anyone following The Following? (spoilers)

[lucimay]

if you haven't seen the show and care about small plotline spoilers
ya might wanna steer clear of this thread till you've watched a few.
i don't tell any major developements but i do spoil a little bit with
some brief synopsis.





so...we're 9 episodes in.
i usually know if i'm gonna like and keep watching a show by the 5th episode. (ok grey's anatomy and scandal both had me at the pilots. :p whatever)

i think james purefoy's joe carroll is my favorite tv character since ian mcshane's al swearengen. (not comparing the characters - they're night and day - just as tv "villans")

bacon is bacon, right? i read in the wiki of the show that the creator, kevin williamson, said to the producers "i want someone like kevin bacon" and the producers said "how 'bout kevin bacon?" right? lol!!! bacon is sorta like walken, you're not really gonna get anybody "like" kevin bacon.
but he's working on this character. i know it's not usually a good thing to say you can "see" an actor "working" but in bacon's case, it IS a good thing.
he's believable in this role. the writing is good enough (not great just good enough) and his character's (ryan hardy) dialogue is spare enough that bacon doesn't have to worry too much about his tendancy toward over-acting.
in other words, he's playing it as subtle as he's capable of (in my opinion.)
so...i don't mind him at all. in fact, i think williamson was right to cast him.
he's still very appealing to watch.
he does tortured well. (i think he learned how to get there in Murder in the First)

but what i really like about the show is the premise and how the writers are expanding and sort of "marrying" the idea of cult leader/serial killer.
most of the cult leaders you can think of were, at best, spree killers,
with the exception of manson i guess. (but i'm not really sure manson
qualifies either because did he actually kill anyone?)

this idea is much more sophisticated that your usual wigged out hippie
mansonesque serial killer or your full on psycho religious zealot jim jones type cult leader.
i'd guess hannibal lecter was the most "sophisticated" idea of a serial killer up to this point. (i've got no real life references of "sophisticated" serial killers in my lexicon so fictional will have to do - bundy fancied himSELF sophiscated but his killings were base and brutal)

joe carroll is a professor of english literature, specializing in Poe, using
his gift as a charismatic and passionate teacher to manipulate and "inspire" his students to do his bidding, which entails getting them to each "write" or create a "chapter" in his newest novel (because of course his first real published novel was a flop and he's kinda pissed that he got caught and put in prison and ryan hardy slept with his wife - lol.)
because he knows how to evaluate students and because is a serial killer, he knows how to spot and evaluate potential "helpers" in his twisted little serial killer game with ryan hardy.
and taking a cue from anthony hopkins, purefoy has made joe carroll somewhat charismatic and likable even by the audience. purefoy's acting
is quite invisible. (as is hopkins')

the rest of the cast is somewhat expendable which is good because i don't think a lot of em are gonna be around the duration of the show! LOL!! 3 good characters to watch for and who i think will play pivotal roles in the next few shows are Roderick, Joel, and Emma. emma is a piece of work and possibley a little bit scarier than even joe.
joe has created a HUGE network of devotees as "helpers" which might be the most scary aspect of the show because it's so easily technologically feasible.

as fun as dexter was in its heyday, i like this show a bit better. dexter never scared me. (in fact the scariest thing ever on dexter was john lithgow's character)

and who better for the scary and charismatic lit teacher to specialize in than Poe. i mean seriously. Poe was my entre into "scary stories". my dad read The Tell Tale Heart to me when i was 8. i love Poe.

there are moments (the FBI and their seemingly endlessly bumbling and lax protocols) when you really HAVE to suspend your disbelief. it IS tv after all.
but all in all i give the show 8 of 10 stars.

i guess it's doing some good numbers because fox just renewed it for a second season and 15 more episodes.

so, is anyone else following The Following?

[lucimay]

hmmm. guess not.

[Phantasm]

Yup, I'm a follower ( )

It does have the possiblities of going off on many tangents due to the amount of characters involved. Hopefully they will all be relevant, or it may just become unwatchable.

Yes, Emma is a scary and slightly unhinged girl.

And yes, Bacon is Bacon.

Looking forward to the rest of the series.