Sebastabear;842523770 said:

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But am I glad I watched it? Pickings are pretty slim in August so I guess I'd say yes.

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I'm not sure if I'm GLAD I watched it, but I'm not sad I watched it either. It's only 8 episodes and some of it does work, so it's kind of interesting in where it goes wrong.

**SPOILER HERE - scroll past***

My biggest problem is with the folks that say it's just artistically on another level that us proletariat season 1 fans don't get. "i studied film....'noir'...deeper characters, gravely inaudible voices", etc. Ok, say i concede that for a moment. What about all the plot holes?

Put another way - and this appeals to the 80s kids that played video games like pitfall, zelda, metroid for example - how the f&%k is Burris hanging out behind the ONE door that Woodrough decides to exit? (he clearly could've exited in dozens of different places).

C'mon man! It's scenes like that where they lost me.

hehatenate;842524044 said:

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**SPOILER HERE - scroll past***

My biggest problem is with the folks that say it's just artistically on another level that us proletariat season 1 fans don't get. "i studied film....'noir'...deeper characters, gravely inaudible voices", etc. Ok, say i concede that for a moment. What about all the plot holes?

Put another way - and this appeals to the 80s kids that played video games like pitfall, zelda, metroid for example - how the f&%k is Burris hanging out behind the ONE door that Woodrough decides to exit? (he clearly could've exited in dozens of different places).

C'mon man! It's scenes like that where they lost me.

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That, to me, is picking nits. It's like staring at a swimsuit model who is an 8 and complaining about her elbow pimple, and even if she isn't as hot as last year's swimsuit model who was a 9, my response is....

So what? Standing alone and not compared to last year's model, she is still pretty great. And maybe last year's model is enhanced by memory and nostalgia, not necessarily the merits.

Just my 2 cents.

sycasey;842523711 said:

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The issue with Season 2 is not so much the ending but how much less entertaining the road to that ending was. The ending lacked punch because they didn't make the audience care as much.

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I liked this season's graphic orgy scene with all the call girls. That was must see TV.

FiatSlug;842523138 said:

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That the NFL is using LA to extort stadium concessions for franchises in other cities is a given. What would make the most sense for those other cities is not to play ball: tell the NFL to put up or shut up. Until current NFL cities get enough gumption to tell the NFL, "You're not worth it." they will continue to be played like a violin as long as LA does not have an NFL franchise.

If St. Louis had this kind of gumption, they'd let the Rams go and never look back. The Cardinals are committed to St. Louis. Why should St. Louis throw money away on a NFL franchise that plays 10 home dates a year when they could use that same money on (1) public safety, (2) public education, and (3) infrastructure rehabilitation and improvements (in short, things essential to a thriving economy)?

In the same vein, Oakland should tell the Raiders to move (to LA or anywhere else for that matter) or shut up.

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+2. John Oliver (and I) agree:

NYCGOBEARS;842523467 said:

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Oh yeah, calbear80 and hanky1 have got me so enthused.

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That made my day NYGB. I honestly think this is a year that Cal football and basketball will be memorable, so stick with it.

As for TD, my wife literally told me to tell you she thought the symbolism and dialog was riveting (if your stoned), Vince Vaughn's long monologs provided an inner calm and understanding (she fell asleep during them and had pleasant dreams), and the cutting back and forth in the opening scene of the finale was mesmerizing (she started feeling lightheaded). My guess is if you liked some of the stuff they did in Season 1 (I thought the interaction between the two leads was awesome, as was the tight plot, but the finale was just okay), you can tolerate Season 2, and with all the criticism of the last season and drop off in viewers, I expect Season 3 to be much better. Its sorta like being a Cal fan, you have to experience the extreme lows to appreciate the good. More enthused yet?

The big advantage of Season one was that it set in Louisiana which means that all the trashy surreal pulp played well because-let's face it-anything can happen there and the writer knew his people and environment. The result was a feeling of foreboding but also leavened by a lot of authenticity,voodoo and a sense of place . Setting season 2 in LA was a mistake because everyone is lost there especially this writer.l