The Lottery - General Discussion

[Primetimer]

Everything you need to know about infertility hellscape thriller The Lottery, starting with: it's not based on that Shirley Jackson story. (I know! I'm sorry.)

Read the story

[Brian]

"What became of Trojan?"

Good question. Will people still use them because--hey!-- there's still syphilis and Hep C out there? Or, without the fear of preggers, will straight America become one big pool of multi-drug resistant gonorrhea?

[random chance]

Good question!  This is the kind of show where the emphasis will be on the thrilling action but it would be more interesting to me if they explored the world without children, and if the mystery was how this infertility came about.  Kind of the way that the more interesting thing to me about Revolution was, what did people come up with to cope - not, how did the band of electricity-seekers get the power turned on again.

 

Children are such a gigantic industry, I would imagine that the economy took a fierce beating.  Trojan might be one of the lucky industries - unlike birth control manufacturers.

[Iguana]

So much of this show required the usual suspension of disbelief but nothing more than the chief government fertility guy immediately firing, for no apparent reason, the only doctor who has successfully fertilized any eggs in the past six years. Surely the best way to possibly get more embryos is to keep the doctor who created the hundred embryos in a lab with even more resources and trying hard.

This show has some thought provoking ideas but the pilot failed to explore them in any thing more than a superficial way. Add in some bad acting, shallow characterization and "plot twists" that you can see coming a mile away and you're left with a big pile of "meh". As the pilot is often far from the best the series has to offer I'll give this show one or two more episodes before giving up on it completely, largely because of the potential the premise provides. But it needs to get more interesting very quickly.

[ottoDbusdriver]

While 'The Lottery' is an ok name for this show, it's too bad that 'The 100' is already taken, as it actually seems more appropriate. </snark>

[SimoneS]

So much of this show required the usual suspension of disbelief but nothing more than the chief government fertility guy immediately firing, for no apparent reason, the only doctor who has successfully fertilized any eggs in the past six years. Surely the best way to possibly get more embryos is to keep the doctor who created the hundred embryos in a lab with even more resources and trying hard.

 

This was the most unbelievable bit for me. Where is the political benefit of firing this doctor after she creates only 100 embryos when they have no one else who can replicate the process? People would be outraged if she went to Europe or Asia and created thousands of embryos there.  I would expect the government to give the doctor whatever she wants to make more embryos and to ensure their successful implantation in carefully screened healthy women. The show better have a really good explanation for the government's actions, maybe they are afraid that people will find out the reason for women becoming infertile.

[tv echo]

I watched this pilot last night because I was fast losing patience with Falling Skies...

 

I think Director Hayes fired Dr. Lennon because he wanted sole power and control over those 100 embryos.  If she stayed, she'd have more power and control than him.  She'd have access to those embryos, as well as the research results, and could hide them or manipulate them.  He also didn't want more than 100 embryos because he probably felt that any greater number would be unmanageable.  With 100, he could control their implantation, growth, and upbringing (brainwashing) in a tightly secure environment, in essence, controlling the next generation of humans and the future of the human race.  What didn't make sense is why he didn't just have Dr. Lennon killed so that she couldn't then go do the work on her own or for another government?  Unless he was secretly planning to have her killed, once she left the facility.  Or, he wanted to keep her alive in case there were problems, but then he should've had her followed or even imprisoned.  Yeah, makes no sense.

 

The lottery idea is kinda stupid.  What if the winners include someone who's really evil and will sell or abuse the child, or someone with a disease or addiction? 

 

I usually like to give a new show with an intriguing premise a few episodes to catch my attention.  Sometimes good characters can overcome plot weaknesses.  But one big flaw I see is that I find the lead character of Dr. Lennon unlikeable.  As mentioned, she ruthlessly uses other people even though she's supposed to be the heroine (I think) - that bar guy for sex and her friend/colleague for access and information.  However, I do like the single dad, Kyle, and his rescue of his little son Elvis.

Edited July 21, 2014 by tv echo

[candall]

This is the kind of show where the emphasis will be on the thrilling action but it would be more interesting to me if they explored the world without children, and if the mystery was how this infertility came about.  Kind of the way that the more interesting thing to me about Revolution was, what did people come up with to cope - not, how did the band of electricity-seekers get the power turned on again.

Exactly! Revolution had a fascinating concept, largely wasted. (We're walking. And walking.) I wouldn't mind if The Walking Dead spent a moment or two on apocalyptic basics, either. After they stumbled across the country club pro shop, you'd think everyone would be wearing fresh Izod polos and madras slacks. No one has been killed for his family-size tube of Crest.

Surely there's some meat on the bone in a reverse Logan's Run scenario, besides the high-tech angle.

[ZoloftBlob]

However, I do like the single dad, Kyle, and his rescue of his little son Elvis.

 

I liked Kyle in that he seems like a nice guy, but for the life of me, I really couldn't figure out why he was part of the story. I mean yes, I caught that he's a rare fertile man, but I didn't see where there was any sort of reasoning for the kid to be ripped away. Also, as the dad of the last child, isn't he a bit of a celebrity? And wouldn't people actually want to help them? And did the boy need to be diabetic?

 

I also found Dr. Lennon unlikeable. And granted I don't find the government especially competant but really, she makes the discovery of the ages that will save the human race from extinction and they promptly fire her?

[Shermie]

it would be more interesting to me if they explored the world without children

 

No kidding, as usual, it as to deteriorate to guns. Imagine the businesses that went belly-up without children - diapers, formula and baby food, baby equipment and toys, daycares and other baby groups, then preschools, and on it goes. Teachers would be doing a countdown until there are no more kids to fill the schools. Theme parks, fairs, toy stores, children's books/libraries, clothing, etc. etc. 

 

Governments would be panicking as many solid job areas experience massive unemployment, and without an incoming workforce, who will finance seniors' pensions? However, some areas might experience economic growth - without children, more people will go out, travel, restaurants, movies (although no movies with children if there are no child actors left - CGI children?). 

 

I thought it was ridiculous to fire the only successful embryo-creating doctor too, but I also thought it was crazy to kill the woman whose eggs have proven viable. The hell?

 

 

As for Kyle, I’m sure he will end up with Dr. Marley Shelton (don’t know the character’s name yet) and she’ll end up pregnant or some such.

The lottery idea is nuts, for the reason stated. In spite of PR and all that, it’s more important to ensure this very limited supply of future humans has the best chance. Not sure if hand-picking the uteruses (uteri?) is any better than a random lottery, but I find it hard to believe that the rich and powerful wouldn’t be doing everything they could to get their hands on them.

 

Although, I suppose the donators of the egg (and sperm) should have first dibs. I wonder how they got those eggs in the first place – if you donated your eggs in a world without fertility, wouldn’t you want some insurance that you’d get the result?

And then there’s the issue that the only known “future of mankind” are all Americans. I mean, really? I get the show is U.S.-made and that they tend to be overly “America is all that exists” and all, but I would think other world powers would be fighting for some of this future humanity (or at least the doctor who created it). Do we really want the future Earth to be populated solely by Americans? 

[ZoloftBlob]

I thought it was ridiculous to fire the only successful embryo-creating doctor too, but I also thought it was crazy to kill the woman whose eggs have proven viable. The hell?

 

Yeah - what was that about?

 

I mean, at least steal her eggs and store them first.

[Shermie]

Or use her as a human incubator, since the eggs would be a half match, genetically. I mean, it's a crisis for all of humanity and they toss away a good chance to help it? 

[random chance]

No kidding, as usual, it as to deteriorate to guns. Imagine the businesses that went belly-up without children - diapers, formula and baby food, baby equipment and toys, daycares and other baby groups, then preschools, and on it goes. Teachers would be doing a countdown until there are no more kids to fill the schools. Theme parks,

True! Offhand anyway, I don't see how the world economy would even survive the loss of all that money.

And then there’s the issue that the only known “future of mankind” are all Americans. I mean, really? I get the show is U.S.-made and that they tend to be overly “America is all that exists” and all, but I would think other world powers would be fighting for some of this future humanity (or at least the doctor who created it). Do we really want the future Earth to be populated solely by Americans?

I wonder if any of the other countries will be trying to kill off the moms or kids, just to keep that from happening. Although really, if there are only a hundred people left to carry on with humanity, does it matter anyway? They're going to own the entire planet in 100 years. (Would anyone be interested in a thread to just talk about that stuff? I always wished we could have done it for Revolution.)

 

Yeah - what was that about?

 

I mean, at least steal her eggs and store them first.

I know! Goose and golden eggs, dude!

[SimoneS]

... I also thought it was crazy to kill the woman whose eggs have proven viable. The hell?

This had not occurred to me, but you are so right. The government should be tracking down all the women who produced the viable eggs along with the sperm donors. 

 

Or use her as a human incubator, since the eggs would be a half match, genetically. I mean, it's a crisis for all of humanity and they toss away a good chance to help it?

 

Now this did occur to me. Just because the embryo appears viable, it does not any woman can carry it to term. The embryos would likely stand the best chance of making it to term in the women who produced them. 

 

The more that I think about it, the more I realize that this show is ridiculous.

Edited July 22, 2014 by SimoneS

[ZoloftBlob]

We really need to send an angry letter. "Dear producers, when you had Brooke murdered, it was really implausible that her eggs were not stolen from her body first! What kind of fertility dystopia are you trying to run here????"

[Iguana]

ZoloftBlob

38 minutes ago

 

We really need to send an angry letter. "Dear producers, when you had Brooke murdered, it was really implausible that her eggs were not stolen from her body first! What kind of fertility dystopia are you trying to run here????"

 

 

Snerk.  How inefficient and short sighted of them.  How can they be a true omnipotent and omniscient  fascist government conspiracy when they miss such an obvious opportunity to fully exploit and de-humanize the woman they just had murdered?

[nemesis]

I spent much of the episode confused and frustrated by the doctor getting fired and the plan to replace most of the team there.  That makes absolutely no sense at all.  You don't fire the only people getting any results.  The vague and lame explanations that she'd ask questions and be hard to control were just painful.  Clearly she was hard to control after being fired but before that she seems to have been happily working away at her job.  Also, why would a person who is being chased by some shady government people return to their apartment?  Really??  It's not like that one guy she left on the train is working alone.  Obviously they would be watching her home and close friends and family.

 

I really expected them to kidnap the woman who donated the egg.  It would make a lot of sense to try to figure out if there was something different about her (with medical tests and like the doctor was trying to do with her questions).  It would also make the most sense for her to carry the baby, even if the baby wasn't left with her.  So, her death was a surprise.  Not a good one.   It just gave me something else to be bothered by.

 

I liked the father and son.  I don't think that kid could be living a normal life, at all, even without the government's sudden attempt to take him.  He'd be in constant danger of kidnapping from all sorts of people looking for a child.  That house they're living in would need some major security.  I agree with the above comment that the father and son would likely be celebrities and would have a platform to create a PR nightmare for the government.  The government could try to paint him as an unfit father, but the media would have been all over that family from the kid's birth onwards.

[blugirlami21]

I like the premise but I feel like everything the government did after discovering the eggs was too stupid.  Do they want fertilized eggs or not?  I feel like the president, the chief of staff and maybe the attorney general? do but not Director Hayes.  Which may be because he wants total control like another poster proposed.  But firing the only doctor in the world who was able to fertilize eggs is still stupid.  Why not make her happy and make sure that she can continue what she is doing.  That's only to his benefit.

 

Why didn't they find the egg donors of the fertilized eggs and get more eggs?  Why not make them the winners of the lottery?  I agree that making it so that any person in the world could win a baby is foolish.  I hope they do background checks before hand to make sure they are good people.  Why would you kill someone that you know can have her eggs fertilized?

 

I too like the father and son but I also agree that the fact that he isn't getting gang raped and/or propositioned all the time suspect.  His sperm fathered the last child ever born, he would either be famous or infamous.  Child services should be bending over backwards to make him happy not trying to take his kid away.  They didn't to seem to have that much intel either if they were supposedly so concerned with the child's welfare over a common stomach virus. 

 

And Dr. Allen is disgusting.  Sleeping with all those men, she doesn't know what they have and she's obviously not using protection.  So yeah gross.

 

A lot of stuff just doesn't make sense and it makes me seriously question how the rest of the show is going to go.

Edited July 22, 2014 by blugirlami21

[seamusk]

I agree with everyone that firing Dr Allen made no sense.  At least, they didn't give us any reason to believe it.  I felt like the pilot was a bit like that overall.  Actions were rushed and therefore motivations were lacking.  But it did cross my mind, given the vacuum of a substantive explanation for it, that maybe the government guy who fired her has an ulterior motive here.  Perhaps he is somehow invested in either preventing fertilization or controlling it.  Maybe financially so?  

 

I like the premise that there is some kind of fertilization crisis with an unknown cause.  And this would certainly be a traumatic outcome for the entire world. It would upset traditional gender roles in ways that birth control hasn't.  I suppose the anti-abortion movement would collapse or at least shift their efforts to other issues. And as others have noted, the economy would be crushed. But as noted on the show, new economies would arise. The fertility economy would be pretty massive. It could not compensate for the jobs lost in teaching, pediatricians, etc...  I guess the service industry would explode though.  Anyhow, all of these elements are fascinating and I hope they explore them better.  I'm hopeful that the poor pacing and plotting was an issue with trying to establish too much in the pilot.

[Louise]

I enjoyed it enough to give it another episode or two. Right now the only two characters I actually like are the dad and his son. I'm not sure Marley Shelton is a good enough actor to carry this show.

[Shangrilala]

I will give this a few more episodes, as I think it has potential, but to be honest, the things that I find most interesting were barely touched up on in the pilot.  I think they jumped way too fast to the fertilization of the embryos and left out so many elements.  For example: what type of government is this now, that they have this "Department of humanity" or whatever they were called that basically took this child away?  The "dystopian" aspect of this needed to be set up better and could make the setting much more interesting.  All we got as introduction was two sentences.  What about the panic?  What about the global response?   What about the economy?  What about the role of government?  Medical ethics?  Individual psyche? 

 

I feel like the pilot tried to tease a few of these things.  For example, the humanity department, the "opposition" which I'm assuming doesn't mean democrats or republicans, access to people's ancestral information, etc. It's like the put some elements out there, but it didn't come off as a teaser, but rather as a glossover.

 

The main character annoyed me.  I think there was reference to her being a security threat somehow, and that's why they fired her.  But because there was no background to that, I don't know if she legitimately had something going on that made her unfit to see the project through, or if the big bad government guy was just being a powerhungry jackass.  But everything she did after she got fired was outright stupid.  She found the name of a donor and told her what she had accomplished with her egg.  What was she hoping to achieve?  Get more info on the subject, I suppose, and perhaps get her to offer her body/eggs to science, but did she not think about the woman's reaction?  That after there has not been a single birth in the world in 9 years, and no doubt this woman has been trying to have a child as well, and suddenly she'd be content to just answer a few questions? 

 

Then, after she realizes she's being followed, she heads home.  To pack her suitcase.  After a government agent was willing to snatch her on a public and crowded commuter train, in front of everybody. 

 

Good god, woman, just go to Target and buy a sweater.  Use cash.

Edited July 22, 2014 by Shangrilala

[random chance]

I don't even see where a hundred embryos will fix any problems beyond keeping humanity from going extinct, because a hundred people won't be enough to take care of a global generation of elderly - give them medical care, grow their food, create their medicines, manufacture their transportation and find the means to run it, and so on. Am I missing something or aren't they already screwed?

[Tooch]

They wouldn't be screwed, I think, as long as they can get this problem solved within 10-15 years. That's quite a gap between generations, it would hurt, but I think if they cure the problem in that time (and by that I mean totally cure--as in everyone can reproduce again, not just these 100 embryos), then things would be less utterly catastrophic. Any longer than that and I'm not so sure...

 

I also hope they go into the insane ramifications of something like this actually happening would have. Previous posters are right--the economy would be fucked, and that's just the beginning.

 

I am also curious why Kyle (and Elvis) isn't more famous, aside from as a sperm donor. And am I the only one who absolutely did not extrapolate from what we saw on screen that he is basically a gigolo? Did I miss a scene? He says he's going to work and then he's coming out of that house. I didn't know what he was doing there but I didn't immediatley jump to "oh, clearly he just had sex with a rich lady who wants his seed".

Edited July 22, 2014 by Tooch

[Shangrilala]

Maybe that is his job - people who have been fertile in the past, without complication, are selected to attempt to mate with each other.  It's a little handmaid's tale-esque.  But without actually setting up the whole pesky dystopian setting. 

 

Although, you'd think that this show could research fertility a little bit better if it's going to be the major focus of the storyline.  The optimal timing for sex when trying to get pregnant, is actually right before you start ovulating and then through the 12-24 hour ovulation period. Not right as ovulation starts, you're likely to miss your window of opportunity.  Not to mention, while it's certainly possible to get pregnant having sex 1 time during that period, your odds are better with more frequency.  The script said: "just in time, I just started ovulating" was wrong.  She should have said "Just in time.  I'll ovulate tomorrow.  Let's do it now and come back again in the morning." 

[seamusk]

I am also curious why Kyle (and Elvis) isn't more famous, aside from as a sperm donor. And am I the only one who absolutely did not extrapolate from what we saw on screen that he is basically a gigolo? Did I miss a scene? He says he's going to work and then he's coming out of that house. I didn't know what he was doing there but I didn't immediatley jump to "oh, clearly he just had sex with a rich lady who wants his seed".

When he arrives at the house there is a lady who greets him at the door and it's strongly says something about him being recommended by her doctor.  It was pretty obvious he was getting paid to mate with the ladies.

[GaT]

I was going to check this show out, but after reading your posts, I'm going to pass. Thanks everyone!

[random chance]

They wouldn't be screwed, I think, as long as they can get this problem solved within 10-15 years. That's quite a gap between generations, it would hurt, but I think if they cure the problem in that time (and by that I mean totally cure--as in everyone can reproduce again, not just these 100 embryos), then things would be less utterly catastrophic. Any longer than that and I'm not so sure...

By the time the 100 have children, wouldn't the current youngest generation already be hitting their sixties? I don't remember now what the gap was. 

[Shermie]

There's only six years since the last babies were born, although there's only a few of them*. I presume more were born the year before that, I.e., there are more seven year olds around, and even more eight year olds, etc. I assume the infertility dropped off more each year.

Thus, even if these 100 are the only humans born, there are enough people in the 10 year span older than them to help care for elderly, produce food, etc. as the population dies off, the need would be reduced exponentially.

*i realize it's American and all! but how do they know for sure that no other babies have been born anywhere in the world? Have they gone to every remote tribe and native peoples? To every tiny village and town? To every backwoods and mountain cabin?

[ZoloftBlob]

No, fertily was sharply declining in 2015 and by 2026, no children had been born in 6 years (my dates might be off a little)

 

So the 100 embryos being born means they would have a 6 year gap to the next children up and assume ever increasing numbers of 7,8, and 9 year olds.

 

If the 100 embryo process can be replicated then they can implant any willing womb and rebuild but the gap would be that 6-7 year period where no children were born.

[random chance]

Ah ok thanks!

[thewhiteowl]

I'm intrigued. I rather liked it. I thought Hayes firing Lennon made sense. He apparently has an agenda and she is quite the maverick so they were doomed from the start. She made it clear she was not going to be cooperative so she got the boot. No real reason to keep her since she admitted that she didn't know why the process worked on those specific eggs.  Sure it would have been smarter for him to contain her and now he has the perfect reason to do so.

I agree with those who said Lennon didn't make very smart decisions, hopefully that will improve.

I liked the father and son plot and am interested to see where that goes.

They really got the Big Bad Gov'mt all up in everybody's business. "Mandatory Fertility Testing"  and not being told the results.

Maybe cause it's Summer and there's not much on but I'm in.

 

[Iamsweetdee]

What was the name of the movie that had a similar premise? I know a Black lady was the first to give birth/successfully give birth, or something like that and the hero had to save her and the kid and get them on a ship?. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

What was the name of the movie that had a similar premise? I know a Black lady was the first to give birth/successfully give birth, or something like that and the hero had to save her and the kid and get them on a ship?.

 

The movie you are thinking of is 'Children of Men'.

 

You shouldn't be surprised then by the fact that one the writers for 'The Lottery' also co-wrote 'Children of Men'.

Edited July 23, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[Iamsweetdee]

Ahhh, thank you. I liked the movie, what happened to the show? I guess the changing from a male to female pain in the ass protagonist (lord knows Hollywood cannot write for women on the whole) and then having to stretch this out past two hours.  Too bad. 

[Aliasscape]

Wow Marley Shelton looks so much like Heather Graham it's ridiculous. But not as ridiculous as this show.

 

Surely the "last 6" would already be practically government controlled and have the very best of everything, especially medical care etc. I don't think Elvis would be riding in some beat up truck. And I agree that someone would have already been overseeing and watching over him anyway.  Especially to make sure he wasn't kidnapped by people seeking a child. They would have been running every test in the book on the parents that fathered the last 6. There'd be donation drives and government funds funneled into raising them. In fact, did Elvis's mother really disappear to do drugs or was she kidnapped by people looking to see if she had more fertile eggs?

 

Also about all the things they might have tried to solve the crisis. I think they'd have reduced pollution so if someone saw anyone smoking a cigarette it'd be like asking to get murdered. All cars would be electric to reduce emissions. More wind, water water power ,cleaner energy. Tighter restrictions on engineering food, food additives, preservatives, pesticides, anything people could think of that might be "killing us" and thereby our fertility.

[Tara Ariano]

Alison faces the aftermath of her actions; Vanessa, Darius and the president's advisors debate the next steps of the lottery. Meanwhile, Kyle and Elvis seek refuge with an old friend, until Elvis suffers a diabetic attack that puts his life in danger and threatens to expose them.

[ottoDbusdriver]

When they take the bag off Dr. Allison's head, only her hands are bound -- she's not even restrained to the chair.  Way to not even try to escape.

 

There is no due process for fertility crimes -- wow, that's a bit of a stretch.  Plus there's a fertility penal code, seriously ?

 

J. August Richards got a promotion from Marvel's AoS -- here he's deputy secretary of some cabinet dept. (probably State Dept.) and is banging the President's Chief of Staff.  Beats the heck out of being disfigured as Deathlok.  And the Chief of Staff is definitely not a morning person -- doesn't really have a sense of humour in the morning.  Plus his vocabulary has improved -- shitstorm, handjobs.  Obviously his handjobs need improvement as he ended up being taken hostage in exchange for embryos. </snark>

 

Straight to waterboarding -- these Dept. of Humanity guys do not fuck around.

 

The whole diabetic emergency shenanigans was stupid just for the sake of filler -- the conveniently placed cooler o' insulin gets broken (why wasn't it in the fridge ?) and sets in motion the dramatic theft sequence from the pharmacy.  And yes, yelling at a child to respond to insulin injections works EVERY time !!! </rollseyes>

 

The actor playing the President is really bad.

 

ETA: Edited due to forum confusion. Was watching one show while typing about another.  Ooops !

Edited July 30, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[rwlevin]

Poor little Elvis is going to seize like crazy and end up brain dead from the amount of insulin his dad just gave him. There's a reason why DKAs are managed in ICUs. Also, 2 cupcakes are not going to put you into a diabetic coma like that. Stupid real life medicine.

[Iguana]

On the plus side I appreciate they're attempting to show some of the rest of the world's reaction to the US having the hundred embryos. Kidnapping the undersecretary of whatever and demanding five embryos as a ransom is something I could see happening under the circumstances and also making crimes against fertility equivalent to terrorism, as anyone who fucks around with that is fucking around with the future of humanity. I can see that particular department having a "were not fucking around" policy with torture as a go to.

But that doctors naïveté about the reactions by the government to these limited numbers of embryos and the politics surrounding them is almost beyond belief. Children are the future, if we are to believe the late Whitney Houston, and the country without children has no future but does have a president who will probably not get reelected. And also that blonde actress really sucks.

But what was well past believable with everything to do with the dad and his son. They were on the run for at least several hours before he so Boy Scoutedly removed the tracking device from the kids arm, so why was there no one on their tail. And given the scarcity of children, they should have stuck out like a clansman at an NAACP meeting. But the worst thing of all was the completely unbelievable plot device Cooler of Broken Insulin Ampules. Setting aside the question of why was it on the floor of the living room instead of safely tucked in the fridge where you think they put something that important, and the fact that every single vial of insulin was broken even though I don't think they're made out of glass anymore, no one who has ever seen a television show before would believe that that child was actually in jeopardy. So stupid, so manipulative, such a waste of time.

They've got me for one more week. But if the interesting doesn't outweigh the stupid in the next ep, I don't think I'm in for another after that.

[millahnna]

Other than the stuff you guys mentioned, something about how the characters spoke of the crisis felt really off to me in a way I can't quite describe. It's like they forgot all about gay people (some of whom would have to be on the government radar as being potentially good parents after the embryos were carried to term). I mean if they are willing to take away little Elvis because the kids are such a precious resource then why do they care if the same person who births them raises them? Also it weirdly felt like the infertility was being focused on the woman even though they have the subthread of Elvis 's dad being a prstitute and sperm donor. Like I said, I have a hard time explaining this. Generally I liked it but the first half hour felt off.

[Shermie]

I was only half paying attention - take that, showrunners! Why are they so antagonist to the only doctor who can apparently solve infertility? Shouldn't she be given the best lab in the country with all the resources and assistants she needs to replicate her work? But they're waterboarding her why?

 

Yet again, my heart for everyday sci-fi* has been stomped upon. Why don't I learn? Will I ever find a show with an interesting modestly sci-fi premise set in the everyday world that isn't a gut-wrenching disappointment?

 

*as opposed to super-futuristic, space-set sci-fi.

[In2You]

Same here.  I've downloaded it already, so maybe I'll watch it sometime this century.  They've picked a cast of actors, Donovan and Graziadei especially, that I find mostly unlikeable.   The show seems like a real downer.

I thought I was the only one that found those two unlikeable. The premise already bothers me for a sci fi show supposedly targeting women. And then on top of that look at what network the show is on. Then there's leads in the cast I don't care for. 

[Primetimer]

If you're hungry for junk food, Lifetime has your salty popcorn.

Read the story

[zxy556575]

The show seems like a real downer.

 

Yeah, and not in an interesting way.

[random chance]

I didn't even finish the episode, which I don't regret now that I know about the insulin crisis. Somehow they've made their really interesting premise as exciting as watching someone change a tire.

[redpencil]

Why on earth did the doctor tell the chief of staff (or whoever she is) what she was going to do ahead of time? She should have just gone on stage and given the speech she wanted without warning them. That was so stupid. At the very least (since for story telling they probably couldn't have the truth get out yet), have the chief threaten her lab assistant all on her own. Seems like something she would have done even if the doctor hadn't said anything.

[seamusk]

Why on earth did the doctor tell the chief of staff (or whoever she is) what she was going to do ahead of time? She should have just gone on stage and given the speech she wanted without warning them. That was so stupid. At the very least (since for story telling they probably couldn't have the truth get out yet), have the chief threaten her lab assistant all on her own. Seems like something she would have done even if the doctor hadn't said anything.

This in so many ways.  She's not very savvy.  I guess she's a scientist and not a strategist?  She's never played werewolf or seen tv?

 

Anyhow, I actually enjoyed this episode.  It helped that the pilot was so bad that I went in with super low expectations.  I started to watch it late last night and decided it was too awful to continue.  I just couldn't get past the stupid waterboarding scene.  But when I watched today I realized it was getting interesting even if the writing and acting was still subpar.

 

As for the fertility crimes as terrorism.  I get that with dwindling births there must have been, and still must be, huge kidnapping issues with children and also just a general public interest in the protection and safety of children.  But how exactly did that get to waterboarding and suspending constitutional norms?  I just don't know that I see it.  I'm not saying it's not possible. I haven't thought about it too deeply.  But it all seemed too ridiculous. For one thing, there haven't been any embryos to steal for years.  So I would think that most of the crimes against children are straightforward kidnapping or fertility drug fraud.  

[Jordan27]

Wow, after an interesting premise and a decent pilot, this one brought out the thing we don't want to see.  Cliches galore and stupid writing and characters.

 

Yep, the whole insulin thing was stupid.  Insulin in a place where it could get broken and then they all just happen to get broke.  The kid goes downhill a lot faster than anyone would.  The ridiculous theft at the pharmacy. 

 

And if you call the cops, they always ask your name. 

 

And Dr. Marley, maybe a tape recorder would help with a little leverage.  Get them threatening you on tape and you have the upper hand.  Or , make a record of everything and make copies with the instructions they go to all the media outlets if you should die suddenly.

 

Considering we are in ep 2, this was a bad sign.  The writers have already run out of smart characters and plots.

[renatae]

It seems to me that the elimination of everyone "in the know"  is designed to show the insecurity and desire for omnipotence of the powers that be. Their actions in general make no sense, but one gets the feeling these people are so power hungry that they don't think things through. As soon as a character comes up with an "aha" moment, bam!, here come the authorities. It makes for an easy if frustrating story line. One feels Inspector Javert is on duty. Darius wants to take complete control, shifting away the rights of parents and transferring control of the child to the government, eliminating previous "folksy notions of motherhood and childhood."

 

For me, there is a bit of plausibility there because I think we have the seeds of this sort of governmental control of children already extant. There is the UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child, which is not so much directed toward children's rights, but instead directed at taking away parental freedoms, and even the freedoms of the signatory states to make their own laws regarding children. In the U.S., this would shift the power to make laws regarding children from states to the Federal Government, and further, any laws the Federal government would make in regard to children would have to line up with the UN treaty. Parental decisions would be subject to review, and children could object and bring lawsuits. 

 

That Chief of Staff seems to be a dual personality. Mostly bad, she likes to occasionally play the humanitarian, but she's as devious and manipulative as she can be if she's not getting her way.

[Sofie Fatale]

The Strain must be filmed in Montreal -- the Dept. of Humanity building they showed is the Olympic Stadium from the 1976 Olympics.

When they take the bag off Dr. Allison's head, only her hands are bound -- she's not even restrained to the chair. Way to not even try to escape.

There is no due process for fertility crimes -- wow, that's a bit of a stretch. Plus there's a fertility penal code, seriously ?

J. August Richards got a promotion from Marvel's AoS -- here he's deputy secretary of some cabinet dept. (probably State Dept.) and is banging the President's Chief of Staff. Beats the heck out of being disfigured as Deathlok. And the Chief of Staff is definitely not a morning person -- doesn't really have a sense of humour in the morning. Plus his vocabulary has improved -- shitstorm, handjobs. Obviously his handjobs need improvement as he ended up being taken hostage in exchange for embryos.

Straight to waterboarding -- these Dept. of Humanity guys do not fuck around.

The whole diabetic emergency shenanigans was stupid just for the sake of filler -- the conveniently placed cooler o' insulin gets broken (why wasn't it in the fridge ?) and sets in motion the dramatic theft sequence from the pharmacy. And yes, yelling at a child to respond to insulin injections works EVERY time !!!

The actor playing the President is really bad.

The Strain is filmed in Toronto.

Yes The Lottery is filmed here in Montreal. A lot of scenes like the speech scene and the doc's house are filmed across the street from me in an area called Little Burgundy.