Why Do We Love Bill?

As featured on AllStephenMoyer.com

All the fans who frequent AllStephenMoyer.com are definitely true and loyal Bill Compton fans. We even have a special section on this site devoted to our favorite Vampire Bill.

Recently a member of the AllStephenMoyer forum posed the question: Why do you love Bill?

Here's what she wrote: Hey guys. :) I'm going to be completely upfront here: I'm Team Sookie all the way. That said, I have a question for you guys and I really want to love Mr. Compton. Why do you love Bill? The Rattray incident makes it pretty impossible for me to love him. What's up with that?! Am I missing something? Letting her almost get beaten to death so he could get his blood in her is just... unforgivable to me. On top of that, he lies to her at almost every turn and killed her uncle! What about the Lorena flashback? The hatefuck where he twisted Lorena's head?! I get the southern gentleman thing he's got going on, I do. I just don't understand how his indiscretions are excusable. Don't get me wrong. I'm not on the Eric bandwagon either, or Alcide for that matter. Forced to choose, I'd say Sam is Sookie's best bet. I just want to understand the Bill love.

Here's my answer: My answer to this is not plain, nor is it simple, but the fact that Bill Compton is a vampire who hates his very nature and finds himself in a constant struggle to live with that nature, makes for an irresistible combination. It's that struggle within him that makes him so interesting and unforgettable. He came to Bon Temps on a mission and he was surprised to fall in love with Sookie. I truly believe he loves her, and that everything he has done since he fell in love has been for her. Yes, it's true he 'waited' to save her from the Rattray's but, he wasn't yet in love with her at the time, and he none the less, saved her. Yes, he killed Uncle Bartlett, but it was done for Sookie.

And, the "hatefuck" scene was not a sexual act, in my opinion, but more about Bill's hatred for Lorena and his feeling of utter despair at his situation. Stephen Moyer explained it well at Paley when he was asked about it. He stated that he originally had concerns for that scene and even spoke to Alan Ball about it.  However, he came to realize that it wasn't what it seemed to be, but instead, a means for Bill to express his hatred for his maker. Stephen said, "It's the only thing that he has over her. He can be completely fucked around by her, but he can "fuck her". The frustrating thing about this, and why Bill screams in outrage at the end of the act, is that there is nothing so hateful that Bill could do to Lorena that she wouldn't love and want him to do, and, at that moment, he realized it's futility. Therefore, in my opinion, this act shouldn't be judged on the same basis as sex with any woman or vampire. Below is the video of how Stephen Moyer explains Bill's motive in the twisting head scene:

Bill is the most interesting character because of his struggle, his complexity and because he is a tortured soul who would love to be human and live a normal existence. His dislike of his own vampire nature makes us feel for him, and the fact that he wants to be more like us, forms a bond with those who love him. Right away in the books and in the show I gravitated to Bill, and with the additional charm that Stephen Moyer has brought to the part, (which cannot be denied or ignored), Bill is irresistible. I'm a Bill lover through and through and always will be. 

When this question was posted on the forum, we got a flood of responses from many of our members. Below are some of the best:

I've read all the books and even though Bill basically disappeared from sight after the first few, I fell in love with him then and there. I believed in his love for and devotion to Sookie.That has never wavered. Bill made mistakes ... sins of omission and commission ... both in the books and in True Blood. Stephen's portrayal of Bill solidified my feelings from the books. He's done an amazing job as the brooding, tortured Mr. Compton. The love for any character is a very subjective thing. I guess you either feel it or you don't. I am convinced that Bill loves Sookie. He may not end up with her. They may not get back together again.  But he will die protecting her if need be. The journey continues. I do believe Bill and Sookie have a strong connection. I hope they can work through the problems and come back to each other.  Maybe "yes," maybe "no." From my little corner I will be cheering them on.

I too had some similar feelings,however I do feel, still feel, and have always felt Bill and Sookie truly love each other.Sometimes I have wondered if my feelings for the love Steve and Anna have has influenced my feelings for Bill  and Sookie, but I don't think so.I feel that Sookie loves Bill and she may come to love Eric too, but I don't think she will ever stop loving Bill. This [True Blood] Bill is in no way the book Bill. And that is thanks to Stephen Moyer. This is just my humble opinion. Personally, I prefer Bill. But I like Eric too.

I love Bill because he is incredibly earnest and charming. He's made mistakes, no doubt about it, but his love and devotion to Sookie have never been in question for me. He would do anything to protect her. He didn't know the first night they met that he would fall head over heels for her. I think she came across as an intriguing and quirky young woman, but not the instant love of his life.  He had orders to seek her out and he did. I think what shocked him was that the subject of his work turned out to be someone he truly loved. In his defense, he didn't want to confess all to Sookie for fear that he would lose her. I totally get that. She does tend to fly off the handle all the time, sometimes over nothing. Now if it wasn't the beautiful Mr. Moyer in this role, I MIGHT be more inclined to lay more blame and resentment at Bill's feet.  But, the earnestness, charm and beauty are three reasons for me to defend him to the bitter end.

I love Bill because he just never gives up. He fought his way back to finding his humanity after being violently turned against his will just as he was about to reunite with his family, he fought his way back to love even when he never expected to find it again, and he continues to fight against both his inherent nature and the shackles of vampire society to try and make some sort of life for himself (and for Sookie, and for Jessica). I wasn't a fan of the Rattray reveal and hope there's more to the story, but that was just when Bill and Sookie met.  He didn't know her, he certainly didn't love her. At most he was intrigued by her, and he was sent to do a job - the details of which we still don't know fully (though I'm assuming it falls in the "procuring" realm). Falling in love with Sookie complicated that for him, and it really does add even more meaning to his "miracle" speech at the beginning of season 2. I think in a lot of ways Bill had given up on "life" and love before he met Sookie, and she brought him back to life in many ways. Does all that Bill has done for Sookie since that night with the Rattrays make up for it?  I don't know. He's saved her time and again, many times to his own detriment, and I think that means something.  But who knows what Sookie thinks or will do?  I'm sure she'll be very mad for a long while, as she should be. The only way I could see her turning to Eric after the heinous ish he pulled on her last season - intentionally! - is with the amnesia thing, so that makes some sense.  But IMO any relationship Sookie has in season 4 will be a rebound from Bill, and I'm curious to see how she'll live her life apart from him.

I started reading the books about 8 yrs or so ago. I fell hard for Bill and haven't waivered one iota since.I only continue reading the books for the few tidbits of Bill .I feel he is absolutely the most intriguing and mysterious character in the entire series. That CH doesn't get that is bewildering to me.There is nothing about him I do not want to know, the good, the bad, the bloody, I want it all.  Stephen being cast as Bill was icing on the cake. I love Bill endlessly and unashamedly.

I've chewed on this question more than once. It's great that you can look at the whole Bill conumdrum straight on and not sugar coat it. And yeah, I've still got a whole lotta love for Bill. I'm probably a little different than others though. I do not see loving Bill meaning that Bill and Sookie will end up together - but I digress. Season1 Bill had a multitude of good stuff going for him.  There was the whole sexuality/magnetism thing (thank you Stephen Moyer). I could not. look. away.  In his relationship with sookie, Bill clearly had the advantage, but never abused it. Yes, he killed Sookie's uncle. And every girl who has ever been touched inappropriately cheered. And Bill has lied quite a bit. Ok...I did have some trouble with this. But the thing is, from Bill's standpoint, everything he does in relation to sookie is for her, not to her. But the most important thing about Bill (imo) is that he's a human wannabe.  As a vampire, he's been released from all the problems of human existence. But, instead of finding a way to enjoy it, Bill is trying to find a way back to humanity.  I really love this part of him.  The Lorena head twist sex along with that right jab to the  face really bothered me for awhile.  But we know that  Bill has realized that he doesn't want 'live' that way anymore.  That's what's really beautiful about Bill.  He makes some hellified mistakes. And we're going to watch him pay for them.  But he just keeps trying to be a better being.  He started this journey back to his humanity before he met sookie, and I think that he will continue it, with or without her.

I love Bill because he's the most complicated, interesting, and sexy character on the show. Bill is no saint but he's more than proven himself.

He a true tragic romantic hero...lines like, "I can smell the sunlight on your skin", or "We're all kept alive by magic"...the man/vampire's a poet.   And considering what a sadistic piece of work his maker was...no surprise that he has a vicious side. But whatever the original intent of his coming back to Bon Temps, he fell in love, and everything he did or does is out of love for Sookie...she means that much to him.

I love Bill because he is the most complex and interesting character on the show. And I so enjoy watching Stephen bring him to life.

Hmmm because it's Stephen who plays him??   Well mostly, but I also think he's the ultimate vampire, dark, brooding, beautiful, dangerous but still struggling to be better.

I love Bill because to me he is the romantic hero that I use to love reading about in the fairytale stories I grew up reading. Bill is a tragic character which makes me interested in him because he didn't deserve to be turned in the first place and I see him as this good man who has made terrible choices but tries to redeem himself. Granted that the Rattray incident did get me a little mad at him because it disillusioned my idea that Bill was a perfect vampire that can do no wrong. Although I realized that Bill shouldn't be held in a high standard because of the way Stephen portrays him. Bill is the most human out of all the characters on the show where he makes all these mistakes and still he tries to correct them even though it can lead to problems such as with Jessica where the situation was beyond his control but still he tried to make her as comfortable as he could which in itself was pretty sad. He is just a deeper character to understand and that, to me, is better and I hope that he wins in the end whether it is having Sookie or not I just want Bill to have his happy ending because he deserves it.

I presume that Bill has not been in love with a human before, except of course, when he himself was human.  His relationship with Sookie is his first vampire/human relationship. So, it is as new to him as it is to Sookie. Just something else to the throw in the mix. I love him and will never stop.

Ever since he walked into Merlottes I have loved that vampire. I lost my mom three years ago and my favorite aunt the same year 2008. I went into a deep depression, me and my daughter. I gained weight, I gave up on my art and was a all around gloomy gussette. Stephen changed that for me. Thank-God for him. I lost over 37 pounds, I started writing again, My daughter started to watch and felt better, too. "God and Bill helped me, mom, 'snif snif'."  I was a happy woman.