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The Leftovers |OT| Left Behind With Damon Lindelof - Sundays 10/9c

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E

Erigu

Member
StuBurns said:
The point of the premise is that society is unable to assimilate the grief because the bizarre manner in which it happened. I think it's a very basic human reaction, not knowing is worse than knowing. If a child never comes home one day and is never heard from again, it's far worse than if they were just found dead, because there's the sense that there could be a positive outcome.
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Sure, but many parents are experiencing that right now in the real world...

There's also the interesting implication that they exist in a world they have a very incomplete understanding of. We do too really, on a quantum level, we have a very patchy understanding of how things operate, but on a practical level there appears to be no 'magic', there's nothing that doesn't adhere to natural laws. If suddenly, something truly unprecedented happened, on the scale of the incident on the show, it would completely alter people's world view.
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Yes, as said above, that's something that would be interesting to explore, in my opinion. But the showrunners don't appear to agree...
 
S

Saty

Member
StuBurns said:
All of those things still require a insanely impossible world event, and you still didn't say why a hundred and fifty million people dying is at all preferable to disappearing.

My understanding of the rapture is you don't die, you're taken, you ascend, disappearing plays into that in a way that death wouldn't.

And your last point makes no sense whatsoever. The motivation for choosing to have them vanish is because they vanished, it's a book, it's already decided.
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It's not about being 'preferable', just that that particular detail that the incident includes vanishing of people doesn't really play a part. It could have been any event that impacted the lives of everyone and you could still present a religious\rapture reading and still have the 'unknown' stuff.

If the writer of the book chose that detail only to further emphasize a religious discussion then that would be disappointing because choosing a vanishing builds some expectation\anticipation of some sort of coming back; and because that discussion is overburdening so far, at least in the way the tv show has adopted the book.
 
S

StuBurns

Banned
Saty said:
It's not about being 'preferable', just that that particular detail that the incident includes vanishing of people doesn't really play a part. It could have been any event that impacted the lives of everyone and you could still present a religious\rapture reading and still have the 'unknown' stuff.

If the writer of the book chose that detail only to further emphasize a religious discussion then that would be disappointing because choosing a vanishing builds some expectation\anticipation of some sort of coming back; and because that discussion is overburdening so far, at least in the way the tv show has adopted the book.
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I don't think the TV show has even once said anyone is waiting for them to return.
 
J

jelly

Member
That's me done with this show. Too close to forcing myself to watch.

I'll check back near the end and see if it's worth watching again.
 
R

royalan

Member
Erigu said:
The supernatural nature of that event doesn't change much of anything, except maybe for the assholes in white and their bizarre faith... and even then, it is indeed bizarre: hard to connect the dots, there.
What we're left with is fairly common (if, there again, bizarrely portrayed) grief that could just as well have been caused by a natural disaster, for instance.


Well, one might also question the decision to adapt that book...
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I agree. I think this is one of the problems with focusing the story on such a small town, but I do think they need to start showing more of the global effects of The Event, and how things have changed on a larger scale.

I think they started doing that this last episode when we see that the GR is national, and the road full of dead bodies and shit. It's also the one saving grace of the Wayne storyline -- connecting the premise to the larger world.

They also need to focus less on the Garveys. I understand that none of the Garveys actually vanished is supposed to be a point of interest with them, but the reality is it makes all of their drama pretty pedestrian. Sad Teenager! and Divorcing Parents! didn't need the backdrop of a mass disappearance to happen, and yet it seems to be what we spend the most time on. Like it or not, the Garveys are our window into this world, so their drama really should be driving us to the core of this show's premise. But so far it's just boring family drama.
 
S

Saty

Member
StuBurns said:
I don't think the TV show has even once said anyone is waiting for them to return.
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I didn't say it did. What i meant is that my impression of choosing a vanishing event is so that the writer has the option to bring them up and that he's going to use it at some point.
I personally will be disappointed if the detail of vanishing people is only used to emphasize the piece's religious themes.
 
S

StuBurns

Banned
Saty said:
I didn't say it did. What i meant is that my impression of choosing a vanishing event is so that the writer has the option to bring them up and that he's going to use it at some point.
I personally will be disappointed if the detail of vanishing people is only used to emphasize the piece's religious themes.
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I don't know why you keep phrasing it that way.

Lindelof didn't choose to make them vanish, they vanished, it's a book, it was already decided, and the book didn't have anyone reappear so that is factually not the reason why it was specifically an instance of vanishing.

You could ask why he didn't choose to change the vanishing to something else, certainly he changed things, Garvey's actually the major in the book for example, but it's also clear from things like the titles and the heavier involvement of Wayne and the Priest, that he has absolutely no intention of diverting theories away from the Rapture.

I'm not saying it won't happen, maybe the last scene will be Nora and her family on a lovely summer's day in the park, but the decision to have them vanish was made by the author, not Lindelof, and it was made for a book without any explanation as to what happened, not a TV show that might one day explain it.
 
S

Saty

Member
I thought i cleared it by using 'the writer' that i meant to the author of the book. Disappointing to hear they don't return in the book, but maybe it doesn't suffer from the problems the show is suffering from atm so it worked for the book.
 
T

TheOddOne

Member
New episode today:
Season 1: episode 5 "Gladys"

Laurie’s resolve is put to the test in the wake of a brutal hate crime. After his latest initiatives to maintain the peace in Mapleton fall short, Kevin turns down an outside offer to rid the town of its problems. Matt brings his pulpit to the street. Meg takes on a new role.
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R

royalan

Member
I'm kinda with Liv Tyler on this one. The GR makes it their life's mission to disturb and annoy the shit out of the town in every possible way and very personally. So why are all of them acting so surprised by the idea that someone would go vigilante on them? That should be expected.
 
P

petethepanda

Member
Cool that the show felt its audience would be smart enough to "get" the rest of the "one of our" note without needing to show the whole thing. It's a small touch but something a lot of shows wouldn't do.
 
B

bodyofanamerican

Member
What do you think it meant? Because that whole bag note thing was lost on me.

edit: So...what, the ATF will just show up and murder a cult? And we're not finding out who stoned the woman at the beginning, are we?
 
C

crmetteer

Member
So, the woman ate a large meal, then wrote a name on a bag, and excused herself. Then she places that bag on someone's doorstep.... Am I the only one thinking she crapped in that bag?
 
R

royalan

Member
crmetteer said:
So, the woman ate a large meal, then wrote a name on a bag, and excused herself. Then she places that bag on someone's doorstep.... Am I the only one thinking she crapped in that bag?
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Nope. I'm fairly certain that's what she did. Though why is anyone's guess...as usual.

Speaking of bags of shit...this episode
 
I

Ivieto

Banned
Episode 3 hooked me on this show, and this episode was just solid. Right now, this has become my most expected part of Sunday's for me.
 
BadAss2961

BadAss2961

Member
Does Kevin like young girls or something? This thing with his daughter's friend, and him checking out those girls at the school is becoming a pattern. lol
 
T

TeRey09

Member
Something meaty needs to happen with the GR's real purpose, Wayne and that girl or why everyone disappeared. I need more information on what happened and it seems like the show's focus is these characters I don't care for.
 
B

bodyofanamerican

Member
TeRey09 said:
Something meaty needs to happen with the GR's real purpose, Wayne and that girl or why everyone disappeared. I need more information on what happened and it seems like the show's focus is these characters I don't care for.
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I'm guessing the ATF being renamed to the ATFEC and offering to come into Mapleton and wipe out the GR a) ties into that SWAT team assault on Wayne's compound and b) will be a major plot point for the rest of the season.
 
K

~Kinggi~

Banned
There is something about this show that keeps me coming back. I feel it is half attributed to tried and true bullshit TV tactics and genuine quality. Ill keep watching. There is clear talent here, but they are taking that Lost playbook pretty seriously.

I feel like the folk watching this in one go on blu ray will love it.


BadAss2961 said:
Does Kevin like young girls or something? This thing with his daughter's friend, and him checking out those girls at the school is becoming a pattern. lol
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I dont think this. It seems pretty obvious his daughter's friend is skimping around half naked and as an adult is having a hard time responding to it. You know, like any normal guy.
 
BadAss2961

BadAss2961

Member
~Kinggi~ said:
I dont think this. It seems pretty obvious his daughter's friend is skimping around half naked and as an adult is having a hard time responding to it. You know, like any normal guy.
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But what about the girls working out in the hallway at the school? What's the point of having them there and Kevin stopping to look at them to close the scene?

I know it's awkward for him to see the friend skimping around the house, but i'm getting a hint of temptation. Obviously this is heading somewhere.
 
K

~Kinggi~

Banned
BadAss2961 said:
But what about the girls working out in the hallway at the school? What's the point of having them there and Kevin stopping to look at them to close the scene?

I know it's awkward for him to see the friend skimping around the house, but i'm getting a hint of temptation. Obviously this is heading somewhere.
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Eh, i'd look too if freakin cheerleaders are jumping around in the hallway. That never happened at my high school. But i can see a perspective about why they felt the need to shoot that stuff for the story.
 
BadAss2961

BadAss2961

Member
~Kinggi~ said:
Eh, i'd look too if freakin cheerleaders are jumping around in the hallway. That never happened at my high school. But i can see a perspective about why they felt the need to shoot that stuff for the story.
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I think some American Beauty shit is about to go down.
 
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