Watchmen (HBO) Season One (2 Viewers)

[Adam Lenhardt]

Genuinely haunted by this week’s Jeremy Irons interlude.

What was interesting to me was that the cloned manservants and maids evidently aren't a Veidt creation, but part of the design of his palatial prison. So apparently plucking fetuses out of lobster cages, drowning the ones that don't meet expectations, and then cooking the good ones in an easy bake oven is part of the design of this place.

As opposed to the tomato trees, which evidently are a Veidt creation.

Was the transition from the circle of sky through Veidt's spyglass to the moon over Tulsa just a stylized transition, or was it implying that Veidt's prison is on the moon?

This is one strange ass show. But so well acted and visual. As someone who barely remembers the graphic novel (though it's on my shelf), I feel somewhat left behind where we're watching them collect pieces that will make better sense when it's all together, but right now it's just vignettes.

Much like the original comic, I'm guessing that pieces will click into place along the way but it won't all become clear until the end. I'm happy that Lindelof has said that this is a nine-episode close-ended story.

Lady Trieu feels more like a Lindelof creation than an Alan Moore creation. The name is interesting, because there is a Lady Triệu in Vietnamese folk history from the third century who Wikipedia quotes as having said "I'd like to ride storms, kill sharks in the open sea, drive out the aggressors, reconquer the country, undo the ties of serfdom, and never bend my back to be the concubine of whatever man." Based on her treatment of Agent Petey, she seems to hold true to the last tenet. Does she accept Vietnam's place as a state within the American union? Or does she view the United States as an aggressor who has entrapped her country in the ties of serfdom? If the latter, is she trying to reconquer her country by driving out the United States through some conspiracy from within?

I found the holographic tree, as a means of connecting the descendants of victims of racial violence to the past that was stolen from them, oddly moving. The general consensus seems to be the overlong Redford administration is just a different flavor of dystopia from the overlong Nixon administration. But that particular facet seems like a wonderful thing.

Other questions:

• What was in the IV that Lady Trieu's daughter was connected to while she slept? Are her nightmares really just Lady Trieu's memories? I thought at first that Bian was Trieu's clone rather than her daughter. But the actress playing Bian appears to be biracial, while Hong Chau is definitely not.
  
• What are the pills that Will Reeves left in Angela's glove box? Are they what made him strong enough to hang Judd from that treat? Are they the reason he's still going strong at 105?
• The lubricated man is definitely Agent Petey, right?

 

[Walter Kittel]

"Was the transition from the circle of sky through Veidt's spyglass to the moon over Tulsa just a stylized transition, or was it implying that Veidt's prison is on the moon?"

I was kind of going back and forth on the question of whether or not this is stylized or literal, but I'm leaning in the direction of Veidt being imprisoned on the moon. Initially, I went with the Mars interpretation due to the Doctor Manhattan connection, but the pullback to Tulsa seems to contradict that interpretation.

I was kind of taking a wait and see approach to the series when it first began, but I find myself enjoying the series more than just about anything I'm watching (although I reserve the right to alter that sentiment as I delve into His Dark Materials.) Can't get enough of the soundtrack for this series (both original music and selections for the episodes.)

- Walter.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

Not getting into His Dark Materials, as much. Never read the YA books, and though it looks fabulous, it's still basically a kid's adventure story that just doesn't intrigue me.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Not getting into His Dark Materials, as much. Never read the YA books, and though it looks fabulous, it's still basically a kid's adventure story that just doesn't intrigue me.

Probably better suited for another thread, but briefly...

I'm always a sucker for "world building" aspects of fictional series / films. I'm fine with the YA aspect of the series, and thought the performances of all of the child actors in episode one were quite natural. I haven't read the books, so I am looking forward to where this all goes. I enjoyed episode one quite a bit, which is why I mentioned it in my previous post.

- Walter.

 

[Sam Favate]

Caught up with episode 4. This show is killing it. (I note that I still remain skeptical because Lindelof has a tendency to not end well.)

 

[TravisR]

(I note that I still remain skeptical because Lindelof has a tendency to not end well.)

Tell that to The Leftovers.

 

[Sam Favate]

Tell that to The Leftovers.

I confess I haven't watched that show, despite hearing good things about it. After Lost, Prometheus and Star Trek, he joined a very small group of film makers whose work I decided wasn't for me, even if I respect their talent. (The list includes Paul Verhoeven, Joel Schumacher, Zack Synder and John Logan.) My interest in Watchmen and my faith in HBO was such that I was willing to try it out, and I am glad I did. However it ends, what Lindelof has produced in these first four episodes is remarkable.

 

[Josh Dial]

As I've written in a number of threads, I consider The Leftovers to be a perfect show. Not a single dud episode. In fact, I would rate every single episode at a 9/10 or 10/10.

 

[TravisR]

As I've written in a number of threads, I consider The Leftovers to be a perfect show. Not a single dud episode. In fact, I would rate every single episode at a 9/10 or 10/10.

I agree BUT I also think that its bleakness could definitely turn some people off.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

The second season of "The Leftovers" might just be the most impactful season of television I've ever watched. The first season was also excellent, but extremely bleak with no room to exhale until the season finale. (It didn't help that it was shot during the most brutally cold winter in upstate New York of recent memory). The third season was the weakest for me, but still very much worth watching.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

Ah ha! There's the "Architect" of Fear reference and plot point (thank you again The Outer Limits). But another pretty great episode with some self-contained storylines (how could you, Deadwood's Trixie?!), wild images, and some tasty revelations (the hoax, Jupiter's moon, etc.).

Someone also likes Rodgers and Hammerstein; this is the second episode to feature a song from one of their plays - this time "Some Enchanted Evening" from South Pacific. Previously we heard about "Poor Jud is Dead" from Oklahoma.

 

[Sam Favate]

Another great episode. Loved the opening flashback to 1985.

It seems that the show takes place in the same reality as the graphic novel, and not the 2009 movie. (I originally thought it was taking place 10 years after the Synder movie, but this episode made clear it is not.) I'm fine with that either way, but I am glad they cleared it up.

 

[Josh Dial]

It seems that the show takes place in the same reality as the graphic novel, and not the 2009 movie. (I originally thought it was taking place 10 years after the Synder movie, but this episode made clear it is not.) I'm fine with that either way, but I am glad they cleared it up.

That's been clear since the first episode and the mini squid "rain."

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

One of the things I find fascinating is the widespread use of genetic engineering and cloning, and the low value placed on cloned life in general in this universe. Between Veidt drowning the newborn clones and Looking Glass's ex incinerating the cloned puppy when it wasn't quite clone-y enough.

Does the Soviet Union still exist in this universe?

There appear to be two conspiracies at work here: the one involving Senator Keene and Judd Crawford, and the one involving Lady Trieu and Will Reeves. They appear to be at cross purposes with one another, with both agendas reaching fruition in the coming days.

The Keene/Crawford conspiracy coopted Looking Glass, by weaponizing Veidt's mass deception. The Lady Trieu/Will Reeves conspiracy seems desperate to recruit Sister Night, and the Keene/Crawford conspiracy seems equally desperate to keep Sister Night from being recruited.

I'm guessing the IV that Bian was connected to contained an intravenous version of Nostalgia. Perhaps receiving the memories while asleep, as dreams, is a way to sidestep the psychosis associated with the pills.

The badness of "American Hero Story" is hilarious.

Hard to believe we're past the halfway point.

Another great episode. Loved the opening flashback to 1985.

Young Tim Blake Nelson did a good job, but the final beat of him yelling "Noooooooo!" as the camera pulled away felt hilariously overwrought.

It seems that the show takes place in the same reality as the graphic novel, and not the 2009 movie. (I originally thought it was taking place 10 years after the Synder movie, but this episode made clear it is not.) I'm fine with that either way, but I am glad they cleared it up.

I thought that was clear from when it rained baby squid in the premiere.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Another terrific episode. Really loving the music selections for this show. I tend to use the television speakers for most televised programs and only turn on the receiver for films; this show and a few others are the exception to that rule. I had forgotten to turn on the AV receiver and when the opening strands of 'Things Can Only Get Better' started, I had to restart the program and turn up the receiver. Really enjoyed briefly hearing Howard Jones for the first time in awhile.

I was wondering if the opening sequence and the prank was a clue as to Looking Glass' interaction with the radiologist. Yep.

Curious as to whom is playing the role of the warden. (??)

I've been wrong twice about Veidt's location (Mars - nope. Earth's moon - nope.) The view that they gave us outside the ecosphere seemed to imply a moon of Jupiter.

- Walter.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I’d guess Europa. It appeared the surface had ice, which is known to exist there.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I kinda wish I could binge this show.

 

[AlexF]

Curious as to whom is playing the role of the warden. (??)

The same guy who plays the male clones on Veidt's "estate" apparently.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

The early buzz was that this episode was going to be trippy as hell. Maybe the "Twin Peaks" revival recalibrated my barometer for trippiness, but I thought it was pretty straightforward. The visual devices let us know that these were Will's memories, and that Angela was experiencing them. Other than the unusual framing device, it was a pretty straightforward flashback episode.

Hard to believe there are only three episodes left.

It's interesting that Johnson got second billing as a series regular, and then he's dead at the end of the first episode. Is this a Janet Leigh as Marion Crane situation, is the storytelling going to be nonlinear where he has a big role to play in flashbacks, or was his death staged?

At this point, I'm even more confused. He was credited as a series regular in the first episode, credited as a guest star in subsequent episodes, and then credited as a series regular again tonight.

If Louis Gossett Jr. is playing who I think he's playing, setting this show in the same continuity as the Snyder adaptation would have been impossible.

My theory, that Will Reeves was Hooded Justice, was proven correct. There was just way too much focus on him in the "American Hero Story" bits for him not to be important, and of the original Minutemen, Hooded Justice was the one who was least defined in the original comics, with the events of his life before putting on the hood and the events of his life after Veidt's attack on New York never really explored.

Once the show started using lynching imagery, I figured that there was no way in hell that Hooded Justice would be a white man, given what he wore around his neck.

And Will Reeves was the only one old enough to have been operating in 1938.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

Amazing direction in this episode weaving between Reeves and Angela. I'm still unclear on who Crawford was in his (Reeves) life, though, admittedly distracted by some texts during the show, what did I miss? Is Crawford the son of one of those Klan policemen who first beat him up and almost hanged him. I missed something.