S01.E07: Solace For Tired Feet

[Tara Ariano]

Kevin orders an APB after learning that his father has escaped from the psychiatric hospital; Jill tries to break a record for endurance; Tom makes a disturbing discovery while hunkering down in Indiana.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Jill tries to break a record for endurance

 

An endurance record in the choking game ?  Because that can't be good.

[ganesh]

Maybe the longest time for bitchface.

[Davey]

 

Maybe the longest time for bitchface.

 Breaking her own record?

[benteen]

I have to call a shout out to that episode of Perfect Strangers that the daughter's friend was watching.  It was called The Karate Kids and was one of the funnier episodes PS had on.

[valjane]

I was really confused by this episode, actually. I didn't know what was happening or why most of the time.

Did anyone else think the bite marks on the chief's hand looked more human than dog?

[Guest]

I didn't know what was happening or why most of the time.

Don't feel bad. I'm pretty sure that confession qualifies you to be a writer on this show.

Did anyone else think the bite marks on the chief's hand looked more human than dog?

That looked most definitely like a human bite mark. One I presume he got while sexing the daugheter's friend? (sorry, can't be bothered to learn these people's names)

Speaking of her, I just loved how Kevin didn't even bother to follow up with his daughter's friend about the events that night much like he totally poo-poo'd Nora casually mentioning the theft of her family photos. If only he knew someone in the police department who could look into that.

Two things brought me joy this episode: Justin Theroux's ass and the final line in the preview--"You still have time to catch up before the final three episodes." I pray they wrap this shit show up in one season. HBO needs to get its act together.

Edited August 11, 2014 by Guest

[shapeshifter]

Note to self:

1) Go to sleep now.

2) Check the May 1972 Nat. Geos. at work tomorrow for which one has...what was that on the cover? A black bear?

A lot of stuff went down then: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1972

Kudos to the writers for doing their homework and picking a kind of Apocalypse Now-ish date.

Interesting that father and son both now have severly injured left hands.

I was wondering if Christine's "fever" was because she was about to give birth or because Wayne gave her AIDs or some STD--especially after he asked Tommy (is that his name?) if he had done it with her.

Edited August 11, 2014 by shapeshifter

[RandomX]

Let's see - enjoyed the exploding cell phones and was thinking that a mash-up of the Chief's frustrated / angry phone calls would be amusing.

Interesting that the Gary IN guy (with pregnant girl #2) professed to be a true believer in Wayne's hugs, yet had no problem spending a chunk of dwindling cash on blow. How does Wayne know where everyone is? He doesn't seem like he has the set up for tracking them via phone GPS. Maybe all the logistical conversations are occurring off-screen. It seemed like Wayne was perhaps being held someplace (albeit with cell phone access).

That barking dog kept setting off my dog. I liked the flashes of the dog leaping out (of the mailbox) or up (at the window) reminescent of the bear on the cover of the Nat Geo magazine, but I don't know what it means. Hope someone remembered to give the dog water, too.

I did like showing that Kevin was gulping down the prescription meds in addition to the alcohol -- the blackouts make more sense now, a few times I have wondered how he's still functioning as an alcoholic; the pills can be more insidious in terms of memory loss but easier to mask long-term abuse.

[Armchair Critic]

During the previews for next week it said "See the show everybody is talking about". I am the only person I know who watches this, not buying it.

 

Was Kevin blacked out when he had sex with Nora? He looked confused when he woke up. I really like them together, so far Nora is about the only character I like.

 

 

 

 

[Milaxx]

Good lord this is a stupid show! I am honestly trying to give this a shot, but this is like growing layers of stupid. I think I was actually cheering for the refrigerator this week. Nora was the only person I liked. Why try to talk to people who have repeatedly shown themselves to be unreasonable? Hosing them was the smartest move. Wet them down and go about your business.  I have never wished  for a show's cancellation before but this needs to be taken out back and shot.

[Trick Question]

A bit of background on that issue of National Geographic....as this link explains, Christine's sleepy mumbling about 'the spider that lives underwater' is a direct reference to that magazine, plus Kevin's walkie-talkie squawks "Cairo" in his dream (also one of the stories mentioned in the mag) and there's a feature about the Minoans, an ancient Greek culture whose disappearance still hasn't been truly solved by archeologists.

[thuganomics85]

This was not a good episode for cellphones.  Two casualties tonight!  Felt bad for Matt's caretaker or whatever she is.  Dick move, Kevin.  Dick move.

 

I could watch the clip of Nora hosing down Liv Tyler and Other GR, over and over again.  That's one way to handle them.  Only way it would have been better is if it was done to Patti and Laurie instead.  But, I'll take it!  Nora is awesome!  And, while not as cool, I'm all for Matt and his congregation trolling the GR, with those posters.  Fight fire with fire! 

 

Besides that, eh.  After loving last week's, it was back to the basics.  Tom and Christine are boring and continue to waste screen time.  Kevin is being a jackass and flipping out.  Scott Glenn is back and chewing scenery.  Jill and the teens are still annoying assholes.  Although, I also think something went down with Kevin and Aimee.  And, it does sound like she is living with them, so I still wonder what that is all about.  More questions and mysterious items.  Like this National Geographic magazine.  Maybe at the end of this season, the answers will be provided by all of this silly shit.  The magazine.  The rabid dogs.  The Baby Jesus!  Just need to get Nicolas Cage to show up and decipher the codes!

[BooBear]

Although, I also think something went down with Kevin and Aimee.  And, it does sound like she is living with them, so I still wonder what that is all about.  More questions and mysterious items.  Like this National Geographic magazine.  Maybe at the end of this season, the answers will be provided by all of this silly shit.  The magazine.  The rabid dogs.  The Baby Jesus!  Just need to get Nicolas Cage to show up and decipher the codes!

You know a show has nothing when 1/2 an episode is just scenes to make you wonder if the main character is crazy. I think Aimee bit his hand. Under what circumstances, who knows. I thought when Kevin slept with Nora he was going to wake up with Aimee. Seems the show loves playing with this.  Mostly a wasted episode, but glad that Holy Wayne turns out to be a fraud.

 

[shapeshifter]

A bit of background on that issue of National Geographic....as this link explains, Christine's sleepy mumbling about 'the spider that lives underwater' is a direct reference to that magazine, plus Kevin's walkie-talkie squawks "Cairo" in his dream (also one of the stories mentioned in the mag) and there's a feature about the Minoans, an ancient Greek culture whose disappearance still hasn't been truly solved by archeologists.

So can we say of the Nat Geo riddle: refrigerator=diving bell???

If you want to go all Lostian, at http://ngm-beta.nationalgeographic.com/ type into the search box: May 1972

I could watch the clip of Nora hosing down Liv Tyler and Other GR, over and over again.

Actually, I did, due to technical difficulties, and was appropriately disturbed by the visual of Nora hosing a black protester. I think she's the first black GR we've seen.

[NorthstarATL]

 

Mostly a wasted episode, but glad that Holy Wayne turns out to be a fraud.

Wayne was shown last episode, though, to not be a fraud, insofar as the hugging goes. Can't blame him for setting up more than one pregnant woman/caretaker. After all, you never know when one of them might disappear. Literally.

   

 

Actually, I did, due to technical difficulties, and was appropriately disturbed by the visual of Nora hosing a black protester. I think she's the first black GR we've seen.

 There've been a couple so far. I don't blame the show/Nora. Annoying has no color.

    Nothing thus far has dissuaded me from the theory that the Disappeared left to get away from these idiots.

Edited August 11, 2014 by NorthstarATL

[TexasGal]

During the previews for next week it said "See the show everybody is talking about". I am the only person I know who watches this, not buying it.

 

Was Kevin blacked out when he had sex with Nora? He looked confused when he woke up. I really like them together, so far Nora is about the only character I like.

People are talking about it.  They are saying things like, "WTF is going on with this piece of shit show?!" and "Really HBO?"  See?  I'm talking about it too.

 

In all seriousness, I actually did enjoy this episode.  I think because I find Nora and Matt to be the most interesting characters on the show and they were both present.  And I am intrigued by what is going on with crazy former cop.  And I like looking at Justin Theroux.

[Primetimer]

After an intriguing run of episodes The Leftovers revives its most worrisome storyline. Is there a larger plan, or has the show run amok?

Read the story

[gaPeach]

I was really confused by this episode, actually. I didn't know what was happening or why most of the time.

Did anyone else think the bite marks on the chief's hand looked more human than dog?

Count me in as totally lost.  I have no idea what is going on and don't care other than I am committed to finish this thing.  I guess I keep thinking "ok this week we will get some answers.......er no maybe not!"  And its nice to know I am just not dumb and not "getting it". 

 

What's up with the rabid dog?  Who is grandpa talking to?  Why are they talking to him? Why don't they talk to his son?  Why does the ex wife GR not care her husband is boning someone else?  How can she look at her daughter and not run to her and hug her? (this stuff disturbs me the most as I am a mother and NO WAY would I crap out on my kids).  What are the GR trying to prove anyway?  Why is Wayne sleeping in hallway?  Why do I care?

[Lakewood27]

Has the nature of the mayor and Kevin Sr.'s relationship been established?

[stillshimpy]

In all seriousness, I actually did enjoy this episode.

Gosh, me too. I think I must have been in just the right mood for it. Kevin's story really interested me, there are clearly things going on that are incredibly bizarre, and impossible to understand, but here's the thing: that's the headspace the character is in too. Whereas most of the time the characters react to the GR like they know a great deal more than we do (which is maddening), the good parts about Kevin's story are that he is the same boat as we are. Just a guy surrounded by a world gone mad, missing pieces of a puzzle, strange and entirely baffling clues as to what might be going on.

However, that was a human bite mark. The thing that jumped up at the window looked like a bear and the series gave us a clue that there is going to be some kind of connecting thread. Scott Glenn -- who I personally think is giving one of the more restrained "I hear voices and have a choir invisible wherever I go" performances -- is doing good work with very difficult material.

I have no clue what is going on, but the previews finally suggested to me that there is a point to the mysterious workings of the GR.

Holy Wayne and his knocked up harem -- which is just sort of pathetic at this point because those poor, duped girls and their duped protectors -- are an element that doesn't have me particularly interested, but everything else does.

I like Nora, and I like Kevin with Nora. I increasingly can't stand Aimee, because why in the world is she living at that house? I'm just relieved to know that there is some kind of connecting thread. We'll see if they pull it off.

Liv Tyler is apparently willing to look like something to be scraped off the bottom of a shoe, and I admit, I laughed at Nora turning the hose on the GR. It's just they so richly have it coming. Actually, Pastor Matt might too at this rate, for helping Scott Glenn's character recruit Kevin into what is clearly misery.

Finally Jill is simultaneously sympathetic and annoying beyond the telling of it. I liked her when she was interacting with her grandfather and finally really sort of admired the actor's performance in that scene. I liked that she called her father before letting her grandfather in and that her grandfather was proud of her for doing that. Generations of cops and that was the first family moment that rang true to me.

So, judging by that packed fridge, someone spends a fair amount of time shopping. Maybe it's the deer or Kevin strolls the frozen food aisle in his blackout states.

Edited August 11, 2014 by stillshimpy

[ottoDbusdriver]

There was a teenager in that fridge in the woods on the day of the Departure.  Sure there was.  But why ? Were these teenagers playing screwed up almost-killing themselves type of games (like the choking game) before the Departure (the invocation on the fridge said he did it involuntarily)?  If that is true, then the Departure doesn't seem to have changed them much at all.  Plus, how did Jill get such great cell phone reception inside a metal box ?  And despite being all hot and sweaty before the door handle broke off, then panicking even more after the handle broke off and nearly passing out from lack of oxygen, Jill looks calm and composed (and non-sweaty) after Grandpa gets the fridge open. To make matters worse, the makeup on everyone in the scene in the woods was awful -- I thought they all had jaundice.

 

Christine is now 8 months pregnant -- she was only 12 weeks three episodes ago.  That would mean that's been almost 7 months since the Oct. 14 anniversary in the Pilot episode, which would put this episode approx. around April of the following year.  And Nora/Kevin had 4 dates since the last episode.

 

Tom -- here's a quick tip, don't feed boiling hot soup to anyone. 

That money that Tom had -- those were some ratty old bills.  For being on the run, Tom has a pretty nice car.  What are the odds that two of Holy Wayne's teen brides/girlfriends would be in the same town ? Do all these girls think that THEIR baby is the bridge ? Now Tom has a gunshot hand, no way to get in contact with Holy Wayne, $3000 fewer dollars, and a new baby to take care of -- life just got even worse for him.

 

How did Holy Wayne know that Tom was in Gary, Indiana for that money dead drop if they haven't been in contact in 2 months ?  Have they been in Gary that long ?  And what happened to the Barefoot people bulls-eye-on-the-forehead nonsense ?

 

Pastor Matt has spent his gambling winnings on a pretty snazzy printer, in order to make all those posters.

 

The Chief is a responsible gun owner -- leaving a loaded handgun on the coffee table.  So that anyone who might break in has easy access to it, or he might fire it during one of his alcohol/prescription meds-fuelled dreams. And he might want to get a tetanus shot (because that was a human bite, and pretty deep to boot).  When did he bring that dog home, and tie him up in the backyard ?  Did the BBA give it to him ?  What was the deal in his dream with the dogs in the mailbox and the dead GRs (including Laurie) in the back of BBA's pickup truck ?  The Chief takes the train to poundtown with Nora Durst -- finally.

 

Why does the Chief's dad have such a hard-on for libraries ?  Burned one down and trashed this one.  Is it just the voices or something else going on with him ?  Though the Chief's dad dig bring the snark to Jill when she's opening the fridge -- "Don't get trapped in there". Scott Glenn plays one really tough old crazy motherfucker pretty well.

 

Amy was dropping some pretty non-subtle double-entendres to Chief Garvey -- "Are you going to feed that thing ?"

Edited August 11, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[Constantinople]

Not really sure why I'm still watching the show. I don't hate it, but I have a feeling if I missed an episode, that would be all it would take to stop watching it permanently.

Given Nora's "departure" status, I can see why the GR is trying to recruit her. But I'm wondering why this is the first we've heard of it.

And call me old fashioned, but I think it's a problem when the characters in the show are making fun of the GR's totally incoherent belief system.

 

Interesting that the Gary IN guy (with pregnant girl #2) professed to be a true believer in Wayne's hugs, yet had no problem spending a chunk of dwindling cash on blow.

That would really frost my ass above and beyond there being another Tom/Christine pair.

But I'm distressed that Tom met them and destroyed his cellphone. I'm concerned Tom will take Christine and head home, and Christine is really, really boring.

[ganesh]

TPTBs have dropped the ball all over the place, but I think the worst was not having Nora the main pov for the show. Really, E1, her episode, and this one were really the only episodes you need for this show. There's nothing else gleaned from the others that were necessary to the show. 

 

Honestly, the scene with Nora and the chief in the car has been the best scene in the entire series.

 

I don't know if TPTBs are following the book exactly or using it as a general basis for the show, but it's obvious now that the show is pretty much just a collection of scenes. I guess the viewers are just a flickering pov that just go in and out here and there because there's no real information gained.

 

The chief actually asks some direct questions to his father at the diner. Response: zero. Cloying crytpic dialogue. That's not being mysterious. It's E7. You have to drop some answers.

 

Only way it would have been better is if it was done to Patti and Laurie instead.

 

I'm surprised that the town just hasn't passed an ordinance banning smoking. Allowing the chief to arrest them at will. Speaking of the town, I was paying more attention to the scenery, and I'm just not getting "small town" from what I'm seeing. 

 

Holy Wayne and his knocked up harem -- which is just sort of pathetic at this point because those poor, duped girls and their duped protectors -- are an element that doesn't have me particularly interested, but everything else does.

 

I still think it's a mistake to have the two cults. I laughed though when the chief's stepson busted in the motel room and there was another asian pregnant girl. Not surprising. I'm at least buying Wayne as a legit cult. 

 

There was a teenager in that fridge in the woods on the day of the Departure.  Sure there was.  But why?

 

Because they never watched Punky Brewster. The show has a strong aversion to cluing us in on *anything* pre 10/14.  I could get why they were doing it post 10/14, but it seems like these teens are too old to do something that stupid. I don't get why any of them hang with Jill. She's such a drip. The twins are actually kind of believable to me. It doesn't seem like the departure really fucked them up.

 

And call me old fashioned, but I think it's a problem when the characters in the show are making fun of the GR's totally incoherent belief system.

 

Nora doing it is ok for me. Because she seems to be over everyone's bullshit. But the chief said himself said he's investigating them. And then he doesn't say anything about the stolen photos. No one is. 

 

The execution of this show is just so poor. If they're trying to tell me that departures have happened before in human history, that's fine, but you need to do it in E1, or E2 by the latest. In E1, the pastor says it's not the rapture. Then you end the episode maybe with the dad and the magazine saying that it's happened before. Or, if you want to have the dad escaping and running around, do it immediately next. 

 

I don't mind a slowing moving show, if I know it's going somewhere. You've got to show that though. If the chief is investigating prior departures, then not getting too much into the GR isn't as glaring. But now? It's probably just another half baked concept that's going no where.

[walnutqueen]

Seven episodes, and I have no fucking clue why I'm even watching anymore.  Scott Glenn, I guess ...

[Tim Thomason]

I don't think there was a kid in that fridge during the Departure. I assume that kid was somewhere else when he disappeared, and the "in the fridge" urban legend grew up around him after being invented and elaborated by one of the other teens. It does give us a firm date for the series (October 2014-May 2015).

 

Perfect Strangers being on TV was nice. I'm sure people are fascinated with that show in universe.

 

I don't mind it so much not getting answers (in fact, I'd rather not get The Ultimate Answer of the mystery), I just would like them to stop giving us questions. Send Tom back home, have Kevin start to feel a bit better, pretty much become a show about people finally getting over this cataclysmic event.

 

So, in the alternate 2015, in a world with texting and internet, Tom Garvey has vanished for a period of roughly 7 months with no contact with the outside world. His father expressed some concern before Christmas, but otherwise seems to have moved on with his life. His son could've been killed by some hobo (literally) and his police chief father would've been none-the-wiser for half-a-year plus. This in a world where 2% of everyone has already mysteriously vanished.

 

I'm just thinking that the whereabouts of Tom should've been a bigger part of Kevin and Jill's storyline, with some scenes (early on) about how they couldn't get in touch with Tom, and maybe even a missing persons report at some point, if Tom's last contact information turned up nothing. He's an adult, but still. I'd like Kevin's list of problems to include "my son is worringly missing" more than "what happened to those bagels?" I'd like Jill to announce (publicly or privately) that she's scared at her shrinking family and worried for her older brother. I'd like Lori to secretly cry over a picture of Tom and maybe make some internet searches on the QT.

 

I'm not a fan of Tom's story, but a big part of that is that it doesn't seem connected at all to the plot. Perhaps the "final three episodes" will help that connection. But I'm not holding my breath.

[scrb]

Eh, Nora had a nice body.

 

Kevin was ready to introduce her to Jill as the new mom, until he flipped out over the NG copy.

[Sofie Fatale]

Uh Scott Glenn is ripped. I could see why he was still getting some play from the much younger mayor. Nice.

[Shermie]

I thought it was nice to see Kevin be so happy and upbeat for once (on his morning after his nookie with Nora). Of course, it didn't last.

[ganesh]

I'm wondering if it's a running gag that when the chief and the mayor are in a scene together that she says, "fuck you, Kevin."

[Sofie Fatale]

I'm wondering if it's a running gag that when the chief and the mayor are in a scene together that she says, "fuck you, Kevin."

I actually love their chemistry lol. They can't stand each other and it's hilarious.

[Armchair Critic]

The best part for me was when Kevin and Nora are in bed and he tells her he thinks he is going crazy and she says he came to the right place and they both laugh.

[MissL]

I'm confused. Did Laurie or any of the Garvey's have anyone that "disappeared"? I don't think so right? Or maybe they haven't said yet?  If they weren't directly effected then what drove Laurie over the edge? I mean I understand it was disturbing for everyone but I feel like to join the GR you'd have to have some direct impact from the departed.  I mean I don't think we should be this far in to the season and I don't even know that for sure.  Did Tom's biological father disappear or something? Or just leave them long before that? I just...really. This is way too many questions for me and I watched Lost AND The X-Files.

 

And Jill's friend...seriously? Why is she living at their house? Not even a mention of the circumstances that allow her to ALWAYS be there. Why can't I quit this show? is it because there really isn't much of anything else new on? Wait this one I can answer:  Yes. I think maybe they are benefiting from that.

[ganesh]

From what I watched, Kevin, Laurie, Jill, and Tom were the whole family. They did show some pictures on the wall in the stairway and it looked like only the 4 of them iirc.

 

I could speculate that maybe Tom became disillusioned and maybe drifted away and got involved with the cult, which caused Laurie to join the GR. Or that + maybe she found out that Kevin cheated on her. 

 

But the show hasn't definitively established why any one is in the GR. And of course, since it's a pretty natural question, no one has asked either.

[GaiusB]

I have to admit from all Sunday shows, i like Leftovers most now when GoT and Shameless are on break. Why it so  is true mystery of the show, because objectively it is not so good. It have many flaws, some characters (mysterious dogs killer is worst offender) and all cults are completely unbelievable. Why keep characters motivation all mysterious, dialogues all cryptic when it should be a drama about human reaction on supernatural event i do not understand. Yet i am still looking forward to it.

 

So i tried to find reasons why i like watching it. I think it have certain unpredictability that is refreshing. You really can not guess what will happen next. It is not because of some excellent writing, but it is still refreshing compared to other shows, whose bad writing lead to boring predictability. And some characters are pretty good (even if they not very likable) and so are actors playing them.

 

To this episode. Those bitemarks did not look like they are from a dog, they look human. Ofcourse if they are from a human, it does not make Kevin a very bright cop. What are odds Kevin and Aimee had sex? My little theory is it was not first time. Aimee is eyefucking Kevin all the time, she never wear a bra in his presence and i am not sure that Kevin dream about her in his bed from some previous episode was really a dream and not a recollection from one of his blackouts. I think she seduced him, than realized he does not remember it and since then she is using his blackouts to get what she want.

[shapeshifter]

I'm confused. Did Laurie or any of the Garvey's have anyone that "disappeared"? I don't think so right? Or maybe they haven't said yet?  If they weren't directly effected then what drove Laurie over the edge?

Well, we do know that Kevin cheated on her. That could do it, combined with the event, and other life stress. But if it is going to turn out that it was because her parents or sister or someone else close disappeared (maybe the father of her son), they better tell us soon, or it will feel like a retcon.

And Jill's friend...seriously? Why is she living at their house? Not even a mention of the circumstances that allow her to ALWAYS be there. Why can't I quit this show? is it because there really isn't much of anything else new on? Wait this one I can answer:  Yes. I think maybe they are benefiting from that.

Others have asked this, and although her presence does annoy at times, it doesn't seem weird to me. Even when parents don't disappear in the manner of this show, sometimes they do abandon their teens, or sometimes teens and parents don't get along, and if there's a best friend with room in the home (physically and otherwise), it's not unusual for the teen to informally adopt the new family. I remember after my only sister went away to college that I enjoyed having dinner at the home of a close friend who was one of eight kids (this was in the 60s).

[A Boston Gal]

Anyone have any insight as to the title of the show, or did I miss a line of explanation somewhere? (Probably from Preacher Matt, as I tend to fast forward past his inexplicable babblings. This episode,  I found him very annoying.  Really, Preacher? You just can't cut  HotCop a break, as he uses what little sanity he has left trying to protect this bizarre town from his own father? Sometimes, I just want to slap everyone on this show. Except for Nora.)

Edited August 12, 2014 by A Boston Gal

[ganesh]

Others have asked this, and although her presence does annoy at times, it doesn't seem weird to me.

 

This actually doesn't bother me either. It also could be because the chief is not around a lot, after Laurie left, she came over to keep Jill company and ended up staying over a lot. Kevin actually seems like a decent parent, so I could buy he let her stay because the family disintegrated and he's not around a lot. 

 

Something like this is what you can leave the viewer to fanwank. There's major planks of the show that are incomprehensible, however, and that's not playing fair with the audience. I'd even give the situation with whether the pastor's church attendance declined because he's gone over board on his Not The Rapture Crusade. But it seems obvious that something like religion would be a huge issue if something like this happened, so to blatantly ignore it just doesn't hold up. 

 

Falling Skies is ridiculously, laughably predictable at this point. This show is like the polar opposite. I'd be worried if I put them both up on my computer at the same time that I'd create a black hole. Neither one is really acceptable though. 

 

A show can unpredictable, but when you look at the season holistically, you should be able to see how events unfolded. This show is unpredictable because nothing is really going on. 

 

What's going to happen? There's going to be a bunch of black-asian babies. Someone already called that earlier in the season. I assume there's some "big reveal" about the GR coming up, but it won't connect to anything previously. And dun dun dun *this has happened before*. If it's true that Kevin fucked Jill's friend; she's been eyefucking him all over the place. Not a huge surprise there. 

 

Oh, and Jill will probably sulk about something. 

[Michell3]

 

So i tried to find reasons why i like watching it. I think it have certain unpredictability that is refreshing. You really can not guess what will happen next.

 

See, I find that this is what I hate and what I like about this show.  It's completely aimless.  At least with the Walking Dead (which I also think has weak writing, weak characters - except Daryl, OF COURSE - , but better overall story-telling), you know the ultimate goal, and you feel some overall forward momentum.  With this show, it's like watching ants after you've stepped on their pile.  Story lines just running about confused.  But this is also why I continue to watch, because I hate it but it keeps me curious enough to tune in every week.  I hope that, after the finale, I don't wish for those 10 hours of my life back.  

 

 

What are odds Kevin and Aimee had sex?

 

Odds are pretty good, I'd say.  And rough sex too, given the bite mark on his hand.  Ugh.  Why isn't Kevin more concerned about this?  He fell asleep fully clothed in his living room, woke up half naked on his bedroom floor, with (presumably) jailbait Aimee the only person who knows what happened.  And why the hell doesn't he ask her, "hey...what happened?"  He acknowledges he doesn't remember anything and then.....he doesn't give a shit.  What the hell? I'm relieved he's flushed down his meds.  

 

However, I do like Aimee.  I haven't read the book, but I'm assuming her home life must suck if living with, and spending all her time with Jill of all people is better.  And I get why Kevin allows her to stick around.  She's the only teenager in the house who will talk to him, the only way of knowing how Jill is doing. I hope he's not having sex with Aimee and Nora at the same time, because I like Kevin, and that would shorten an already very short list of characters I like on this show.  He's seriously flawed but generally tries to do the right thing.

 

I like this story line with crazy Garvey and near-crazy Garvey.  Crazy Garvey is a very believable ass-kicking grandpa-type. I feel like I have something to look forward to for the next episode.  Suspense.  That forward momentum.  More of this, please.  

 

How are any of these Holy Wayne groupies surprised there are more than one Tom/Christines?  There were several young Asian girls at the compound.  This should surprise no one.  

[ganesh]

It's completely aimless.

 

Aimless. That's the word perfect. 

 

As shit as TWD has been at times, I do get the feeling of the world that it takes place in. Some of the characters behave stupidly in it, and they tend to die. 

 

How are any of these Holy Wayne groupies surprised there are more than one Tom/Christines?  There were several young Asian girls at the compound.  This should surprise no one.

 

I think the point of the Tom scenes was that he was slowly figuring it out, but Wayne pushed him out on his own so fast after the raid that he's barely been able to process everything. They were assaulted in that halfway house, then he had to run from the cops at the hospital, so it seems like this is the first time he was finally able to sit down and say, wtf is going on here. Didn't he try to call Kevin at one point too? 

 

But it was written shoddily because Tom definitely was talking to two young Asian women on the compound, so he probably should have put 2 and 2 together a little before this. 

 

They should just do an episode from the POV of the twins. 

[shapeshifter]

What are odds Kevin and Aimee had sex? My little theory is it was not first time....

Odds are pretty good, I'd say....

I'm still hoping he didn't, and I'm basing this hope on the briefly jolly mood he was in after his nookie with Nora. I don't think he'd be that "relieved" or happy about it if he had even a vague suspicion that he was having sex with Aimee during his blackouts. I could be wrong, but I hope I'm not.

[Michell3]

 

They should just do an episode from the POV of the twins.

 

haha i wish!  i like those guys.  what a couple of knuckleheads.  i feel like this show is a little unfair to teens in general; they're portrayed in broad cartoon strokes,, overgrown toddlers, not fleshed out characters. but i like the twins, they are a goofy light-hearted bright spot, really an anomaly, in an otherwise bleak and joyless world. they might be aliens.

[Michell3]

 

I don't think he'd be that "relieved" or happy about it if he had even a vague suspicion that he was having sex with Aimee during his blackouts. I could be wrong, but I hope I'm not.

 

i thought his lack of interest in finding out from aimee what really happened the night his hand got injured could be taken either way.  either "something so messed up happened that i can't even deal with it right now...back to finding crazy ol' dad" or "clearly i blacked out and my hand got bit, what else is there to know?  gotta lay off those pills."  i think the sexual awkwardness between kevin and aimee will come to a head at some point, but i'm hoping this wasn't it.   hopefully, the show wouldn't be launching some lovely affair with Nora at the same time leading us down a road of statutory rape. bleh.  you wouldn't do that to us, would you, show? bleh. but i have a teeny tiny bad feeling.  

[Tryp]

A frustrating episode, especially after the last one was so engaging.

 

Here is my main problem: although there are other characters that the narrative follows closely, the nearest thing to our main point-of-view character, Kevin, is not very sympathetic and his dreams/visions/hallucinations serve to make him a very unreliable "narrator".

 

There are many indications that Kevin is (was) basically a decent husband and father, and he seems more tolerant of the GR than many.  But we repeatedly have been shown that he is an alcoholic pill-popper who flies way off the handle whenever he gets frustrated by something.  I don't really get a lot of enjoyment from watching him yell fuck, fuck, fuck whenever anything goes the slightest bit wrong.

 

The Leftovers world is an abnormal one, so too many scenes that are hallucinations rather than true depictions of the world as it exists in the story serve to disengage me from what is going on (I never had much tolerance for hallucination scenes anyway, even in stories set in our real world.)  That whole thing with the dog trapped in the mailbox was preposterous.  How would any animal larger than a beagle ever get in there, even if it were picked up and inserted?  Now that he has thrown out the pills and seems open to the idea that some of what is going on is "messages", maybe these things will start to make some sense for us.

 

Wayne's cult does not bother me so much -- it seems pretty believable as far as having a charismatic leader who has selected his flock in part for sexual reasons.  I am OK with his healing being purely placebo or being based on "powers" or remaining ambiguous -- I accept that this series will have overt supernatural events as time goes by (the disappearance of the 2% already established that).  Tom's story I'm not sure about yet.  I have said before that I would prefer his travels to serve as a view to the larger world outside Mapleton, and I am not hoping for a long narrative of the young couple protecting "the one".

 

Aimee -- she is one of my least favorite characters, I find her toxic with her too-adult fixation on sex.  It may be just the features of the actor or maybe it is superb acting, but her eyes seem to be smirking all the time.  I do feel the conversations between her and Kevin to have sexual overtones, but at the same time I find it very hard to believe that his character (as we have been shown it) would allow anything to happen between him and an underage girl.  It did seem that the bite on his hand was human; I can't come up with a plausible scenario where she would bite him that badly and be casual about it the next day.  One alternative suspect for the bite would be the grandfather.

 

I'll keep watching, somewhat grudgingly and somewhat hopefully.

[Irritable]

I feel even more dumb and lost than the rest of you, because not only do I not have a clue what's going on,  I don't even know how everyone else can see that this show sucks and is definitely going nowhere.  Every week I feel like I just watched a pretty good episode of a pretty good show that makes no sense, so far, but I'm not mad at it yet because I think surely the answers are coming. The characters and intrigue have me hanging on pretty tightly, but then if I really think about it, there have been other shows like this which I didn't understand at all but stayed faithful to, until either I realized it was fruitless because David Lynch is an evil prick who just wants to screw with people's heads (Twin Peaks), or the show got cancelled before any of the mysteries were answered (John From Cincinnati).  I hope this one doesn't let me down like those did.

 

Tonight I decided that I really should have read the book first, to fill in some of the blanks.  Guess I'll just read it after the finale, which also has its benefits...I like to already have images of characters in my head from the screen versions, because when I read a book first and come up with my own vision of the characters, I find it very distracting to see a completely different version on screen than what I had imagined.

 

Speaking of distracting, I wish they would dress the actress who plays Aimee differently.  I think her looks are striking, but her body is shaped in such a way that the "sexy" bedtime/around the house clothes they've got her wearing make her look like SpongeBob Squarepants.  I really hope she and HotCopDad haven't been doing it, but yeah...they probably have.  Ew.

 

I love Nora.

[shapeshifter]

There are many indications that Kevin is (was) basically a decent husband and father, and he seems more tolerant of the GR than many....

Except that he cheated on his wife--presumably before the event--which means his tolerance of the GR may just be assuaging his own guilt for cheating, which he might believe contributed to her leaving to join them. Hmmm. It just occurred to me that he might have cheated after the event--as a reaction to it--but before his wife left to join the GR.

[ganesh]

I can only speak for myself, but just based on tv watching in general, I'm doubtful there will be any credible answers since it's been 7 episodes, and I'm pretty sure they're just going to throw more in there, which is evidenced by the magazine. It's little tv cheats like characters not asking questions to other characters that people would normally ask, or when asked, the answer is vague or unrelated. 

 

It's like when a scifi or genre show has a Big Bad and you finally meet the Big Bad and they tell you, "wait till the Real Big Bad comes, you can't believe it." And you eyeroll because then you know there's nothing there. 

 

It just occurred to me that he might have cheated after the event--as a reaction to it--but before his wife left to join the GR.

 

This is a typical example of why I don't think answers will come. This is something we really should know by now given the GR has been a huge focus. We had a scene with Kevin and Laurie, with Liv Tyler still talking and it would have been the opportunity to clue the viewers in. They clued us in the Laurie was the wife in the first episode. It's fair to expect the show to explore this; her motivations, why she joined, which would also give insight into the state of their marriage. 

 

I have said before that I would prefer his travels to serve as a view to the larger world outside Mapleton, and I am not hoping for a long narrative of the young couple protecting "the one".

 

Similarly with Nora. Both are opportunities to show us this world and what's going on. We really don't have much from them. From Tom, it seems that the world is pretty much functioning rather normally. 

 

Tonight I decided that I really should have read the book first, to fill in some of the blanks.

 

Why should I or any viewer have to read supplemental material to understand what I'm watching, however? That's nearly the same as having TPTB tell us things on a behind the scenes special that are relevant to the show, but aren't included in the show. They do have 55+ minutes to work with. I haven't read a page of Game of Thrones and I don't have a problem following what's on the screen. That's a hell of a lot more complicated of a show than this.

Edited August 13, 2014 by ganesh

[izabella]

I hope he's not having sex with Aimee and Nora at the same time, because I like Kevin, and that would shorten an already very short list of characters I like on this show.  He's seriously flawed but generally tries to do the right thing.

 

I hope he's not having blackout sex with Aimee, but I'm guessing either Aimee or Nora will turn up pregnant...

 

Except that he cheated on his wife--presumably before the event--which means his tolerance of the GR may just be assuaging his own guilt for cheating, which he might believe contributed to her leaving to join them. Hmmm. It just occurred to me that he might have cheated after the event--as a reaction to it--but before his wife left to join the GR.

 

For some reason, I believed he had actually been having sex with his affair partner at the time she Departed.  I know they showed a brief vision of him having sex with someone who wasn't his wife Laurie, but I don't remember now why I formed the impression that she had Departed.  Maybe it was a scene where someone asked him if he knew one of the Departed and then that vision came to his mind?

Edited August 13, 2014 by izabella

[Michell3]

 

For some reason, I believed he had actually been having sex with his affair partner at the time she Departed.  I know they showed a brief vision of him having sex with someone who wasn't his wife Laurie, but I don't remember now why I formed the impression that she had Departed.

 

I think the flashback was brought about when someone asked where he was during the departure, but I could be wrong.  Like I think he was actively cheating on his wife when it happened. I'm not going back to rewatch that episode to confirm though =P 

[ZoqFotPik]

 

I think the flashback was brought about when someone asked where he was during the departure, but I could be wrong.  Like I think he was actively cheating on his wife when it happened. I'm not going back to rewatch that episode to confirm though =P

Correct. He was in a bar talking to the woman whose baby disappeared in the first scene. It happened right after the confrontation with the GR during the 'Heroes Day' festival.