" The Following " on FOX - Page 5

I'm giving up after three. One cop after another getting killed. Cops with such poor situational awareness. Cops working alone instead of with partners. I tried--I like the actors, but the story isn't grabbing ahold of me.

Are they? With what?

When i was a kid my parents were the busy ones and I didn't pay too much attention. Now I am the parent, my wife and I are the busy ones. Are we busier? I'm not sure. Things are just different now.

Anyway...

I still like the show but there are a number of characters that I really, really can't stand. For instance, the 3 bozos who kidnapped the kid, I mean... If they are part of a grand scheme orchestrated by Joe, he seems to be the smartest of the bunch maybe he could have picked better "followers". The chick in particular, kinda cute despite the haircut, is unbearable. And now the two other ladies with their "secret"... Damn!

But I want to know what will happen next, so...
Edited by Morpheo - 2/5/13 at 8:41am

So there were 9 followers... doing some math

- Pretend gay guy 1
- Pretend gay guy 2
- Short haired nanny
- Prison guard (dead)
- Rick guy (dead)
- Semi-naked girl (dead)
- Rick's wife (at large)

Still 2 more to find and act, I'm guessing they'll act next 2-3 episodes, then what?

I know there must be fans of the show, but my answer to your question is "who cares?" Last week I swore I'd never watch it again, but after watching a DVR'd show (Elementary) and fast forwarding through the commercials, there were still about 15 minutes left in The Following last night, so against my better judgement I turned it on so I wouldn't have to watch The Bachelor with my wife. As Julia Roberts said in Pretty Woman, "Big mistake!" Gag me with an oversized spoon... Next week I'll turn the damned TV off before I watch that sh*t again!!

Well, thanks for dropping by to crap on the people who do like the show. Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Hmmm, I thought a "forum" was a place to express your opinion. Glad you like to see people get slaughtered in the most graphic way possible. I don't. Bye...

I don't think it "thread crapping" when early on in a series folks work out their feelings as the show emerges and they come to term with their likes or not. It's not a forum for positive reviews only...I think. Were it late in the season with folks reciting the same mantra, that's more like "thread crapping". I haven't watched Episode 3 yet and am in process of deciding abut the show. Your judgement may vary.

It's one thing to actually review or say why you don't like the show. But being entirely negative without bothering to back up your opinion with any reasons doesn't really add much to a discussion.

Then you must not watch a lot of CBS procedurals. That's basically the M.O. of most of their prime-time lineup. This show is really no different from dozens of others on the air.

Watch Dexter and you'll turn the TV off and toss it on the sidewalk..... LOL

It's a genre and it's fiction... I (we) like this genre so..

It's back a few posts. He doesn't like gory shows or movies.

Well I don't like realities and musicals but I don't go to those threads and talk bad about those shows over and over.

I think the last one was the best (so far). Now I've never been a fan of violence for the sake of violence and I avoid slasher movies and such. However, my take is this show uses it to drive the story... rather nicely. Such that it doesn't follow the normal plot lines where the good guys win most of the battles... so far the score is pretty lopsided. As an example one of the gay guys drives off only to return with a gal he's kidnapped. I'm not the third wheel now... what a way to accomplish that! Do you really expect anyone who follows him to act sane... if that was the case they wouldn't be there and the kidnapping frames that very well.

 

I find it somewhat like Dexter. You have to keep the violence within the story. If I let it stand alone I'll tune out and dismiss the premise... it's a thin line as Annie Lennox sang so wonderfully.

This third episode did give me the impression of using a "template". If the shows starts lacking imagination then it will lose me. There are plenty of talented people available to write good scripts and produce good shows but we all know how political the Hollywood establishment is. The whole entertainment industry is that way: it's not what you know but who you know.

I guess you haven't read my previous posts in this thread. I tried to give an honest effort to "like" the show and I'd still watch if it had just a moderate amount of violence. Do you lovers of this show have your limits? I do.

Yes, it is. And yes, I do watch a lot of CBS procedurals as they are among my favorite shows. However, I tend not to watch Criminal Minds but I do occasionally. On CM's worst day it's still much better than this garbage.

I've never watched Dexter, not one minute, for that very reason. Yes, I do have Showtime.

OK, so what's your point? It wouldn't bother me if you did. It would just make for interesting conversation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBzJGckMYO4

The point is that you've stated that you will not watch the show again. If you are not going to watch the show then you will not have any new relevant comments to make. Therefore, no need to rehash your opinions. We get it. Enough already.

Maybe I'll change my mind again next week.

I don't know how long I'll stay with this ....
Is it becomming "follower of the week" ... , where there will always be some endless "new" follower/murderer introduced, after they mop up the ones we've seen.., Perhaps while leaving a couple of "simple" open ended plot points ( the short haired girl always ends up avoiding capture, the lead female cop may/may not be one ..)?

 

I might be dead wrong (often am) but I think they pretty much defined the cult this week during flashbacks? That is one thing I liked as in they limited the scope to the people currently involved. I thought they were leading you down the young agent was one of them in this episode... Eleven (?) episodes left so they have to do something until the final chase. How many close calls can we put up with along the way... so some other plot line(s) have to entertain us. I'm still looped by the kidnapping... it was so out of the blue... especially him bringing her back home.

 

Regarding errant posts I find the Block Member link works wonders. The only way I can read several threads...

I think the show has improved each week, but it still has glaring weaknesses in story telling, including gaping gaps in which they seem to be forcing too much fluff that seems to function as time killers (no pun intended) to flesh out the episode to its full 46 minute-or-so length. Kevin Bacon is doing really fine work, but he's really having to shoulder the load with the light script. I would like names and publications of the critics who declared this the "best new show of the season" according to the marketing campaign. LOL

It really has so much potential, but just seems watered down compared to something we might get on FX. I guess it's the nature of the beast with broadcast tv, but I was hoping for more. I'm not ready to give up on it yet, because I really like the possibilities, but honestly it's teetering on the precipice of our viewing habits as other shows come back on stream (Walking Dead, Grimm, etc.).

Speaking of Grimm, where the heck is it? yeah, I know, its coming back in march, but its original return was supposed to be Jan. What the heck is NBC thinking? As little sense taking Revolution off for three months makes, leaving Grimm in limbo that long makes even less.It had finally hit its stride, rewarding all who stuck though less than stellar episodes by finally giving us a brilliant one. And NBC builds on that hard earned momentum by...taking it off for 3 months.


sorry for the off topic rant, back to cops and serial killers and their madcap adventures.

While I am really enjoying this so far, a few things are bothering me. I can't believe they want Kevin Bacon's character to go with them to a potential crime scene, entering a house to investigate what is going on, facing the unknown where they know there are killers out there, and they don't give him a gun. What is he going to do? Yell at them until they stop? If they don't want him to have a gun, they would not let him into a strange house where people are getting killed by a cult.

The cops in this show seem to be pretty dumb so far, there is banging on the door, he doesn't call for backup or anything, he opens it and then completely relaxes like, oh that was normal, someone bangs on doors all the time.

I'm waiting for Shawn Ashmore's character to start turning people into icicles

Ala GRIMM, remember the season started in July so they only had so many to show and decided to hold the last few for march-may timeframe.

+1,000,000

Following is going all 24 on us with the inability of the good guys to set up any kind of a "perimeter". Are we in not-so-secret follower of the week country? How many times do these alleged professional crime fighters get totally tooled by heretofore amateurs?

You forgot the agent who passed the book ;-) I don't think the 1st girl counts as part of the 9 she was a precursor. The 9 starts with the prison gourd who killed himself this week.

What I did pick up on was that Kevin Bacons character said that he understood the followers because he was one of them. While this was probably just a red herring the more I think about it the more I think he may come out as one of the followers.

Since the arch at this point is only 13 episodes there will not be a lot of breathing room.

I'm not convinced Agent Debra Parker is a Follower. Some connection to Joe - typically as a student, that seems to be his recruiting pool - would have shown up by now. Yes, she gave him the book, but that's not really proof of anything. And Joe mentioned that she gave it to him during her live video interview with him, which would have "outed" her to a watching Ryan (although I do expect that casual reference to resurface - Ryan had to notice).

My favorite twist would be for his ex wife to be a follower, meaning the son is never really at risk, but putting the screws to Bacon's character even more. It won't happen, but I'd love the twist.

Half the viewers expect it making it not much of a twist.
If each week or 2 some "unexpected" person suddenly is revealed as a Follower how much of a surprise can it be?
A major weakness of the show is failure to make the cult leader's charm convincing enough. It's not the dregs of society (except prison guard the closest) but people with good jobs, careers, etc. throwing it all away to follow the leader and ruin their lives going public to enjoy serial murder. These are not Manson followers who were totally disfunctional in society. Plenty of opportunity for serial killers to have a job, a career and home and enjoy serial killing time and again in secret as we see in the news.