US: The Following

Tourm said:
Renewed for Season 2, as Fox were going off early ratings.

http://tvline.com/2013/03/04/fox-the-following-renewed-season-2/



Not sure if I've been watching the same show.
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What's really worrying about this is that there are clearly enough people in the USA watching this to justify another season, and that people on that tv site you linked to seemed to love the show. I really do despair sometimes, the US networks have made some incredible shows over the years (Generation Kill, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Band of Brothers, etc), but the fact that this **** piece and Blue Bloods are still going really worries me. I put it down to Fox putting it on on a night where there is very little alternative, Monday is hardly a stellar night of TV in the US by the looks of it. I reckon if this was shown on a more competitive night like Thursday, Wednesday or Sunday it would have tanked already. The same goes for Blue Bloods on a Friday. Genuinely, anyone who enjoys either show needs their head examining :o
 
Funny you should mention Blue Bloods, I quite liked it to start with but I'm a few episodes into Season 2 now and I'm getting sick of it. Virtually nothing carries over from one episode to the next, the NYPD are made to look like the most unsympathetic bunch of people the world has ever met ("Your daughter just died? Whatever ma'am, we need to ask you some intrusive questions") and the odd storyline that does just ends up being an anti-climax.

Totally and utterly sick of the religious stuff in it too, I can abide the odd bit thrown in here and there but the writers of Blue Bloods seem intent on ramming it down your throat at every possible occasion. Not to mention the various little details they've got wrong, you'd think a show focused on the NYPD would hire people who know they don't use blue lights for example.

Where's my phone, I think I'll just delete the rest of season 2 from the Sky box while I'm thinking about it.
 
nicktay2605 said:
What's really worrying about this is that there are clearly enough people in the USA watching this to justify another season, and that people on that tv site you linked to seemed to love the show. I really do despair sometimes, the US networks have made some incredible shows over the years (Generation Kill, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Band of Brothers, etc), but the fact that this **** piece and Blue Bloods are still going really worries me. I put it down to Fox putting it on on a night where there is very little alternative, Monday is hardly a stellar night of TV in the US by the looks of it. I reckon if this was shown on a more competitive night like Thursday, Wednesday or Sunday it would have tanked already. The same goes for Blue Bloods on a Friday. Genuinely, anyone who enjoys either show needs their head examining :o
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Calm down....

Ever thought people might just enjoy it as easy watching TV. Fast paced, plenty of action, some "lost" style flash backs and a original (all be far fetched) story. ...

Its not the best but I like it and easy watching when I'm hanging the washing out :D
 
TheVoice said:
Not to mention the various little details they've got wrong, you'd think a show focused on the NYPD would hire people who know they don't use blue lights for example.
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This was covered in another thread, they get things wrong on purpose so that props and the like can't be spirited away and used to impersonate actual police officers.
 
Doesn't seem to stop shows like Third Watch getting all the details right though. I can understand they'd need permission to use specific NYPD things like uniforms, logos etc, but some of it is clearly just the product of laziness.
 
nicktay2605 said:
I put it down to Fox putting it on on a night where there is very little alternative, Monday is hardly a stellar night of TV in the US by the looks of it. I reckon if this was shown on a more competitive night like Thursday, Wednesday or Sunday it would have tanked already.
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Indeed, don't let the line ups fool you though, Monday night has been king of broadcast television in the USA for a while now. Statistically it is one of the most popular nights for network television, it's where your headline shows go.

Wednesday is a bit of a grey area, although shows like Modern Family have proved to work in this slot. Fox couldn't pick this because their darling American Idol occupies the 8-10pm primetime period (The Following airs at 9pm).

Thursday is traditionally the comedy night (sitcoms like Big Bang theory are in charge here).

Sunday is cable night (think Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones), the key broadcast networks (ABC, FOX, CBS, NBC and The CW) don't have much going for them on the weekends.

Among the other prime time shows airing on the 'Big 5' networks on Monday night, The Following is nowhere near being top dog, but it is doing pretty damn well unfortunately (it actually increased audience reach numbers this week versus the last).
 
I just watched episode 5. Stupid kid, Stupid cop, Stupid show, I will probably carry on watching as not much else on at the moment :-(
 
TheVoice said:
Doesn't seem to stop shows like Third Watch getting all the details right though. I can understand they'd need permission to use specific NYPD things like uniforms, logos etc, but some of it is clearly just the product of laziness.
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NYPD do use blue lights. Only front facing panels have to be red.
 
Just watching the first episode of this now. Seems OK so far. I noticed the dialogue talking about IP addresses mutating or something, but I didn't understand the context so it went right over my head. Clearly nonsense though.
 
Watched episode 7 earlier. It felt like there was no continuity from the previous episode with the FBI seemingly just shrugging off the farmhouse ****-up, and then it just spiralled further into ridiculousness. As someone said earlier, the writers seem to be be treating the viewers like morons at times; are we really expected to believe that a serial killer who had already successfully escaped from prison once wouldn't have maximum security around him at all times during the transfer and escort? The fact that they never actually showed or explained how he escaped suggests that even the writers couldn't work out how to do it believably.

Then the helicopter that flies off into the sunset, we're expected to believe that they have no facility for tracking aircraft, nor any law enforcement helicopters anywhere in the area that can follow?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not expecting a 100% realistic, believable show here, but it feels like they've gone too far in the opposite direction. It's like a plot that was meant for a film, and has been stretched and filled out with nonsense in order to fit the format of a series.
 
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Really wanted to like this, there's been a lack of good shows since Game of Thrones.

But the writing is absolutely abysmal, it just keeps going back to random and unbelievable people turning out to be "followers" at the last minute. I get that it's about a cult type following but it's just so unrealistic and unimaginative that it's killed my interest. I think ratings will tail off and it will get cancelled early next season. I won't be watching anymore.
 
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TheVoice said:
stuff.
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Just to add. Why did they start shouting when they spotted the serial killer in the shopping mall? Surely they should have covertly went up to him and arrested him. By shouting they gave him enough time to escape.

Why when the lawyer woman rang him did he say is the killer with you? giving the game away that they know.
 
Caught up with the last two episodes which I hadn't seen yet last night and yeah this is going off the boil for me now, it's gone from having just a few nut-job followers (fair enough) to a whole army of the wacko's (seriously?)

The last episode did leave me still interested in seeing where the show is going to go now though so I'll continue to stick with it but I've definitely lost a lot of that feeling that made me like the show up till now.

EDIT: Really not sure how they can make another season out of this unless it's with a completely different storyline/characters
 
It's only really Purefoy and Bacon keeping me watching, love them both as actors and without them this would no doubt have already been cancelled.
 
Well I'm upto date with this, and I have to say. I'm loving this show

Agreed, that its down to bacon and purefoy at its center yes. but I have to give credit to Shawn Ashmore, I quite like his character also. :)
 
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