I see it being advertised a lot and talked about how cool the CDC science is that it's almost like CSI. People are going to be pissed in like 4 episodes when all that is over.
The Strain
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Lanx
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alot of cheese to wade through, like others have said, stupid gang banger w/ truck is barely tolerable.
stupid frenchy face slap cdc
stupid main character and family.
stupid muggers and van helsing?
if i didn't know this was produced by fx, i wouldn't have watched it, otherwise it's really a shitty nbc drama, someone even saw GOT and said, "need watermelon smash!"
stupid frenchy face slap cdc
stupid main character and family.
stupid muggers and van helsing?
if i didn't know this was produced by fx, i wouldn't have watched it, otherwise it's really a shitty nbc drama, someone even saw GOT and said, "need watermelon smash!"
Void
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You can't blame the show for all of those things, since almost all of them were pretty much exactly like that in the book. The gangbanger was for sure in there, even if I don't remember him as being quite as stupid. The guy with the little girl was for sure, although I don't remember the slap. The muggers, definitely. And most importantly the ENTIRE book was filled with his family drama.
So blame del Toro and whomever his co-writer was, because it was just a terrible book. I know I said I'd stop bashing it, but when the complaints about the show are all directly pulled from the book, which apparently an assload of nerds loved, you can't really blame the showrunners. I'm just glad that the shitty stuff from the book is being shown in even a moderately interesting fashion. If they can pull this show up to even somewhat decent level, it will be a miracle.
Also, I'd be really surprised if the "watermelon smash" as you put it wasn't done months before GoT aired that episode. I could be wrong, but given how long ago they probably made the pilot I don't see them going back to stick that in just for a GoT boost.
OU Ariakas
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Currently watching: The Bridge, The Leftovers, Graceland (wife loves it), Royal Pains, Six Feet Under (for the first time)
I read the book and heard good reviews about this show. I watched it with my wife and found it to be more cheesy than all of the other shows I currently watch save Royal Pains. I agree with Lanx that it really does feel like a NBC/FOX drama where they are required to tell you the emotions they are feeling or make sure you know their spoken motivations. Watching this show makes me appreciate how much I enjoy shows that really try to build their characters/stories through events and use dialogue as support.
Edit: Just read Vvoid's post and agree with what he said. Honestly, I thought the neck twist/watermelon smash was the best part of the episode because it showed his hatred of humans through actions rather than words.
I read the book and heard good reviews about this show. I watched it with my wife and found it to be more cheesy than all of the other shows I currently watch save Royal Pains. I agree with Lanx that it really does feel like a NBC/FOX drama where they are required to tell you the emotions they are feeling or make sure you know their spoken motivations. Watching this show makes me appreciate how much I enjoy shows that really try to build their characters/stories through events and use dialogue as support.
Edit: Just read Vvoid's post and agree with what he said. Honestly, I thought the neck twist/watermelon smash was the best part of the episode because it showed his hatred of humans through actions rather than words.
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I have a female roommate that watched the entire True Blood marathon leading up to this new season. Combine that with the other shows I'm watching being pretty lackluster (Tyrant is ok so far, Leftovers is intriguing but pretty boring) and I really didn't think this was too bad. I loved the main dude's role in S1 of House of Cards. Maybe it's wishful thinking to hope his acting ability will shine through at some point.
I read a little bit about the book on it's wiki page. So we have a very medical/biological take on the vampire lore this time, but they can't cross water unless a human takes them? How the fuck is that explained?
Gravel
Mr. Poopybutthole
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Didn't really know much going into this except Guillermo del Toro. There were way too many terrible scenes, which seems to be the big complaint here. I hate these shows that use family drama for tension. I think that's one of the main reasons I gave up on The Walking Dead a while ago.
I'm intrigued enough to watch a few more, but I'm not afraid to quit a shitty show that everyone else says is "amazing."
I'm intrigued enough to watch a few more, but I'm not afraid to quit a shitty show that everyone else says is "amazing."
TJT
Mr. Poopybutthole
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Pretty sure you're thinking about this a little too hard. I thought it had to do with it being fucked up looking and carrying a 500lb coffin full of worms. Moreso than the lawyer looking one. So it made more sense to have someone expendable drive it over the bridge rather than risk it being found.
Fight
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Hollywood Prospectus Podcast- ESPN: The Strain review
Intelligent discussion on a pretty dumb (but entertaining) show.
Intelligent discussion on a pretty dumb (but entertaining) show.
Attog
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Never heard of or read the book, knew nothing about the show but watched it last night. I have no idea where this is going or how the CDC and at the minimum a wizened 83 year old man are going to cope with what just got unleashed on NYC. Giant superspeed/super strength ancient vampire, rich powerful corporate illuminati some of which are undead(?) and the plague worms that are themselves infectious and also animate their dead hosts and cause them to be infectious(?)
Any one of these three would probably be game over but we got all three stacked together and going up against Samwise and pals.
Any one of these three would probably be game over but we got all three stacked together and going up against Samwise and pals.
Lanx
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i never heard about the book, pilot, just saw it was a new FX show. i guess amongst all the true blood/twilight sparkling vampires (note i haven't watched these girl vampire movies/shows either), GDT put out a vampire book (i guess as a way to get it made into a tv series which eventually worked) that was back to the gritty vampires will fuck up your shit, and not the emo loverboys of the movies.
Mahes
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I DVRed the show and just now watched it. As some have noted, there were indeed some over the top drama scenes. I fast forwarded through the family custody scene as that was way longer than it needed to be. The slap in the face had me wondering why the security guards stood there and let it happen. I could understand a father being upset at the loss of his daughter with no answers. I could even understand that the father would snap at some point and thus slap the scientist. I did not understand why security just stood there. I do enjoy the holocaust angle of the show. It is an interesting twist on history if indeed it goes down the path I think it will. The old man in the basement scene was just as good as the melon smash. I thought perhaps the super vamp did that to remain in control of the spread but I suppose anger verse the human race could have been just as possible. The one part where I laughed out loud was the scene where the two main scientist find the worm. Having worked around worm based parasites like round worms, I can tell you I would not think it was awesome to see a worm with that kind of aggression. I would have had a team coming in combing through every inch of that airplane looking for more of them and disposing of them as needed. Might have even considered just incinerating the plane as a precaution to the unknown. The show clearly has a limit to how dark they want to go, as they chose not to show the daughter drain her own father.
I like the show as it is using a parasite to explain vampirism. Given the abilities that this head vampire has, I am curious as to how they stop the out break.
I like the show as it is using a parasite to explain vampirism. Given the abilities that this head vampire has, I am curious as to how they stop the out break.
Szeth
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Disclaimer: did not read the books. I saw the girl not draining him as being a precursor to sentient zombies. Her eyes flickered the same way the crime family guys eyes did when he was talking to the gangbanger, and he is in total control of himself. Maybe she is too, and doesn't immediately suck down his platelets.
Hogan and Del Toro wrote the books in mind for TV/film , think I read so where they were hoping to make it into a movie trilogy but a good TV deal ended up working. I'm just hoping the show is better than the books but it's still early.
Yeah I watched it with the kids because they like Walking Dead. They are slightly amused by it but I will watch it with them until they aren't interested or it gets cancelled. Whichever comes first.
Gravel
Mr. Poopybutthole
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My only hope is that the radio thing Fight posted above is correct. Sounded like they'd seen the first 4 episodes and it was pretty intriguing; enough so that they'd definitely be watching the entire first season. They both seemed to shit on the first episode pretty hard.
OU Ariakas
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I just don't know if I can watch it. I went into the first book with the intent to read the entire series and stopped after the first one because I found the world he was building to be uninteresting. I watched the first episode of the show intending to make it a weekly watch but the more I see of it and the more I remember about the book, the less I want to watch it. I was hoping this was going to be an adaptation that went a very different direction than the book.