There's No Way That Could Happen: Most Unbelievable Parts of The Affair

[AmandaPanda]

Is there a thread where we can talk about some of the ridiculous/unrealistic pieces of this show?   Because the fake bidding war?  That whole scene was just ridiculous to me.  

 

And how is it that the waitress that worked with Allison in the summer has this gorgeous huge apartment in NYC?  How is it that Alison can just "give" Cole their house? How does she suddenly have a beautiful wardrobe and looks impeccable when they have no money?  Or is that just a part of the refined memories?  

 

I guess I'm in the minority but I can't stand the actress who plays Whitney.  Every scene she's in I want to fast forward.

 

As requested, here is your thread to discuss all the most unbelievable parts of The Affair. 

[GeminiDancer]

The only thing I can think of with Alison's wardrobe is that maybe her grandmother had a will and left her with some level of financial security.

 

Tara's apartment? I dunno because I don't know of anyone who does waitressing and catering jobs and can live in what looks like Bed Stuy or Greenpoint by herself unless there's a roommate or a guarantor.

[CleoCaesar]

Given what we see of Noah, I find it increasingly unbelievable that he could write a bestseller-soon-to-be-motion-picture, get rich enough to buy a palatial Manhattan apartment, and have a seasoned agent (Harry?) call the book extraordinary or brilliant or whatever. And the once-in-a-generation story? A guy has an affair with a small-town woman and then kills her.

 

Groundbreaking.

[Higgs]

Given what we see of Noah, I find it increasingly unbelievable that he could write a bestseller-soon-to-be-motion-picture, get rich enough to buy a palatial Manhattan apartment, and have a seasoned agent (Harry?) call the book extraordinary or brilliant or whatever.

It's been done, even later in life, and also by a NYC public high school teacher: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_McCourt

We have no idea what the book turned out to be about, although the final paragraph, which ain't half bad, can be read on Noah's computer screen in the "rubber room". It's certainly no worse than "Gone Girl".

OTOH, everything about Cole and the gun felt out of character for both him, in particular, and the show, in general. He sh/c/would have just pulled Noah off of Scotty. You don't fire a gun in act 3 that hasn't been shown in act 1. Oh well, at least there wasn't a car chase.

Edited December 26, 2014 by Higgs

[Constantinople]

One thing that isn't adequately explained is why Alison expect half of Cole's "share" when Cherry can unilaterally mortgage the ranch.

Here's the final paragraph of Descent, according to the reviewer at EW
 

With all of that behind him now, he turned again to face the ocean. Looking out on a horizon shrouded by a cloud layer, he thought it was impossible to tell where the sea ended and the sky began. They were both the exact same mournful grey, a probably confirmation of the rumored nor'easter he heard circulating down at the docks. He thought of weather. How unpredictable it still was. He looked down at his feet to watch the wave recede, leaving jagged little rivulets in the sand and took comfort that he could find no order to their paths either.
 
http://forums.previously.tv/topic/19742-theres-no-way-that-could-happen-most-unbelievable-parts-of-the-affair/#entry677504

It screams "Remainder Bin", not "Phony Bidding War".

[CleoCaesar]

"He thought of weather. How unpredictable it still was."

 

Oh man, yeah, that weather. So unpredictable. It was unpredictable and still is. That's deep, man.

 

I always laugh at when shows/movies try to portray brilliant writers. It almost never works for me, especially when you see the actual text of these allegedly brilliant books.

[RedheadZombie]

I don't buy that either Allison or Helen would get much out of sex with Cole and Noah.  If they got more than five seconds of foreplay - ever - I would be surprised.

[Duke2801]

I *definitely* do not buy that a long-term couple in their mid 40s with 4 children was having as much sex as is portrayed between Noah and Helen early on.  Just.... no.

[Elizzikra]

Quote

 

The only thing I can think of with Alison's wardrobe is that maybe her grandmother had a will and left her with some level of financial security.

 

Her grandmother left her the house that she and Cole lived in. The house wasn't much but the land was valuable. How she parlayed that into cash flow before she sold it outright is a mystery. Took a mortgage on it.

Re: clothes - she could shop consignment stores. Some of the best ones are in high-end resort towns. Summer people consign their clothes frequently and often in excellent condition (sometimes with tags still on them). I talked to a lady who owned a consignment store who got someone's entire summer wardrobe every year. He loved clothes and he was wealthy so he purchased an entirely new wardrobe every season and consigned the "old" stuff. She would get shoes from him that were never worn - not a mark on the sole. My husband scored a couple of brand new Robert Graham shirts at that store for about 25% of retail price.

For me - it's unbelieveable that Noah and Helen's elder son is at William and Mary, much less "seems to be liking it." Full disclosure - it's my alma mater. It's harder than hell to get in there and even more so as an out-of-state student. No one who was tossed out of two high schools and barely graduated from a third gets in there and if by some miracle he did, he'd hate it. It's a relatively small school in a small town and it's very high stress and competitive. 

[LilaFowler]

8 hours ago, Elizzikra said:

For me - it's unbelieveable that Noah and Helen's elder son is at William and Mary, much less "seems to be liking it." Full disclosure - it's my alma mater. It's harder than hell to get in there and even more so as an out-of-state student. No one who was tossed out of two high schools and barely graduated from a third gets in there and if by some miracle he did, he'd hate it. It's a relatively small school in a small town and it's very high stress and competitive. 

He's a rich kid with a superstar father and grandfather. Those kids don't have the same standards for admission as the rest.

[circumvent]

Jumping here because only now I am watching this show. 

It is bad writing through and through. Nothing makes sense. My forever peeve with all shows is how little interest most of them have in continuity. The kid's ages are  all over the place. Little Stacey started at 6 or 7. Then in the later seasons one character says it's been 8 years but eh girl looks like she is still 11. Trevor started as a 10 year-old but when he is supposedly 14, he still needs to ride in the back seat of the car. I know exactly zero teenagers that would put up with this.

As already mentioned the citizenship stuff is pure bullshit. For starters, nobody jumps from undocumented to citizen with an interview. You cannot stay in the country. It takes a lot of paperwork and definitely an attorney. IF you do everything right then yes, you have your interview and you do get the citizenship approved right there. Then they schedule the day of the ceremony when you receive your papers.

The futuristic bullshit is so out there, I can't even. Joanie is another depressed character. Why can't people just be happy for a minute in this how? Only when they have sex? By the way, the sex scenes are cliche. Not everyone moans and have orgasms. Not realistic. The constant jumping and turning. And as always, they all need the sex all the time, to grieve, to solve problems, to start problems, to shut up.

Sarah Treem (is that her name) is just too full of herself and thinks she can write. A collection of platitudes and horny characters are the only ting she has.

And I will comment here since the other forum is closed: I don't care how Alison died but if she was murdered, the leading up to that was pretty ridiculous, and the murderer was just a flat, one sided character. If she committed suicide, it was equally pathetic because there was no character development in that moment to indicate she was so depressed.

 

The show failed in so many way, I don't think there is a silver lining to be found