187 replies to this topic

[crystalsage]

After the WTF ending of the Sopranos, JFC was a whole lot more WTF. I hope smarter people can explain it all to me. Did enjoy the surfing scenes though.

[from carfax]

Another loser from HBO.

[lanter]

Hmmm, on the one hand I liked a lot of the actors. On the other hand….what in the hell was that? Maybe I had a little too much wine with my Sopranos but I really couldn’t tell what this show is about. I get the whole surfing dynasty thing but then there were some religious overtones, I think? Nice as it was to see Al Bundy again I would much rather have had Deadwood back. I will give HBO the rest of the summer but at this point I am seriously considering switching to SHOWTIME. At least they have Weeds and Dexter.

[drs248]

JFC was a whole lot more WTF. I hope smarter people can explain it all to me. Did enjoy the surfing scenes though.

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who didn't get it. I'll keep watching because I really liked the surfing scenes, but I hope it becomes clearer. That John character totally bugged, and for some reason I felt like Rebecca De Mornay was just totally off. Like maybe she's not really sure of how to play her character. There was something wrong there. In general, the whole thing was just really confusing and seemed pointless. Kind of a letdown after "Deadwood".

[Scottski]

Dear HBO,
Please fire all of your televison devlopment staff. Thank you
Scottski
P.S. you might as well fire them all, I mean really you cancel Deadwood and Rome for this???
P.P.S.S As you can tell I think this show sucks.

[fendley]

I wanted to like this but WTF?

[dbklmt]

Did not want to be the first to post here and say WTF is this about? Glad to see that others felt the same way. I caught all the religious undertones which I could do without, but WTF does it have to do with surfing. Never was a fan of surfing and its culture and this won't help to change my mind about how I feel about it. Good cast but totally wasted in this crock of shit.

[toons]

I tried to understand what was going on, but I think I can't do weirdness for the sake of weirdness. I'm not too proud to say I just didn't get it at all.

[chilindrina]

After months of hype, this is what we get? This was so boring! I couldn't stop yawning for the first 20 minutes and then when the story sort of picked up, it didn't live up to expectations.

However, Ed O'Neil was awesome. Everything else was a total snooz-fest. Looks like Big Love will be my only HBO show this summer.

[BDasus353]

This show is out in left field. There is plenty of weird between the levitation, John's entire demeanor, and the new motel owner. Ed O'Neill and Bruce Greenwood did well tonight. Honestly, I don't see it lasting super long. I do hope that we get a full season though. Nice surfing shots.

[tomsmom]

Decided to give this a try...am now realizing I can no longer be trusted in picking winners. I should have figured this out after wasting 8 years on The Sopranos!

Anyway I was so distracted by the fact that Mitch and Cissy were Butchie's parents! I was like "Aren't they all around the same age?" I was so bugged by this that I looked them all up on imdb and I was right, unless Cissy gave birth when she was 10 and Mitch was 12.

Edited by tomsmom, Jun 10, 2007 @ 10:23 PM.

[ditzyspikegal]

I should have definitely been high watching that. Maybe it would have comprehendable.


Probably not.

[Mongi]

Wow, I did not expect to be the only person who apparently loved it. Granted, I'm not even close to being sure of what's going on, but I'm more than willing to hang on for awhile. I'm also not sure what De Mornay is shooting for with her character, but I would say she's making very deliberate acting choices that I suspect will pay off down the line. I'm not sure how far out this show plans on going, but right now my best guess for what's up with John is that he's an alien. Or possibly the second coming. I really liked him though. He was like a toddler making new sentences from the few words he knew and I found that kind of endearing. I hope I'm not the only person who loves this. I'd hate for HBO to yank it before I get some answers.

[AndyK]

I thought it was interesting, but I like random dramas, and the character of John with the Magic Pockets has a lot of potential. I'm curious how they're going to tie it all together. I'm less excited by the sleazy sponsor aspect; it doesn't seem that interesting, but I guess you need a villain. It was a good change of pace after the Sopranos finale. (ETA: Which I liked, but it's a very different kind of show.)

Edited by AndyK, Jun 10, 2007 @ 10:31 PM.

[jjfc]

Ed O'Neil was good. Shouldn't the actor playing Butchie be a little younger? I liked Dickstein's Greek Chorus kind of role. And I'm not against David Lynch style stuff which this is clearly supposed to be, so I'm willing to give it a little more time (but it will be a VERY short leash). But why in the world would you pair it with The Sopranos when most of that show's audience complain about the dream sequences, symbolism, etc?

OTOH, if "Kyle XY" on ABC Family did the "blank slate" stranger routine better than you did, that's not a good sign.

Edited by jjfc, Jun 10, 2007 @ 10:33 PM.

[ditzyspikegal]

But why in the world would you pair it with The Sopranos when most of that show's audience complain about the dream sequences, symbolism, etc?

To get the gangbuster ratings. And anyways, it won't be after tonight. Is it taking over the Sopranos' time slot?

[persephonite]

Anyone know the name of the song they played in the ending credits? Something about "Sunrise..."

[pontoon]

I liked it. A few people mentioned "religious" overtones, but I think "supernatural" would be the more apt term. I'm willing to suspend disbelief for such mumbo-jumbo. John's pants were sewn from material from Felix the cat's magic bag? Okay, sure, why not?

Anyhow, what's not to like about the over-the-top cell phone screamfest between Butchie and Mitch?

It did seem that Rebecca DeMornay is too young to be a 13-year-old's grandmother, but she is 48. So, okay, she has butchie at 18, then he sires at 17. That works.

[RainbowRat]

I guess I'm the second (ETA: third!) person that liked it. I like the setting (I'd watch a cable channel that showed nothing but gritty grimy beach towns and the people that live in them), I like the characters, and I'll credit the show with any deep meaning that bubbles up while I'm watching this incredibly concrete (in the poetic, creative writing sense) yet spiritual drama.

David Milch sounds like he'd be scary as shit to work for, but I'm glad some people are willing to do it, so I can explore his brain from a distance.

Boy, that sounds kissy, but whatever, I liked it.

I missed a bunch of what JFC (Jesus F Christ. Heh) was muttering during the confrontation scene at the hotel--"Sean will not long be with us"?? Is he going to die or get seduced by commercialism and the devil ("...you know"), in the form of Luke Perry? That dualism was set up like, right away. I guess I'll have to rewatch for other blatant symbolism I tend to miss. And dredge up memories from high school English class.

Response to Ian below: Yeah, it would not be a Milch show without an "anyways" and the lack of conjunctions in the subordinate clauses.

Other response to Ian: Yeah again! Who wants answers? Life doesn't give them. I'm up for an exploration (yes I said explore up above too).

Edited by RainbowRat, Jun 10, 2007 @ 11:27 PM.

[Ian]

Well, I was struggling not to fall asleep (for reasons unrelated to the show, I think), but I was intrigued with what I saw. I guess John From Cincinatti, if nothing else, fills the "weird speech-patterns" void left by Deadwood's departure quite nicely. I am also quite intrigued by the setting, as it's something I've personally not quite seen before on TV.

Regarding the show, Entertainment Weekly expressed a (typical, for them) desire for answers regarding the weirdness; personally, I hope we never get them.

Edited by Ian, Jun 10, 2007 @ 11:10 PM.

[Patronus Potter]

Haven't read much about this show, but my first thought was that it's John (The Baptist) from Cincinnati. Miracles, the end is coming, and so on. John's behavior, mimicking people, makes him seem like an extraterrestrial though. He reminded me of Number Five from Short Circuit.

[Eric WK]

I really enjoyed it. Almost like... Deadwood meets Twin Peaks, set in Southern California.

For people thinking it's about surfing, Milch originally had the show set in New York. The Imperial Beach surfing community is just the lens through which Milch is showing us this story. It isn't about surfing at all. I think that will become more clear as the season progresses.

[Zythrst]

I liked it too. One thing though, why did the Luke Perry character, tell Mitch about Sean's contest in the first place? Didn't he know Mitch would try to stop it?

[haysoos]

I'm gonna have to join the WTF crowd here.

Kind of interesting, but I'm not quite sure yet whether I liked it.

It was only after it was over that it dawned on me that this was Milch's 'Surfing Show' that he abandoned Deadwood for (so I'm kinda slow... sue me). I can't help but wonder if I would have been more critical if I'd realized this is what I lost Deadwood for.

So, no one else has mentioned it, but while it seems obvious that John is an alien, angel or something - is it not also obvious that Mitch is also other-y? Besides the obvious levitational thingie, there's the explicit mention Cissy makes of him joining us 'fallen Earthlings', there's the fact that his grandson apparently resurrects dead parrots (or perhaps it was just pining for fjords).

Oh well, as long as Jim Beaver stays as a regular character I'm in.

[nilyank]

Nice to see Milch hasn't forgotten how to use the word cocksuckers.

I kept wondering who the hell was John amongst the surfing dynasty family, and then it turns about be the guy with the magic pockets.

It's weird but I will stick with it. I know everyone in the cast including the cop that use be David Grant on Guiding Light.

[random]

I didn't find it all that bewildering or confusing. It feels kind of lightweight, so far, and the holy moron is such a hoary cliche, it took all my willpower not to recite "M-O-O-N, that spells 'moon'" during his scenes. But I liked it well enough to see where it goes.

What amused me most of all is that Milch still seems to be on dialogue autopilot from Deadwood, and these people are not talking like members of this century much of the time.

Anyways.

Edited by random, Jun 11, 2007 @ 2:19 AM.

[sndspeed]

Remember that "alien" movie with Kevin Spacey-- K PAC or something??? Add to that a mashed-up VHS of Being There, a torn-up copy of Waiting For Godot, sprinkle about four packages of Simply Sleep over the top and stick in a long board (or should I say bored) and voila-- John From Cincinnati. God, let Tuesday's premiere of Big Love make up for the shattering disappointments delivered us by HBO this evening.

[CountChoculitis]

I guess John From Cincinatti, if nothing else, fills the "weird speech-patterns" void left by Deadwood's departure quite nicely.

The one thing that struck me while watching JFC is that the dialogue does not hold a candle to Deadwood's in terms of complexity or the poetic nature of the language. I wanted to like this show, but it just didn't appeal to me that much. I though a lot of the acting was only okay at best. David Milch seems to have a reputation as a genius among his actors (and himself, IMO), but that's not enough for me to love whatever he does.

I would much rather have a fourth season of Deadwood than this, but I may give JFC a few more chances.

[PMS Babe]

Wow this pilot might prove to be the worst episode of television I've ever seen. My friend wanted to turn it off after 15 minutes but I convinced her that we should watch more til we figured out what it was about and why HBO produced it. Having seen the whole thing, all it did was confuse us more and make us hate it more.

Rebecca DeMornay was obviously cast after they saw her in Lords of Dogtown, where she played a skater/surfer's mother. Since then she's obviously had some work done and looks much younger...which is perfect since she is playing a grandmother.

All I could think of after watching this crapfest is that somewhere Jeff Altman and Pink Lady are giving a huge sigh of relief.