Does anyone know anything about the new HBO series "Big Love"? The IMDb has the standard info regarding cast, etc. The cast is great--Bill Paxton plays a man who has three wives, played by Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin. Amanda Seyfried is one of the kids, Harry Dean Stanton, Bruce Dern, Grace Zabriskie and Mary Kay Place are in it as well. Is it a comedy? Drama? Dramady?

Go HBO--taking on polygamy seems provocative. I'm sure it's gonna be a little watered down (Polygamy Lite!) but hey, I for one can't get my fill of shows about fucked up families!

ETA: I just read it's going to premiere in March 2006, right after The Sopranos!

I'm all for provocative material, but I'm having a hard time finding polygamy a funny subject. That Jon Krakauer book left a big impression on me. The previews make this show look like, "Oh, what has this guy gotten himself into! Haw!" Has the Mormon Church said anything about this show?

I'll still check it out, naturally, since Chloe Sevigny is in it, and the rest of the cast is stellar too. But I'm curious what the reviews will be like.

Well, I don't think its supposed to be "funny", I belive I've read that it's a drama. I am all for polygamy if all parties involved like this idea - in fact, I wouldn't mind to have such family myself, if I wasn't against marriage. I just wonder about public appeal of show with such theme. I mean, it can't be only about polygamy, right?

If you're interested in the LDS Church's stance on this upcoming series, here is an official release from the church. It details our stance and should answer your question about it.

LDS Church on Big Love

Fish, thanks for the link. Interesting--I wonder if HBO will actually put the disclaimer in front of the show...

Dallas Fan, I heard that it was a drama too, but when they show the teaser with "Come On-A My House" playing in the background, it's like, "Hee, this guy's got three wives! Hijinx will ensue!" My sense of irony goes into eye rolling overdrive. I know that Harry Dean Stanton plays a "prophet" type of person, and Daveigh Chase (isn't she like 13?) is supposed to be one of his wives. Ewww! So yeah, sounds like there will be some drama there!

Here's an article from ldsfilm.com: http://www.ldsfilm.com/TVchars/BigLove.html

The bottom of the page contains a transcribed casting side (so technically spoilers, but it doesn't give away anything meaningful plotwise.) But I found the following so ironic:
Amanda Seyfried, who apparently plays Sarah which seems to be the complete opposite of her character, Lilly Kane, on Veronica Mars, says the below line in one episode
I'm 99% sure that all the episodes for the first season have already been filmed, so I doubt we'll get a lot of spoilers unless someone saved the casting sides from last spring/summer.

I'm a hundred-times more interested in the buzz and reaction to this series then the actual show.

Well, harmless kitty, I guess there will be lots of humour and then lots of vomit and violence and gore… It is HBO, right? I mean, OZ was one of the funniest shows in between all the rapings, killings, feeding glass to people. Heh.

What baffles is me is - what, they expect this series to set America on fire? What the ratings will be? I love my HBO and don't want them to have a failure on their hands.

Thank you for articles!

When is this season to start? First I heard January, then March. Any idea on the truth?

I thought this was supposed to be a sitcom.

Here's the mention on thefutoncritic.com from last week:
So the latest word is March 2006 (as phantonframe eta'd), but that could change later.

Well, here's a little more info from a Newsweek/MSNBC article.

The photo is meh, and not a whole lot of new info, but the Viagra thing is funny!

From the article linked above:



OMG! That man is married with 3 women! And he has sex with them too! How could he do that? That's so shocking! Because...marriage is hard, don't you know?
*sigh*
I think HBO is starting to scrap the bottom of the "controversial stuff" barrel.

The DVD that HBO sent to the media has a disclaimer at the beginning of the first episode, specifying that the LDS establishment swore off polygamy more than 100 years ago and that the series is entirely fictional--but that nonetheless, thousands of people in the mountain west continue to practice polygamy. The wording of the disclaimer doesn't draw a direct line between modern-day polygamy and the LDS, which is obviously quite deliberate.

So the "comedy" will derive from Bill constantly popping Viagra from the little bottle he keeps in his pocket in order to keep all three of his wives happy and satisfied. Uh, from all I've read and heard, I don't think the men who practice polygamy give a crap if their wives are sexually satisfied. Sex is for proceation and for the husband's pleasure. The women "submit" and do their wifely duty in hopes of a reward in heaven someday. Sexual pleasure for women is not only unnecessary, it's detrimental because it encourages selfishness and takes their minds off their domestic and religious duties.

Bill Paxton is an awesome actor and he's about the only reason I can think of to watch this show. But I doubt that even he can pull this off.

There's not much comedy to the series at all--it's a serialized domestic/small-business drama, very much in the vein of SIX FEET UNDER, and the series provides a very believable explanation for Paxton's adoption of a more equitable, 21st-century form of polygamy while also refusing to endorse it (indeed, a lot of drama comes from how Paxton's character is in denial about how his lifestyle is rooted in his childhood experiences in a truly creepy Mormon cult he can't quite distance himself from). It's a mistake to judge the series based on the cutsey promos or the premise alone--don't forget that many people dismissed THE SOPRANOS as an ANALYZE THIS! ripoff for similar reasons, and we all know that couldn't be further from the truth.

Well, the hype for this show has started, at least here in LA. Posters that say "I Dooo" and "We Dooo" with wedding rings for the O's have started popping up on bus stops, etc. The tag line is "Polygamy Loves Company." Entertainment Weekly had a small blurb with a funny picture in last week's issue too.

HBO has a small thing up on their website. I dunno, I'm still up for checking the show out--curious about what the critics (and I mean TV reviewers, not the Mormon Church) have to say about it.

It's an hour long so it's a drama.

I'm intrigued, but I'll watch anything HBO serves up at least once. I'm not drawn because it seems creepy or cutesy. I simply need my dysfunctional family fix after the Fishers and this is what's being offered. I'm not crazy about Paxton but the wives seem different enough to be interesting.

Daveigh Chase and Amanda Seyfried play two of the daughters.

I like any dramatic or comedic art form that bucks conventional women. Conventional Wisdom is that polygamy is always evil, the women are always in desperate need of rescue, the men are always horrible abusive assholes, and BTW, polygamy is really evil.

The notion that certain individuals can of their own free will choose such a relationship, and indeed be fulfilled by it, is dismissed out of hand.

I like that HBO is making a show that focuses on this subject and does not take the standard party line.

DinkyD, Amanda Seyfried is one of Bill Paxton's daughters, but Daveigh Chase isn't--She is one of the many wives of the prophet, played by Harry Dean Stanton. Hmm? or Ewww!

I'd say a little bit "hmm" and a little bit "ewww," myself. I'm looking forward to this series. It's an interesting premise (especially if HBO doesn't take the traditional "OMG HOW HORRIBLE!" approach to the subject), and I'm a fan of several of the cast members (Chloe Sevigny, Amanda Seyfried, Ginnifer Goodwin, Daveigh Chase), so I plan on at least catching the first episode.

I caught the preview at HBO.com and didn't notice Amanda or Daveigh in the clip. I wish I had HBO (took it when SFU started by gave up due to that fact that I can't afford it) so I guess I will have to wait for the DVDs. The cast looks great, especially Ginnifer Goodwin.

Bump for American Snob.

I'm looking forward to the series as well and shows that have followed The Sopranos in the past i.e. Deadwood which is usually pretty damn good.

Will this be the next Six Feet Under"? I don't know but judging by the previews it seems very original.

Does that Christian group - that got rid of The Book of Daniel - really think they can get HBO to axe a show? Highly doubtful. HBO has much more freedom than the regular network.

I somehow doubt it'll work on HBO, too. I hope not; I'm really looking forward to this series. (Unfortunately, I know my mother will hate it. I'm well-prepared for the fighting that will take place. We need TiVo. Or I need to move out. Probably the latter.)

It was the same thing with an Italian-American coalition when The Sopranos began, "Oh, it's Anti-Italian", anti-this, anti-that. I'm Italian and am fine with the show.

Plus even if some Christian organization tries to take it down, they're not going to succeed. People pay for HBO so its not like a broadcast network where they can pull it right off if it upsets anybody.

Well, this article in the NYT sheds some more light on the show.

I'm starting to get a little more excited about this series...

I didn't know Tom Hanks was a producer.

Heh. Somehow I suspect that if Carnivale was okay on HBO, this will be. I wouldn't be worried about the Christian boycott; I'd be worried about the mormons.

It seems like a fairly flimsy premise to base a show around but perhaps it'll be okay. There's certainly a good pedigree of actor there.

I don't have HBO, but if I did I would probably check this show out, since it's set in the town where I live. And there are polygamists who live the next block over.

But other than that, the polygamy theme doesn't hold much promise for me.

I caught a preview on the VOD tonight and it really looks good. It does remind me of Six Feet Under, with the complicated family relationships.



The biggest problem the AFA (was it the AFA?) created for Book of Daniel was that they scared away most of the advertisers (who are typically willing to take the heat if there's a reward of being associated with a talked-about show with lots of viewers, which wasn't the case for Daniel.) HBO doesn't have to worry about that since their revenue streams are subscriptions and DVD sales. I doubt any media watchdog group could really affect HBO subscriptions directly, most HBO subscribers have a good idea of where their subscription fee is going.

I watched the "Making of..." this morning (I think my TIVO picked it up at 11:45pm last night). I'm really excited about it. I'd only heard about it before, but I'd never seen any ads or anything. I'm looking forward to a good replacement for my Six Feet Under fix.

Oh, definitely. I've been watching Desperate Housewives but it isn't nearly in the same league of some of the great shows on HBO. I'm hoping Big Love will be just as good. The icing on the cake would be if TWoP picks the show up. (fingers crossed) :)

Oh Gosh, I don't have HBO but I'm hoping I can catch this on Itunes. I read Under the Banner of Heaven, which was all about plural marriages and these groups that have been kicked out of the LDS church in Utah. This show is going to be must see tv for me.

I caught the In Demand preview and I'm really interested in seeing this show now.

Entertainment Weekly gave the show an 'A-' which is so cool. Hey, I'm counting the days now (well, I'm also counting down to "The Sopranos" too...)

OMG If TWoP picks this show up, it will make my whole...year! Seriously, that would be so awesome!

Edited because "if" and "it" aren't the same word.

I am really looking forward for the season premire Sunday. Heck, Sunday is my night!

Tivo will be working over time.

ABC - Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy
HBO - Sopranos, Big Love
SHO - The L Word

Crazy!

Crap. It's on opposite Grey's and I have no TiVo. What to do, what to do.

Do you have HBO on Demand?

I just got it and its pretty awesome just for this purpose.

Or if you're taking the cheap way out, tape it in another room or ask someone to tape it for you. Hope all works out well!

6 Days to Go!

Hee. I'll probably just catch Grey's in repeats. I'm much more interested in this.
I also echo the sentiments that this show seems terribly recappable. I caught a making-of thing on HBO a couple of days ago, and I get the feeling it's going to be way too much fun.

Great review at CNN. Also a very positive review at Salon.

Can't see where the reviewer gets "three attractive women", however, unless Chloe Sevigny has been recast.

Chloe is cute in her own special way.

Aw, I think Chloe has a certain appeal. She can look downright striking (in the good way) at times - although I agree she's not looking her glamorous best on this particular show, naturally.
Ginnifer Goodwin is so painfully adorable. I loved her in Mona Lisa Smile and can't wait to see her in this.

Oh my! Chloe Sevigny is H O T! Well, I have to admit that "Compound Chic" that she's sportin' for her character on this show isn't particularly flattering, she definitely has a quality about her that's sexy. I'll bet $5 that she gets naked on this show too, considering what she's done in the past...

I watched the first episode at an advance screening, and it is good, but it has some spots where it can be a lot better. They do a good job portraying the relationships between the wives and a bit of what makes them tick.

If I had HBO I would defintely watch it.

Yay for TWoP recappage! I am so very excited. See y'all on the show forums!

I'm so sad that this show has been downgraded from being recapped and having its own forum, especially since the new season is starting in two weeks.

Ah well. I'm super excited about the show coming back--it feels like I've been waiting for ages.

From the previews, I still can't hang with Ana. I just don't like her. And I'm not feeling Margene trying to push Ana on Barb and Nicki. Plus, I feel like Bill is just thinking with his little head instead of truly following the principle.

When is it restarting?

January 18th.