was able to fully recover by simply feeding on Sookie.

BlackBlood

Maryann, recently bitten and undamaged.

As a maenad, Maryann possessed the distinct ability to channel and manipulate human energy within an undefined radius of herself. When manipulating such energy, her body was shown to slightly unhinge physically and vibrate. When in this state of vibration, she usually stayed in one fixed location with her eyes closed. This suggested that this was something of a meditative process for her. Regardless, any human caught within her range of influence as she vibrated often engaged in hedonistic or primitive behavior. When her influence takes over a human completely, their pupils dilate to the point of blackening their eyes out totally, meaning the ego and super ego of their psyche is completely suppressed, leaving the I.D. (or inner desire) to run wild. Those taken over completely are naturally subservient to Maryann's will. Additionally those she takes over are resistant, but not immune, to the effects of glamouring and telepathy. Also, while it was difficult, her influence could be broken; this was demonstrated when Sookie and Bill combined their abilities to break Maryann's hold over Tara. It was then shown that while Tara was now resistant to Maryann's influence herself, Maryann was able to regain her hold on Tara by literally knocking sense into her. Lastly, Maryann demonstrated that she could inflict some kind of psychic pain onto those under her thrall. Her thralls were shown to mentally hear a high-pitched noise that caused them great psychic strain. It was heavily implied that Maryann could use this psychic pain-infliction to kill her thralls.

While supernatural beings were mostly immune to the aforementioned effect of energy channeling skills, it was stated that they are still affected by it, albeit in unique and different ways. Shifters were shown to change shape unwillingly when they were exposed to Maryann's energy manipulating abilities. In Charlaine Harris' books, maenads also have limited control over vampires, bestowing in them the madness infection, whereby they would go into a bestial mindset and become insane. This was widely known to be incurable and the only option would be to stake the vampire afflicted.

MaryannhelmetSeason2

Maryann shifting into Maenad form

Maryann has also demonstrated limited aerokinetic abilities, being able to produce brief gusts of wind while using her powers of persuasion to induce chaotic behavior in others. Maenads are somewhat sensitive to powerful energy sources, as Maryann claims that the ritual energy from Miss Jeanette's spell is what ultimately summoned her to Bon Temps in the first place. Even though she was not present herself at the ritual it seems that she communicated to Tara through some form of telepathy appearing as the younger version of Tara; probably another aspect of her maenadic powers. After Tara stabs the illusion of herself the knife she used filled with blood and formed a connection between the two summoning Maryann into Bon Temps.

Maryann perhaps possessed some form of psychic intuition, as she commonly seemed to be aware of or know things that she had no possible way of knowing. She was able to identify Jason Stackhouse's relationship to Sookie, though never having met him beforehand. She also knew Andy Bellefleur by name, despite never having met him, and even knew Tara's birthday. She also was able to tell almost immediately that Sookie was not completely human upon meeting her, and, though unable to determine Sookie was of fairy origin, she did seem to know that someone or something was watching over her, which would later turn out to be Claudine and the other fae. She also foreshadowed Bill's imminent kidnapping at the hands of Russell Edgington. This was further alluded to as she seemed to possess some means of tracking her prey, as she was able to locate and attack Sookie whilst the latter was 20 miles outside of Bon Temps and in the middle of nowhere.

Maryanninfluence

The Town under Maryann's influence

EggsBlackedEyes

Maryann's influence makes Eggs eyes go black *(click for animation)

Maryann herself stated that she lived off human energy, though she was shown capable of eating as a human would, albeit in unfathomable proportions. In fact, even if it offered her no personal sustenance, she seemed to have a real passion for eating food and ordered plate after plate while she was dining at Merlotte's, filling up the entire table with entrees just for herself. Her love of food was also evident in her home life, as her kitchen was always decorated elegantly with exotic fruits.

Notes[]

  • In the Living Dead in Dallas novel, the character is named Callisto, but it was changed for the series. Unlike her TV series counterpart, Callisto is more like an anti-heroine than a villain. She is a maenad who comes to the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana in search of a tribute from Eric Northman (instead of searching for Sam Merlotte to sacrifice in order to bring her God back). At the beginning of Living Dead in Dallas, Sookie meets Callisto, who is accompanied by a feral razorback pig, in the woods. Callisto wants tribute from Eric and, in order to convey this message, Callisto claws Sookie, which poisons her blood. Callisto even helps Sookie take revenge for her deceased friend Lafayette by killing Mike Spencer and the Hardaways (who are revealed to have killed Lafayette). Unlike Maryann, she doesn't try to harm or kill Sam and it is even implied that Sam and Callisto had a romantic relationship, but she leaves Bon Temps to look for more tribute.
  • Since Maryann Forrester is likely just an alias adapted by her, it is possible her real name is Callisto.
  • Though offering a maenad tribute was not a theme explored in the television series, Maryann remarks in two separate episodes that she does enjoy receiving presents. She also mentions that her car is a "gift."
  • Maryann's car is a 1988 Jaguar XJS Convertible and has appeared in other shows like "The Goldbergs" and "Fresh Off the Boat".
  • Michelle Forbes, the actress who portrays Maryann, did all the feral voices and sounds the maenad makes in her frenzied, ritual state in post-production, herself.
  • Maryann's mythology and persona is very similar on "marebito", an ancient Japanese concept of a divine supernatural being that comes from the other world. These beings visitted villages and towns from beyond the horizon, usually distant lands and mountains ranges and brought gifts of wisdom, spiritual knowledge and happiness with the common folk welcoming them with rituals and festivities. In the myth it is stated that people would also wear masks to represent them and raised pillar-like objects that these beings would land to upon their arrival, pretty much like how Maryann wore a bull-helmet and built a meat tree that represented Dionysus. The word mare means "rare," while -bito (from the word hito) means both "person" and "spirit"; a rare person. It's not a far-fetched scenario that the writers drew inspiration from this archetype given how Maryann was indeed an exceptionally rare supernatural that only a few individuals were aware of and how herself came out of nowhere as a personification of happiness and good times. Maryann also claimed to Nancy LeGuarre aka Miss Jeanette that she is "a vessel to the Other World who will bring forth her God" before having a possessed Eggs taking out her heart, sacrificing her in the process. The choice of the word "other world" may be mere coincidence but could also be a deliberate reference to this concept of the "visitor from the outside" that both Maryann and Dionysus loosely follow as individual entities.
  • Maryann's cult is directly inspired from the real life worship of the Greek god of wine and revelry Dionysus. The god is considered by many of alien descent and his origins are often ascribed to Thrace, Phrygia, Syria and even Persia. A lot of Maryann's decorations and artifacts originate from countries outside of Greece and paint a whole new picture to her origins and age as Dionysus' pagan-like cults and mysteries seem to have also existed outside the usual Greco-Roman religious and philosophical spheres which makes him a foreign god. Most accounts say he was born in Thrace, traveled abroad, and arrived in Greece as a foreigner. This attribute as an arriving outsider-god may be inherent and essential to his cults as he is sometimes called "the god who comes" which is a recurring motif in the second season and a reflection of Maryann's character and how she appeared in Bon Temps out of nowhere. Some of Bon Temp's inhabitants even attribute the mess Maryann caused to be of her alien nature, calling her a fugitive alien that erased people's memories which funnily alludes to the same concepts of Dionysus being "alien" and a "marebito" mentioned above.
  • When Sookie reads Maryann's thoughts what she listens other than the usual "Lo lo Bacchus" is also “Hekas, o hekas, este bebeloi!” which is a phrase originating from the Eleusinian mysteries; a set of secret religious rites of considerable antiquity in ancient Greece. The phrase translates to "Away, o away be the profane ones" and it was the opening line before beginning the ceremony of initiating an aspirant into the mysteries of Bacchus and was uttered by a priestess who had received all the levels of initiation by which had the ability to look into the soul of those who were enlightened. Given Maryann's abilities of channeling energy, feeding off human emotions, intuition and foreseeing future events it'd be safe to assume that she was a mystagogue herself in those rituals. At the episode commentary for Timebomb, in the scene where Maryann closely watches and makes Tara and Eggs beat each other, director John Dahl comments, "there she is, the grand priestess" which somewhat cements the notion above and gives a small picture as to how the writers envisioned the character and her background.
  • Her age is kept somewhat mysterious in the series but there are a lot of subtle references that hint at it. Sophie-Ann says to Bill that all of maenads are old ones; relics that may even predate ancient Greece and all try to summon Dionysus for centuries. Daphne also implies that Maryann predates civilization itself and she was always here as long as there was Earth to walk on even though the last statement may be an exaggeration stemming from her blind devotion. The worship of Dionysus became firmly established by the 7th century BC but he was worshiped as early as c. 1500–1100 BC by Mycenaean civilization. Traces of Dionysian-type cults have also been found in ancient Minoan Crete which dates back to 3100 BC. When Sam visits Maryann's house and notices the Bird-Lady statue, her servant states that it is of Mycenaean origin. So, based on the various hints, her connection to Greece and the paganistic style of her rituals it's safe to assume that she is older than 3600 years old give or take, however the fact that Greek theology goes back that far in time likely means that even she doesn't know her true age if she is that ancient at all.
  • The maenad's character and identity is possibly loosely based on Sylvia Plath's 1963 poem Maenad. The poem explores the earmark of adolesence and the poet's fear of aging and becoming a suburban wife through the perspective of a mythic maenad who rejects the relentless cage of culture and embraces her wild self. This translates well in Maryann's personal rant about the constricting boundaries of modern culture as response to Tara's embarrassment of letting go. The season heavily hints and references the poem quite a few times in scenes where Maryann appears or is mentioned. From eating various berries and literally having black blood to being an ordinary human who becomes a supernatural creature; as referenced by Queen Sophie-Ann in her words about the theory of the species' evolution and how maenads possibly came to be.
  • There is a recurring theme of birds before the introduction of Maryann's character and throughout the whole of second season which possibly refers at Maryann's nature and her different aspects of power and progression as a supernatural being. A lot of these themes are referencing Aristophane's comedy "Birds" and come into full play in Beyond Here Lies Nothing where Maryann has turned Sookie's house into a literal bird nest with her possessed familiars all croaking and screeching at Sookie. Maryann was also shown to use a lot of bird-like powers from inducing bird cacophonies to her victims' heads to wielding bird talons herself when she transformed into maenadic form. The Bird-Lady statue which is meant to represent both her modern and primitive aspects can also be read as a clue to her bird-like abilities. Before its introduction in the second season the statue and Maryann's timeless character was foreshadowed through Amy Burley, a similar vibrant persona who uttered mantras of wisdom. In her V trip with Jason and before her untimely demise, Amy raises her hands in a striking fashion and fading into the sky while she died from strangling. Maryann intentionally raised her hands exactly in the same pose when enacting her rituals and represented this connection to birds in a kinda revealing way when she started fluttering her hands in her climax with young Sam, raising her hands in the exact manner. At one point Maryann also summons Karl by shouting "Ka-Ka-Ka-Karl" sounding literally like a bird mate-calling which Tara states to be "so fucking weird". Chickens, ostritches and other flightless birds have appeared as references that support this hypothesis. Maryann herself has claimed that she is "a lot of things" and she has alluded to one's progression towards immortality through Karl's character both before and after he dies. The notion that a supernatural being could acquire multiple abilities in their lifetime is not a farfetched scenario in the universe of True Blood and the possibility that Maryann was a were-bird that lost her flight capabilities after acquiring maenadic abilities could be the case. This paints a whole new picture to her character with Sophie-Ann's statement to Eric that the folklore she gave Bill about maenads could be either "gospel or gorilla shit" finding ground in this scenario.
  • On the Character Perspectives of the BlueRay release, Karl claims that the origin of Maryann's sacrificial dagger dates back to the Byzantine era, specifically around the time of Theodosius' dynasty who banned the pagan rituals of Ancient Greece. The dagger then got traded between various secret groups who practiced ritual sacrifices and at some point in history ended at the hands of Maryann, probably as a gift like many of her possessions. Karl also suggests that the dagger's longevity is attributed to tremendous power and it is said it can cut the veil between worlds. This is a direct reference to Maryann claiming early in the second season that "The Greeks knew there is the flimsiest veil between us and the divine" and possibly alludes to sacrificing an ideal vessel with that dagger would bring forth Dionysus, thus the supernatural and real world become one the same. The allusion to an other world existing in parallel was also mentioned when Maryann had Eggs kill Miss Jeanette and claimed to her that she is "a vessel to the other world".
  • As stated above, the concept of the other world is subtly hinted across the second season never to be explored again as a concept. Maryann states to Sookie that a young Sam was drawn to the very statue that represents the birth of her God. Maryann builds a tree-like totem as an offering to Dionysus before her last ritual ceremony. Her gift had a striking resemblance to the bird-lady statue, albeit bigger, having an ostrich egg placed in a womb at its center. It was not quite clear but Maryann believed that by sacrificing a proper vessel while her familiars are present, Dionysus would literally be given birth from the womb of the tree coming from another realm into the real world. The actual concept of the otherworld is found in many cultures, specifically Indo-European religions where Maryann seems to be taking elements from. In many of these, there are supernatural realms or realms of the dead where spirits are thought to travel between layers of existence along an axis such a giant tree, a river or a mountain, much like how Maryann believe Dionysus would come into being.
  • The meat totem-like offering Maryann built for Dionysus ended up being named "DeMeatTree" as a joke by the production. The name sounds the same with "Dimitris" which originates from Ancient Greece. Ironically, the name literally means "Mother Earth" fitting the element and earthly concepts of Maryann.
  • Daphne claims that people called Maryann different names like Kali, Isis, Lilith or Gaea. That's not an overstatement; Karl's character reveals that Maryann has travelled the whole world and has mastered the culinary arts; as a result it's possible that a lot of people like Karl have met Maryann and were fascinated or even worshipped her as a goddess.
  • Maryann is the second main antagonist to initially appears as a protagonist and friend to one of the protagonists.
  • Maryann was a minor antagonist in "I Don't Wanna Know""​, a supporting protagonist in "To Love Is to Bury" and a supporting protagonist in "You'll Be the Death of Me""​. She was the main antagonist of Season 2.
  • Maryann is one of two main antagonists to appear in every single episode of their season as big bad.
  • It is unknown if there is any connection between Maryann, who has been known previously as Lilith, and the real Lilith, the first vampire and the main antagonist of the fifth season.
  • In the first episode of Season 2, Maryann explains to Tara and Eggs a painting that depicts the god Pan mating with a human mistress. This is likely a reference to Arthur Machen's horror novella The Great God Pan, where the outwardly beautiful and charming villainess Helen Vaughan is revealed to be a Humanoid Abomination, namely a daughter of the god Pan and a human woman. It is safe to say that the character of Maryann Forrester takes a good deal of inspiration from Helen Vaughan.

Gallery[]

Images[]

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Appearances[]

Season one appearances
"Strange Love" "The First Taste" "Mine" "Escape from Dragon House"
"Sparks Fly Out" "Cold Ground" "Burning House of Love" "Fourth Man in the Fire"
"Plaisir D'Amour" "I Don't Wanna Know" "To Love Is to Bury" "You'll Be the Death of Me"
Season two appearances
"Nothing but the Blood" "Keep This Party Going" "Scratches" "Shake and Fingerpop"
"Never Let Me Go" "Hard-Hearted Hannah" "Release Me" "Timebomb"
"I Will Rise Up" "New World in My View" "Frenzy" "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'"
Season five appearances
"Turn! Turn! Turn!" "Authority Always Wins" "Whatever I Am, You Made Me" "We’ll Meet Again"
"Let's Boot and Rally" "Hopeless" "In the Beginning" "Somebody That I Used to Know"
"Everybody Wants to Rule the World" "Gone, Gone, Gone" "Sunset" "Save Yourself"
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