TiVo Community Forums Archives - Carnivale (may contain spoilers)

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Carnivale (may contain spoilers)
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Posted by: gregpr

I liked it. Not sure I understood everything that went on, but it had a lot of imagery and visual metaphors as well.

I'll keep watching :)

Posted by: Rob Helmerichs

Yeah, it was very strangely structured and paced, but intriguing enough to keep me coming back--for now, at least. As long as it's actually going some place...

Posted by: FatherTed

I enjoyed it very much. I felt the show was likely to go in the direction of Needful Things meets Something Wicked This Way Comes and it seems to be warming up to that possibility.

Posted by: rtype

For me, the show was more like Clive Barker's Cabal (or Nightbreed) -- I hadn't decided whether it was an homage or a theft. Either way, I'll stick with it. I dropped K Street, though.

Posted by: smak

Was today the first episode? It wasn't called "pilot", so i'm not 100% sure?

-smak-

Posted by: FatherTed

Yes, this was the first episode.

Posted by: ClutchBrake

Interesting. I would have liked a bit more revealed. All in good time I suppose. Looks like another success from HBO.

Was I the only one shocked to see Lizzie from Undeclared dancing topless?

Posted by: zyzzx

I liked it for being just the first episode. But like others have said, it needs to be heading somewhere over the course of the season for me to continue to enjoy it.

When the cat was killed near the end, my fiance left the room and vowed never to watch the show again. I guess I'll be watching it alone from now on. :)

Posted by: NatasNJ

Did anyone else think it was weird that the girl in the wagon was just out in the middle of the farm by herself? Since she clearly couldn't move herself in that wagon someone must have put her there and left. Just thought that was weird.

Good show so far. Many things to elaborate on in future episodes. Has potential.

And the cat being killed was filmed very safe. Meaning it could have been MUCH more graphic...

Posted by: tonyoci

quote:
Originally posted by NatasNJ
Did anyone else think it was weird that the girl in the wagon was just out in the middle of the farm by herself? Since she clearly couldn't move herself in that wagon someone must have put her there and left. Just thought that was weird.

From what I have read that would not be considered strange for a country town in the 20's (or whenver this was set).

I thought the show was interesting, first eps are always tough since you do not know the characters etc. I am not clear (having not read anything) where this is going and how the Priest and Hawkins tie together. I am also not clear if this is a 13 episode story or if there will be different stories each week.

I am with the rest of you, interesting enough but it needs to sharpen up to keep the SP beyond a couple of weeks.

Since I am no good with deep meanings can someone explain what the point of Ben and dead baby was ?

T

Posted by: ClutchBrake

What was everyone's thoughts regarding the girl he healed at the end? I expected the crops near them to die because I figured he was "taking the life" from them to heal her. What I did not expect was the crops that were not in the near vicinity to die as she went near them. For lack of a better term, do you think she will be cursed for life?

I hope they don't go with the priest being the big bad. That just seems too cliche. I expect more from HBO.

Posted by: mrboo

I liked it. It didn't blow me away, but the show has a lot of style. Adrienne Barbeau is pretty odd casting. I liked the title sequence but not the theme. I kept waiting for the dwarf to speak backward.

Posted by: KRS

The title sequence (with the zooms into still pictures) was fantastic. Very well done.

It didn't take long for me to realize that this was YET another HBO show that my wife won't be watching with me!

Not sure why the crops died when the little girl walked towards them, but at least knowing he had healing powers made the opening scene with his mother a bit less confusing. The dead cat scene gave me a Pet Semetary vibe....

Is the woman from the big "camp" who was stealing from the collection basket going to be the link between the priest and the dirt farmer (Hawkins?). That scene with the coins sure was unnerving!

The actress who plays Sophie looks familiar (in a Neve kind of way). Has she been on any other HBO shows?

The show's dust budget must be enormous!

Posted by: tonyoci

That's Clea Duvall, she's been in a lot of stuff.

http://www.hbo.com/carnivale/cast/a...ea_duvall.shtml

Most notably Girl Interrupted, Identity and ER.

T

Posted by: firerose818

quote:
Originally posted by tonyoci
Since I am no good with deep meanings can someone explain what the point of Ben and dead baby was ?

T

I THINK that the point was that since Ben has the power to resurrect the dead, that he was being very careful not to touch the baby after it's mother handed it to him, and then when he handed it to the other guy (baby's father?). It was making the point that he was aware that he had this gift and didn't want the to bring the baby back to life.

I thought that show was interesting. I will definitely stick with it for awhile.

-Rose

Posted by: David Platt

I must be in the minority here-- I REALLY disliked this show. I had to force myself to sit through this first hour. I found it overly pretentious and trying to be 'weird' just for the sake of being weird.

Posted by: KRS

quote:
Originally posted by David Platt
I must be in the minority here-- I REALLY disliked this show. I had to force myself to sit through this first hour. I found it overly pretentious and trying to be 'weird' just for the sake of being weird.

It had enough going to keep me watching, but I agree that the show does seem to be walking a line when it comes to the "weirdness."

The two episodes of Push, Nevada that i watched also seemed to be apeing Twin Peaks, but I have enough faith in HBO that Carnivale will succeed where Push failed.

HBO has a pretty good success rate with me (Sopranos, Oz, Sex and the City, Six Feet Under, The Wire....not to mention Chris Rock, Dennis Miller, Tracey Takes On, Real Sex, Da Ali G Show...) with very few duds mixed in (Arli$$, Project Greenlight). I'd be hard pressed to name that many top notch shows on any other network!

Posted by: Redleg

I had high expectations for this, and have to admit I'm a little disappointed. It seems like a David Lynch tribute film adaptation of a Stephen King tribute novel -- clearly styled after both but missing the hooks that make them both masters. Maybe I'm too used to watching Lynch movies (and remembering Twin Peaks), but I felt like they've sort of dispelled a lot of the mysteriousness in just one episode -- heck, they dispelled it with the dwarf's opening narration. Trust your viewers: let us discover what's going on over the course of a couple episodes. Lynch is a master of telling stories at two levels: (1) what the characters are doing day to day (a traditional "main" plot), and (2) why the characters are doing it (a creepy "context" plot).

The pace was a little off; slow doesn't always create mood; sometimes it's just slow, and has been noted can come across as pretentious.

All in all not bad, but I'm hoping it starts to build momentum.

Posted by: RMBittner

quote:
Originally posted by KRS
The show's dust budget must be enormous!

Well, apparently pixels come cheap. During HBO's "Making Of" 15-minute featurette, they demonstrated how Carnivale is filmed in So. Cal., complete with mountains, and how it's all transformed into the OK dustbowl digitally -- erasing the mountains, altering sky color, and adding lots and lots of swirling dust.

I haven't watched the first episode yet, but I'm just hoping Jar Jar Binks doesn't turn up in one of the tents.

Bob

Posted by: Dancar

How about the close-ups of the older character's absinthe set up? WHat's that about?

Posted by: tonyoci

That was just to show why the other character did not believe what he was saying. He thought he was high.

T

Posted by: wallace

I rather enjoy the different feel this show has to it. I was growing tired of the same old themes and styles that most shows seem to share.

Posted by: Joyster

I finally got around to watching this last night, and I thought it was interesting.

As for explaining too much, I had to watch the opening dialogue 4 times because my girlfriend kept asking me to explain bits, and then I'd missed something.

It looks to me like this show could go one of two ways, it could really be good, or it could really suck. I'm hoping for the former, and I'm going to keep my SP for at least a couple more episodes to find out.

Incidentally - I'm so glad HBO repeat their programs over the next week - I've had to bump Carnivale to record tuesday next week just so that it doesn't clash!

Posted by: Family

I'm surprised the reviews in this thread are so blah. I thought the show has so much potential. Talk about interesting characters.... the possibilities are endless. Just because the pilot is somewhat slow does not mean that that the episode was disappointing. I am looking for something that offers huge potential in a pilot and will judge what I saw in a few weeks. This offering had at minimum that much.

Who is "this "Boss" who seems to be respected for recognizing unusual talent from afar. Perhaps the audience needs to view this show with the same eye that "The Boss" sees Hawkins.

Posted by: ClutchBrake

Management.

Posted by: Family

Could Boss be god or the devil?

Posted by: Sromkie

quote:
Originally posted by Family
Could Boss be god or the devil?

That is what I feel that they are alluding to. Although I am not sure as to which. I would guess the former, but with the way that the plants continued to die after the girl was healed, it may be the latter. Any guesses, anyone?

Posted by: Robs67

What kept going through my mind when the plants were croaking was how the preacher said, "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away." I thought the plants had to die because the legs were given life. Balance.

Posted by: JTAnderson

So, Ben's use of his ability in the past could be the cause of the dust bowl?

Posted by: Sromkie

quote:
Originally posted by JTAnderson
So, Ben's use of his ability in the past could be the cause of the dust bowl?

I wouldn't think that at that young of an age he would have had the opportunity to heal enough to cause something on that large a scale. Although it could explain why he couldn't grow anything on his plot of land.

Posted by: mrpayroll

http://tv.zap2it.com/tveditorial/tve_main/1,1002,271|83557|1|,00.html

"Carnivale" debuted to 5.3 million viewers, making it the most-watched series opener ever on HBO. "Six Feet Under" was the previous record-holder, with about 5 million viewers for its 2001 premiere.

The new show may be hard-pressed to duplicate those numbers, however, when it moves to 9 p.m. ET this week. "Carnivale" will have to do without the "Sex and the City" lead-in and will face more competition as the broadcast networks begin their fall season.

Well that is good news!

Chris

Posted by: Tori

I watched it because it was HBO, and I've really like so much of their original programming. I did not think the previews for it looked interesting. I ended up liking it better than I was expecting. I am keeping the SP. It really feels more like a mini-series than a series to me though.

-Tori

Posted by: super dave

I haven't watched it yet, waiting for the right time, but I sure hope it doesn't resemble anything by David Lynch. His movies are the only ones I have ever walked out of a theater over. He doesn't leave anything to the imagination with all of the unnecessary flashbacks...ARGH!

Posted by: pcgrrll

I thought the show was very intriguing. It didn't blow me out of the water, but it takes a bit of time to develop the story line. From the previews for the next ep it looks like it's definitely going to get more interesting.

For now, it's a keeper.

quote:
didn't take long for me to realize that this was YET another HBO show that my wife won't be watching with me!

Here too...my husband won't watch any of my favorite shows with me (Dead like Me, Six Feet Under). Oh well :confused:

Posted by: mitchb2

It's just a guess, but I think it may go like The Stand. Building towards a gigantic battle between good and evil, the priest being evil.

Posted by: KRS

quote:
Originally posted by super dave
He doesn't leave anything to the imagination with all of the unnecessary flashbacks...ARGH!

Interesting take on Lynch. I find that all the flashbacks and out of sequence events force me to use my imagination to try to figure out what is going on.

If you hate DL that much, I doubt that you will find Carnivale your cup of tea. Let us know when you have watched the show.

pcgrrll - my wife and I can usually only agree on certain types of comedy and reality TV. I can't think of any recent TV dramas that we both liked. She would be perfectly happy to cancel out HBO subscription! Can you imagine - I'd rather give up all network TV!

Posted by: Dancar

quote:
Originally posted by KRS

my wife and I can usually only agree on certain types of comedy and reality TV. I can't think of any recent TV dramas that we both liked. She would be perfectly happy to cancel out HBO subscription! Can you imagine - I'd rather give up all network TV! [/B]

That's an interesting contrast to my house. If it were up to me, I'd drop HBO and save the money, but she needs to see the Sopranos and Six Feet Under (although I did like Carnival). She also likes reality shows like Survivor, Big Bro and some of the lesser ones, but I won't watch any of them. She hates political talking head shows I like such as Meet the Press & McLaughlin Group. (We both watch West Wing but that's political drama.)

But when it comes to movies our tastes match 90 percent.

Posted by: Joyster

quote:
Originally posted by Sromkie
That is what I feel that they are alluding to. Although I am not sure as to which. I would guess the former, but with the way that the plants continued to die after the girl was healed, it may be the latter. Any guesses, anyone?

I'm going to go with the management being God. My only real motivation for this is that you could almost hear the midget / dwarf capitalising the 'h' when he was explaining that 'He [management] said he's [the kid] important'.

Posted by: omnibus

I used to eat up Stephen King's stuff, up until a very few years ago. Don't know why. This story struck me as being in his more recent vein.

I couldn't sit thru Carnivale. Too many weird characters and symbolism (fits the name I guess).

Anyhow, I deleted it and did'nt even set up a Season Pass.

Posted by: TiVo Rox

I think there was a lot of back story to get in place before they can get to the meat and potatos... or so I hope! ;)

Posted by: Joyster

quote:
Originally posted by Sromkie
That is what I feel that they are alluding to. Although I am not sure as to which. I would guess the former, but with the way that the plants continued to die after the girl was healed, it may be the latter. Any guesses, anyone?

Posted by: rgr

I'm guessing that management is the devil - perhaps trying to subvert the good in the lead character.

Austin Powers said it best:

"Only two things scare me, and one is nuclear war," the International Man of Mystery said, before Basil Exposition asked him what the other thing was.

"Carnies," Powers responded, his face scrunching up. "Circus folk. They're nomads, you know. Small hands."

Posted by: kmcorbett

quote:
Originally posted by mitchb2
It's just a guess, but I think it may go like The Stand. Building towards a gigantic battle between good and evil, the priest being evil.

I agree, this is about a battle between good and evil, but my guess is there will be a significant degree of ambiguity as to which character(s) represent each force.

/kmc

Posted by: Rob Helmerichs

quote:
Originally posted by kmcorbett
I agree, this is about a battle between good and evil, but my guess is there will be a significant degree of ambiguity as to which character(s) represent each force.

...although if the show knows what's good for it, that ambiguity won't last forever.