This is a Cinemax television adaptation of the Robert Kirkman comic about demonic possession. The first episode aired last night and was directed by Adam Wingard, best known for such movies as You’re Next and The Guest. And he does a bang up job, as you might expect. Unfortunately I think his involvement was a one-off for the pilot (at least as far as I can tell), a bit like how Martin Scorsese directed the pilots of Boardwalk Empire and Vinyl but not the rest of the season. Otherwise, seems like a pretty faithful adaptation of a comic that really impressed me for the handful of issues I’ve gotten around to reading, with a whole bunch of questions raised that I’m looking forward to having answered.
PS: If kids being hurt bothers you, the pilot is going to be a really bad time for you. Especially the pre-credits scene. That was hard for -me- to watch, and I’m pretty thick skinned about that sort of thing -and- knew what was coming from the comic.
I tried watching the premiere on youtube, but it was depressing or gritty or, I dunno, it didn’t grab me. I may have reached my fill of gritty, blood-spattered dramas.
I said I would bump this when the new forums launched because there were a few of us making a go of watching this. To summarize the lost conversation: it’s a slow burn, competing with Preacher, and we shall see…
Oh, the main character is not a very good decision maker, for sure. Though I can’t necessarily blame him. I mean, demons have been possessing his loved ones and abusing him, getting him ostracised by most of the community, etc. That kinda fucks you up.
Finally caught up. I can understand being frustrated by the pacing but personally I’m fascinated by all the threads being woven together here, especially since so many of them have really horrifying implications. @tomchick, I don’t know if you’re watching this but I think it might be up your alley, considering the subject matter and style. Worth watching the pilot for Wingard’s direction, at the very least.
I’m afraid I lost interest partway through the first episode. I think a lot of it is that I feel that Walking Dead guy – his name escapes me – is a terrible writer. I also didn’t really care to watch Patrick Fugit brood intently because the script called for him to be Tortured McBroody Brooding Guy Who’s Brooding Darkly. Maybe that eases up or eventually earns its place, but good lord, was it heavy-handed to me.
Hey, for a really wacky take on possession, have you guys seen Ava’s Possessions? I don’t think it’s very good, but I love the angle it takes and I’ve been a big fan of the lead actor, Louisa Krause, for some time now.
I finished the first season yesterday afternoon. I wound up liking it. You get the first set of answers to what’s going on but it mostly just leaves you with more questions. It really was a slow burn.
Spoilers to follow, of course (not using the tags).
Reverend Anderson’s arc was really interesting to me. Pride goeth before the fall. I think the only issue here was that it seemed like Kyle had convinced the Anderson at one point that it wasn’t clear to what extent God (or the devil) was involved. Certainly he got Anderson to believe that the exorcisms weren’t working by themselves. And yet he just starts doubling down on everything. I though it was clear that Kyle wasn’t all the way on board, at least not with the religious angle. So trying to play that up seemed foolish. Data certainly played him like a fiddle, in the end.
I thought Kate Lynn Shield was good in her limited appearances as Kyle’s wife. Wrenn Schmidt was really good as Kyle’s sister and oh my that cliff hanger. Liked Reg E Cathy a lot as the sherriff.
Anyone know what’s going on with season 2? It looks like it was released internationally (on Fox?) but I can’t find anything about the second season coming to Cinemax.
The whole season is out at this point (though I haven’t seen it yet). It hadn’t even occurred to me that it wasn’t airing on Cinemax. WTF. I thought it was a Cinemax production!
FYI, season 2 starts up again on Cinemax this Friday, July 20. Rewatching the first season during the current marathon and the show holds up remarkably well.
I liked the premise of this when I heard about it (I like demonic possession stories), but never watched it. I thought about it a couple months ago and looked it up saw S2 was scheduled for July, and decided to hold off on subscribing to cinemax until then. Thanks for the reminder!
