Damien - General Discussion

[LakeGal]

I didn't make it through the episode.  I am done with this show.

[bilgistic]

I think the actor has been miscast, he has zero charisma or presence for the role. And why does he have to be a typical CW hunk? Blah! The kid in Omen II did such a good job as young Damien, all the adult incarnations have been underwhelming to me. This is probably a nitpick on my part, but I also don't like that he's blond/light brown.

The hair bothers me more than it should. Young Damien's hair at five is nearly black. Hair doesn't get lighter as we age (well, until we go gray/white); it goes darker.

[bilgistic]

I fell asleep a couple times. I love The Omen and really want to like this. Barbara Hershey is doing an awful lot of scenery chewing. I could do with less from her and more from the actual lead.

[greenbean]

The hair bothers me more than it should. Young Damien's hair at five is nearly black. Hair doesn't get lighter as we age (well, until we go gray/white); it goes darker.

 

Yes, it bothers me as well. How can his hair go from almost black to almost blond? It's such a miscast. If they wanted to go in a completely different direction, then leave out the flashbacks. Otherwise if they want to tie this story into the film, then they should have applied some continuity to the actor's looks.

[Chicago Redshirt]

Damien consults John Lyons, an old friend, about Rutledge's intentions, while Simone turns to the Church for answers. Shay comes face to face with an unexpected visitor. After a mysterious death, Rutledge gains Damien's trust.

 

This was the first episode where I thought the show was living up to his potential.

 

I began to see the notion of this Damien as building up to a menace as the Antichrist, and I liked the notion that the factions in this are not necessarily as cleancut as Satanists versus Christians (assuming we can trust Rutledge, which of course we can't.)

[littlemommy]

Okay, Damien Show, I tried to like you.

I've watched three episodes and they all sucked. I'd rather see a cackling, wheeling, devilish Damien than this mopey "Who AM I" Damien. I can't stand a whole season builidng up to him being evil if the entire season is like this. At the rate he's going I think all the Satanists will either die of old age or lose interest before he steps up to take his evil mantle.

I only watched this week to see the Bates Motel preview, and I'm sorry, but if you have to bury the preview of a popular show in another show to get people to watch, it's a real stinker.

Edited March 24, 2016 by littlemommy

[Dobian]

I'm having all kinds of problems with this show as well.  That meeting between Rutledge, Hershel (great to see him!), and the other two came off as more of a corporate status meeting than a meeting to discuss the apocalypse.  I was waiting for the woman on the right to go over quarterly revenues after they finished with the Damien agenda item.  Needless to say, I was as bored watching that meeting as I am with my own real life office meetings.

 

The whole sequence of Rutledge staging it so the other corporate suit from Damien, Inc. looked to be attacking her came off as bizarre.  Why would he flee in terror because Damien was coming, why wouldn't he just stay and argue his case?  It just looked like he pushed her.  And why would the forces of darkness arrange for his freak death?  He's on the payroll for crying out loud, he's part of the team to protect Damien, he's not an enemy.  This show needs to get its rules right or it's just going to get confusing as to why someone is getting ganked.

 

The whole killer rottweiler thing is already getting old.  In the movie, those hell hounds acted as guard dogs.  They guarded Damien, guarded the burial site.  They were also watchers that would apparently report back to The Boss on who to kill.  In this show they are being used repeatedly as attack dogs, which would certainly draw a lot of attention.  Why is there a rash of people being attacked by wild dogs indoors in NYC?

 

I'm not sure how they are going to get from emo good-natured Damien to diabolical evil Damien.  There would need to be a serious event that would cause such a moral shift, and I'm not sure this show can deliver it.  They would have done better to just make Damien be a sort of bad guy to begin with, just needing direction from Rutledge to focus his badness in the right direction.

 

I did like Rutledge's mentioning of meeting Baylock as a young woman.  Yes, Baylock would scare anyone, even the ones on Team Antichrist.  She probably scares Lucifer.

 

Rutledge continues to be the creepy cougar.  Is this show really going to go there?

Edited March 25, 2016 by Dobian

[portfino]

Agreed on a lot of what's being said here. The chase scene made no sense (Why would Troy believe Ann when the whole point of the boardroom meeting was that Damien wasn't evil enough?). The cop's dialogue is terrible. 

 

I'm sticking with it just because I hope they realized how badly they misjudged the execution during production. There's the kernel of a good show here.

[Chicago Redshirt]

The only way Troy's flight makes sense is he realizes how vulnerable to manipulation Damien is, and that Ann is a master manipulator. Plus, Ann's assessment of Troy being a moron is correct. 

 

My speculation is that Damien at present manifests powers on a subconscious level. So when Kelly was buried in the mudslide, that was Damien as opposed to some external force of darkness. When Troy trips and gets his tie caught in the escalator, that was Damien too. 

 

I don't think Damien is necessarily "good-natured" right now. I think the show has demonstrated that he's angry, arrogant, sarcastic, cynical, short-tempered, well-connected and possesses various other qualities that will be common to full-on Antichrist mode. I'm not sure how often the "good" part of him has come up. His concern about Kelly is about all that comes to mind, along with his being on some level willing to ask questions at the church.

Edited March 24, 2016 by Chicago Redshirt

[portfino]

The only way Troy's flight makes sense is he realizes how vulnerable to manipulation Damien is, and that Ann is a master manipulator. Plus, Ann's assessment of Troy being a moron is correct. 

 

My speculation is that Damien at present manifests powers on a subconscious level. So when Kelly was buried in the mudslide, that was Damien as opposed to some external force of darkness. When Troy trips and gets his tie caught in the escalator, that was Damien too. 

 

I don't think Damien is necessarily "good-natured" right now. I think the show has demonstrated that he's angry, arrogant, sarcastic, cynical, short-tempered, well-connected and possesses various other qualities that will be common to full-on Antichrist mode. I'm not sure how often the "good" part of him has come up. His concern about Kelly is about all that comes to mind, along with his being on some level willing to ask questions at the church.

Risking his life to save the kid from the oncoming train was pretty "good," and I think he saved some people in Damascus.

It can't be Damien's subconscious killing Troy. If his subconscious wants to become bad, then Troy and John are quicker, and he'd kill Ann. If his subconscious mirrors his conflict, he needs to talk to Troy. If his subconscious is good, then it wouldn't have killed his ex. Also, since Troy is just a stooge for John, why not kill John? Dad has to be behind these deaths, and given that the same logic applies to him, he's pretty incompetent. Of course, giving your son amnesia before taking over the world was an early sign. 

[TaurusRose]

I'm only watching for Bradley James.

[Snaporaz]

I'm only watching for Bradley James.

Me, too. Dem cheekbones!

Why did Damien spend time in The White House as a child? Or did I mis-hear something?

[Chicago Redshirt]

Damien's dad was an ambassador. So Damien very well would have tagged along with dad to the White House as a kid while Dad was alive.  In the Omen, both his parents were killed by the time Damien was 5 or so. I don't know if the show is going with the same sort of timeline.

 

Whoever adopted Damien after both mom and dad were killed in Showverse could still have been in politics such that Damien would occasionally have been brought along to the White House. 

[Snaporaz]

Ok, that makes more sense. During the conversation with John, I thought they were saying Damien had actually lived in the White House before he was sent to boarding school.

[Neurochick]

What was that 666 on Ann's thigh?  Was that a birthmark, a burn, a tattoo?  Is she a devil or just a Damien groupie?

[Kanner]

This show is working for me. It's not perfect but what show is? I find the Ann/Damien scenes to be very compelling. The creepiness from her, the menace from Damien, the tension between the two is great.

I actually like that Revalation is partially being played out in a boardroom.

I am also ok with the slow progress of Damien's acceptance of who he is. This episode showed him moving toward accepting Ann. They began in the shrine room and when she tried to touch him he shut her down quick. They end in his apartment with him "asking" her touch him by showing her his mark.

I also just like the straight forward dialogue of him asking her if manipulated him to go after Troy and her candid response.

[Chicago Redshirt]

What was that 666 on Ann's thigh?  Was that a birthmark, a burn, a tattoo?  Is she a devil or just a Damien groupie?

From the Book of Revelation:

 

Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. 16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.

 

18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man.[e] That number is 666.

 

So presumably Rutledge is an early adopter.

[Neurochick]

Bradley James gets better looking each episode.

[queenanne]

I found it to be a boring pilot. I have no idea why they've made him a war photographer, of all professions. It's the sort of thing you expect in fanfiction.

 

I fear he was cast as a "war photographer", because they want a scene where the character has to tearfacedly yet sneerfully confess, "I took this job because I thought I wanted to make a difference.  Now I see, that all I wanted was to see carnage, discord, blood and gore... *and I like(d) it!*"  (If this happens in eps 2 or 3 I still want credit.  I didn't make it any farther than the first 7 minutes before I was so irritated, I wanted to double check to see if my hatred had company.)

Edited March 26, 2016 by queenanne

[RachelKM]

Meh.  It was okay.  I like Bradley James and Barbara Hershey enough to see what happens.

 

I was surprised at how much i still cannot stand Jaden from Nikita. When she first came on screen I couldn't figure out why I had such a negative gut response to a character who'd done nothing more than hold a camera.  Then I realized who she was. I was so relieved when she drowned (or whatever happened to her in that sludge) that I couldn't really connect with Damien and Simone's(?) grief.  I just spent the whole scene hoping it wasn't a trick and she wasn't going pop back up.

Edited March 29, 2016 by RachelKM

[RachelKM]

Still okay with, but not entirely sold on, this show.

 

Damien definitely made an inappropriate scene at the post service gathering.  But that priest was pushing way too hard.  In my experience, priest are not usually co persistent, particularly not when someone is in a highly emotional state/situation like a funeral. My mother is devout and I'm an atheist.  Father Harry would never press me like that at all, let alone at a memorial service.  However, that exchange did give us mu favorite Bradley James moment so far.  the look he gave the priest when he finally fully directed his attention on him was worth the time spent. 

 

I just realized that Simone is played by the woman who plays Vixen.  Yay. 

Edited March 29, 2016 by RachelKM

[Anela]

Whoa, that ending. I'm glad the boy was okay. I wonder if that's because Damien actually said, "no more deaths". 

Edited March 29, 2016 by Anela

[Sonja]

I fear he was cast as a "war photographer", because they want a scene where the character has to tearfacedly yet sneerfully confess, "I took this job because I thought I wanted to make a difference.  Now I see, that all I wanted was to see carnage, discord, blood and gore... *and I like(d) it!*"  (If this happens in eps 2 or 3 I still want credit.  I didn't make it any farther than the first 7 minutes before I was so irritated, I wanted to double check to see if my hatred had company.)

Barbara Hershey's character tells him how he actually caused some of the carnage he shot, so it's not about him liking it, but unknowingly killing a lot of people due to his existence/presence and in order to feed on it. He's still in denial.

[Kanner]

That end was scary. Is it wrong that I liked when Damien basically threatened the detective? It still has me interested in where this is going?

[ennui]

I'm not sure how they are going to get from emo good-natured Damien to diabolical evil Damien.  There would need to be a serious event that would cause such a moral shift, and I'm not sure this show can deliver it.

 

I'm a little late with my viewing, and only watched this episode last night (haven't seen #4 yet). My theory is that Ann is going to appeal to Damien's good side with the sales pitch "you have to do it with so that Christ can return."  Someone has to be the bad guy, etc. 

[TaurusRose]

This show has some genuinely scary scenes. The last scene with the kid....yowsah. They should have killed the kid off, though. Evil doesn't spare little children. I keep wanting Damien to be good (probably because Bradley James is playing him), but I know that can't happen. Where is this going?

[Tony]

That pool scene was amazing, but the impact would be better if they had the kid die.

 

Looking forward what effect this had on the asshole detective. Who outright threatens a citizen with a shooting incidence like that? Damien's not a perp in any of the deaths so he was way out of line. If he was recorded spewing that, he's toast.

[Snaporaz]

I can do without all the animal violence. I get that it's a show about the antichrist, but I think they can still make their point without it.

Bradley James sure brings the pretty.

[TaurusRose]

I can do without all the animal violence. I get that it's a show about the antichrist, but I think they can still make their point without it.

Bradley James sure brings the pretty.

Yeah, I'm an animal lover, too, and I thought "oh, no, not the chicken!" during that scene, but the subject matter isn't sparing anybody, so...

And yes, BJ does bring the pretty. Why is he the anti-Christ? wah!!!!!

[wayne67]

That end was scary. Is it wrong that I liked when Damien basically threatened the detective? It still has me interested in where this is going?

 

Yeah I loved that bit. The cop was threatening with a harassment campaign followed by shooting him. Then he got all uppity about being threatened. Dude is nuts. You don't threaten someone you think is a mass murderer unless you want to get killed. 

 

First time Damien showed the possibility of being someone worthy of holding the title of the Anti Christ. 

[ennui]

I tried to watch this episode and decided it was dull dull dull and gave up. Is the end really worth giving it another try? I don't know how these people could make the AntiChrist boring, but they've done so.

[Neurochick]

This was a good episode.  For once I wasn't checking the clock and when it was over I was like, "oh come on, I want more."

 

Bradley James keeps getting hotter with each episode.  When he was in Merlin he was handsome, but now, he's beyond that IMO.

[Tony]

I tried to watch this episode and decided it was dull dull dull and gave up. Is the end really worth giving it another try? I don't know how these people could make the AntiChrist boring, but they've done so.

 

The initial couple of episodes were pretty dry for the most part, but it has gotten better.

 

At this point, I'm ready for them to move from Damien's lost puppy act and for him to either embrace his Antichrist-ness or try to get rid of it. 

[Anela]

There isn't a new episode thread. 

[jelaine]

Just wanted to say I loved the scenes with Damien and Adam.  It was some really nice, subtle work by both actors.

 

A word of thanksgiving for FINALLY a lack of animal violence.

 

I've decided that show has two problems: pacing.  We're about halfway through the first season and nothing's really happened.  Damien's found out he's the Anti-Christ.  He hasn't embraced it and he hasn't rejected it.  He just knows.  Yeah, he's coming to terms with it, but he's so isolated, it doesn't feel like anything is happening.  Which leads me to the second problem: I don't think the show knows what it wants to be when it grows up.  It feels like so many random scenes, that while individually can be good - Damien and Alex, Barbara Hershey, the bestie - don't add up to a whole.  What story are they telling?  Is it the story of a decent man coming to terms with the fact that he's the Son of Satan and is about to usher in the end of the world as we know it?  Or is it the story of a decent man flat out rejecting his fate because free will is a thing and whatever else he is, he's not a soulless monster dedicated to destroying the world?

 

I hope we get some of those answers in the next five episodes.

[millahnna]

I know I'm supposed to find the hell hounds scary but rotties are so bloody cute that instead I was all sad for them when they were worried about damien at the end.

[Kanner]

I didn't necessarily have a problem with this episode but it definitely was not a favorite. I liked the Damien/war vet scenes. The "hallucinations" just seemed liked disconnected sequences. I missed his interactions with Ann. Those have become my favorites.

I loved that he tried to commit suicide. I feel like this has to be a turning point. I am curious about the motivation behind it. Is he just tired of all the crazy or has he accepted that he is the Anti-Christ and this was his solution?

Next week looks really interesting.

[TaurusRose]

We're about halfway through the first season and nothing's really happened. Damien's found out he's the Anti-Christ. He hasn't embraced it and he hasn't rejected it. He just knows.

I disagree. Several gruesome deaths have occurred around Damien, along with some scary attacks on people investigating him. At this point, I think he is in extreme denial. He's been presented with information that horrifies him and he doesn't want to accept it. Damien's suicide attempt was pathetic because he's desperate to escape the nightmare his life has become. The scene with the "guardian devil dogs" patiently waiting for the garage door to rise was especially sad because there's no way in hell (pun intended) that Damien will be allowed to avoid his fate. (Although, I think the drama will be in his efforts to fight the good fight against his destiny, if that's the route they decide to take.) That being said, I don't like any of the female characters. I don't know if it's direction or the way they are being written, but I'm hoping that all of them meet a gruesome end sooner rather than later.

 

...but rotties are so bloody cute that instead I was all sad for them when they were worried about damien at the end.

I've never found anything "cute" about Rottweilers. (You can blame my aversion to them to The Omen circa 1976.) They are beautiful animals, but they are powerful dogs and extremely intimidating; I would never own one.

[Dobian]

Well this one was boring.  This show had better pick it up.  Points for the rottweilers though, I want one.

[ennui]

No topic for episode 6? And the title of this one says S02 ... ?

[Snaporaz]

(From the official episode synopsis:)

Damien is led to a beloved figure from his past and confronts Rutledge as he begins to unravel the conspiracy surrounding him.

[Snaporaz]

I'm a little sad there isn't more interest in this show because I think it's starting to hit its stride.

I love how the trippy nature of the last two episodes echoes Damien's own confusion, and I'm finding myself planted firmly in Damien's corner. That seems like such a strange place to be!

[Neurochick]

Wow, that episode was trippy.  I didn't know what the fuck was going on until the end and then I had to watch the beginning again,  and I went, "oh shit, that was fucking awesome."

 

BTW, Bradley James is totally hot.  He was cute in Merlin but now he's fucking good looking, I mean movie star handsome.  

Edited April 17, 2016 by Neurochick

[Snaporaz]

The vibe I get from this show lately is more Rosemary's Baby than The Omen, which is fine with me because I like Rosemary's Baby so much better. From the dream that might not be a dream, to the all-encompassing conspiracy that leaves Damien feeling completely isolated and helpless, it makes you wonder if Damien really is who he is said to be or if he is the chosen victim of a fanatical cult.

The "dream" did clue us in on who Damien wants to be.

And Armitage Global reminds me of Wolfram & Hart, the evil law firm from Angel whose mission was to usher in tbe apocalypse.

[Kanner]

I am really liking this show. However, as much as I liked the dream sequence and what it revealed about Damien, I am concerned the rest of the episodes will be rushed.

I knew his mother was either going down the stairs or over the railing the minute they went up. I laughed when it happened.

Damien's menace (even if it is a dream) with Ann is wonderful. I like these two together. I need more powerful Damien.

The look on Damien's face when the tattoo artist ended up dead was hilarious.

I also watched it from the beginning when it turned out to be a dream.

[millennium]

The show is awfully heavy-handed.   No subtlety whatsoever.   The blind girl writing 666 on the glass.   Enough already.   Half the cast being attacked by Rottweilers or otherwise killed off -- it's like Final Destination.    Then the trip to the Batcave trophy room ... no no no.

 

Damien should have come to awareness more gradually, for a more horrifying effect.   Good guy slowly realizing that he's damned to be the ultimate bad guy.   Instead he's confronted by field agents of Evil Inc. at every turn.   I'm surprised they don't hand him promotional flyers about himself.

 

I like Bradley James.   Wish he'd landed a better show.   This one makes Friday the 13th The Series seem sophisticated by comparison.

Edited April 18, 2016 by millennium

[millennium]

 

The whole sequence of Rutledge staging it so the other corporate suit from Damien, Inc. looked to be attacking her came off as bizarre.  Why would he flee in terror because Damien was coming, why wouldn't he just stay and argue his case?  It just looked like he pushed her.  And why would the forces of darkness arrange for his freak death?  He's on the payroll for crying out loud, he's part of the team to protect Damien, he's not an enemy.  This show needs to get its rules right or it's just going to get confusing as to why someone is getting ganked.

 

 

Yes, yes!   I was like "???????????????"

[Sonja]

I'm a little sad there isn't more interest in this show because I think it's starting to hit its stride.

I love how the trippy nature of the last two episodes echoes Damien's own confusion, and I'm finding myself planted firmly in Damien's corner. That seems like such a strange place to be!

I was waiting for that to happen and got rather impatient, but this ep was good.

[millennium]

That's it, I'm out.   The scene in the veteran hospital was unimaginative, cliched and annoying   I've seen scarier stuff walking through Halloween "haunted houses" run by teenagers.  The dogs are overused and God help me I'm haunted by the image of Barbara Hershey slicing into her cellulite and experiencing a spontaneous orgasm from a couple episodes ago. 

Edited April 19, 2016 by millennium

[skotnikov]

The black goat sacrifice was ridiculous, because it was obvious that the goat  is a plush toy. But that ending was really intense.