S01.E01: Pilot

[formerlyfreedom]

A family is shaken to the core when a politician's presumed dead son suddenly returns. After disappearing a decade earlier, Adam Warren's homecoming to Red Pines, ME, is initially met with astonishment and joy, but suspicions soon begin to emerge. Is he really who he says he is? The boy's shocking reappearance forces the entire family to re-examine who they are and unearths long-buried secrets, betrayals and heartache.

[Andyourlittledog2]

Is he really who he says he is?

 

So....we're pretending we can't do a quick DNA analysis and figure this out in the first fifteen minutes of the pilot?  

 

I want to want to watch this but the premise, in the current state of science, seems a little silly. Unless it's a throwback to some pre-DNA available era.  Anybody know how they resolve this pretty obvious issue up front?

[numbnut]

I only could watch 10 minutes of this. Was this originally a two-hour pilot? The drama felt hollow because they were rocketing through the story so fast.

[Free]

I only could watch 10 minutes of this. Was this originally a two-hour pilot? The drama felt hollow because they were rocketing through the story so fast.

 

The annoying back and forth time jumps reminded me too much of Quantico.

[Sandman]

The annoying back and forth time jumps reminded me too much of Quantico.

 

Right? The contrivance of the writing reminded me of the remake of Secrets and Lies. The cast is great. The writing is decidedly not.

 

So Willa put the ship-in-the-bottle in Perve-Ew McCarthy's sock drawer, right?

Edited March 3, 2016 by Sandman

[Free]

Right? The contrivance of the writing reminded me of the remake of Secrets and Lies. The cast is great. The writing is decidedly not.

 

So Willa put the ship-in-the-bottle in Perve-Ew McCarthy's sock drawer, right?

 

Definitely like Secrets and Lies, where the evidence will turn up when convenient.

[Primetimer]

Do you have room on your DVR for yet another abducted child drama?

Read the story

[Jamoche]

"yet, we're still expected to accept far-fetched plot devices like ... a small-town paper"

Those still exist?

[reggiejax]

"yet, we're still expected to accept far-fetched plot devices like ... a small-town paper"

Those still exist?

I don't think we'll ever be free of them. Far-fetched plot devices are here to stay. ;)

[Glade]

This fell flat really quickly.  It doesn't help that a) Joan Allen also plays the mother/grandmother in the amazingly written/directed/acted film Room (2015) about a similar case, and b) there is a really great UK series on the same subject called Thirteen that just premiered.  Thirteen is a limited-run series (so no, it won't try to rope you in for five years to watch hackneyed mysteries slowly dilute themselves into nothing,) and instead of plot devices, it actually tackles the psychological reality of the CPTSD that the kidnapping victim escapes with.  It doesn't play games like telling us there has been a DNA test and then deciding the dna test was actually faked via a conspiracy.

 

Anyway, I found this unbelievable crap (I couldn't stand the bad acting, especially when the detective makes her monologue about how it's all her fault which then turns into a sex scene.)  It's filled to the brim with network tv cliches, and definitely seems like the second season of that show with Ryan Phillipe.   The fact that we're supposed to question this boy's authenticity robs us of ever truly empathizing with him and following is journey, which is all I care about.  It feels very American, where of course survivors of child sex abuse must be doubted and painted in a bad light, and pedophiles are always always the real victims because the are  prosecuted via "witch hunts."  So, no thanks.  

 

Too bad Zach Gilford's wooden/hollow character is too hung over to shave.  

Edited March 4, 2016 by Glade

[Sandman]

I can't believe there's going to be a second season of the show Secrets and Lies, but that's a rant for a different thread.

 

For whatever it's worth, I don't think the show is showing the pedophile as the real victim here. He may consider himself the object of a witch hunt, but it's clear he's a monster. I can't decide what's up with the kid, or whether I can invest in the show long enough to empathize with him, but I have no sympathy to spare for the Andrew McCarthy character.

 

But I'm with you on the stupidity of the faked DNA test crap.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Sandman

[Chaos Theory]

I think I am in for the season or at least a few episodes. I enjoyed it a lot. The one part that gave me a bit of an eye roll was when the female cop and the father had sex in the interrogation room. I know tv people think it looks sexy but it is just plain stupid.

Other then that it looks like a fairly decent mystery.

[Madding crowd]

I was intrigued by the show, I love mysteries of all kinds so I want to see what happens. I do think the actor playing Adam looks too young to be 19, but maybe the actor is in real life.  I liked it that the brother was questioning if Adam was really who he says. In some ways siblings know us better than our own parents and he was right that it seems odd Adam would have forgotten how the boat gets in the ship. Peoples tastes change somewhat so the egg thing might just be a fluke, but I am over 50 and I pretty much dislike the same things I did as a child (I do like a lot of different things though).

 

I can't imagine why a fake doctor would be carrying out a bogus DNA test or who/why someone is invested in Adam being Adam. Whatever happens, its obvious this is an abused child and there really is a pock-marked man. 

[KaveDweller]

I liked it enough to watch another episode.

 

I'm guessing the daughter planted that ship in a bottle thing 10-years ago, but I'm not sure why that was enough to convict a guy for murder. Or why they even assumed it was murder just based on that.

 

The comment about the doctor who did the test not existing doesn't make sense to me. The detective seemed to have been involved in the test, and I don't see her faking it when it just makes her look bad. So there must have been a test. But I guess that tidbit will stay secret for awhile because they could easily just do a new test. 

[VCRTracking]

After watching The Room recently Joan Allen is great at playing mothers of abducted children.

Lestrade with an American accent is weird.

Edited March 4, 2016 by VCRTracking

[Free]

I can't believe there's going to be a second season of the show Secrets and Lies, but that's a rant for a different thread.

 

For whatever it's worth, I don't think the show is showing the pedophile as the real victim here. He may consider himself the object of a witch hunt, but it's clear he's a monster. I can't decide what's up with the kid, or whether I can invest in the show long enough to empathize with him, but I have no sympathy to spare for the Andrew McCarthy character.

 

But I'm with you on the stupidity of the faked DNA test crap.

 

Secrets and Lies is supposed to be an anthology, but yeah, that doesn't look good either.

[AuntiePam]

I'm guessing the daughter planted that ship in a bottle thing 10-years ago, but I'm not sure why that was enough to convict a guy for murder. Or why they even assumed it was murder just based on that.

 

 

She looked surprised when she opened that drawer, so I don't think she planted it.   My first thought -- I'm not the suspicious type -- was that Hank may have showed Adam how to put a ship in a bottle.  If the Warrens didn't know that Hank was a RSO, they may have let Adam spend time with him, especially since the guy lived with his mother.  Safe, huh?  (No.)

 

I don't watch any of the network dramas but this was still too familiar.  We all knew what the detective was going to say in the beginning -- "Sometimes they're the same case" -- and we all knew dad was going to say "But you saved me" just before they did the nasty on the table -- without even locking the door?  Puh-leeze.

 

It was very disappointing to hear that the doctor who did the DNA test was a fake.  Where did they get the DNA?  We didn't see them take anything from the family. 

 

Whether or not that boy is Adam, he was abused and tortured and they need to catch the guy.  He may simply be confused as to who he is, and for whatever reason, doesn't want to go back to his real family.

[magdalene]

Hey, it's grey fox Rupert Graves with an American accent.

 

I can't say I was gripped. It's trying too hard at being twisty for twisty's sake.

[Readalot]

I could only wstch for the first fifteen or so so I disn't get to the DNA discussion. But so what, if it's lost or fake? Take another one right? You have both parents and the kid, isn't that all you need?

[ForeverAlone]

The newspaper knows about the iffy DNA test, but the family doesn't. So the question is are the police are behind the DNA test or is someone else responsible for it? If the police are behind the faked test, they certainly aren't going to want to do another test. And if someone else is responsible for the test and the police and family are clueless, someone has to tell them about that first. I'm sure it will be addressed in future episodes though. 

Edited March 4, 2016 by ForeverAlone

[Kenz]

Wow, Red Pines, Maine is quite a metropolitan city, complete with a busy, modern downtown, mall, and huge, impressive town hall. Something tells me it looks more like Vancouver, B.C.

 

Why would the mother decide to run for governor when her traumatized son and troubled family should maybe be a priority? Her husband seemed surprised at her announcement.

 

I feel that we are in for a long slog with this show, and I'm not sure I'm up for it.

[bybrandy]

I love Rupert Graves more than is healthy but the accent..... woah.. needs work... or better they need to accept Americans can marry Brits.  It happens.   

 

 

I'm in for the duration... because... you know, I may have mentioned my thing for Rupert Graves.... but I'd feel better about it if it were a limited run series so I knew the questions would be answered in a timely fashion.   

[vixenbynight]

I love Rupert Graves more than is healthy but the accent..... woah.. needs work... or better they need to accept Americans can marry Brits.  It happens.  

  

I agree about Rupert's American accent, but I will watch this series because I've been a fan of his since his early years in film. Alec Scudder climbing that ladder to get into Maurice's room, in his ex-lover's country estate gets me everytime.

Whether or not that boy is Adam, he was abused and tortured and they need to catch the guy.  He may simply be confused as to who he is, and for whatever reason, doesn't want to go back to his real family.

I also don't think that the boy is Adam Warren, but he has been tortured, raped, kidnapped and abused for years. Maybe the real Adam died while in captivity. He definitely needs help, shelter and a family that could possibly help him get through what has happened to him. I'm glad that the oldest son is questioning things, but it won't stop him from helping that boy and maybe setting things up to stop his drinking.

[Sandman]

She looked surprised when she opened that drawer, so I don't think she planted it.   My first thought -- I'm not the suspicious type -- was that Hank may have showed Adam how to put a ship in a bottle.

 

That's just it -- it looked to me like Willa was nervous, but not surprised. There's a cut away between the moment when she opens that drawer and when the bottle in shown lying on top of whatever's inside; we're not shown whether she finds it or plants it. But given that the detective says the bottle only had Adam's prints, almost as if it had been cleaned and left for her to find, and the fact that Willa later says she hasn't given a true confession in ten years, my money's on her having put the bottle there.

 

And there was a scene of Adam building a ship (with his father?) before his abduction.

[Chaos Theory]

I can see a lot of Adams sensory views changing like not liking eggs. That could be exactly what his mother and sister said. He was abused and starved for years. The boat thing is a little more questionable but that could also be him reverting back to childhood and simply not remembering.

Do I think it is him? I don't know. That is part of the mystery. I think his mother and sister are invested in it being him so much that they won't listen to anything else and the brother is so guilt ridden that he might actually prefer Adam be dead and at peace. So either option is possible.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Chaos Theory

[LakeGal]

Adam snuck out of bed to watch the old birthday videos.  It looked like he was trying to mimic the speech pattern of the Adam in the video.  That was the moment I wondered if he was really Adam or an impostor.  Plus how fast can they do a DNA match?  It seemed like they did it so quickly that I was suspicious.

[FormerMod-a1]

I liked it.  The pacing was right for me, but then again I usually like pacing when it seems everyone else is screaming it's moving too fast and think things drag and drag and drag (and hit me over the head on the same thing 5 different ways and ugh just get on with it already..  I get it!) when others praise it, so I guess I'm just an odd duck with these things. 

 

The story kept me interested and involved, I didn't change the channel or revert to folding laundry or anything.  That's pretty good, especially for a pilot.  I want to see how this unfolds.

[JapMo]

I like Zach Gilford, so that's why I watched.  It was entertaining and I will watch again.  I don't want to, because I got hooked on Secrets & Lies with Ryan Phillipe...LOVED it...but it ended so abruptly. 

 

To me Adam looks a lot older than 18.  One of the saddest parts of the show for me is when the two brothers talk, and the older brother asks why he didn't ever try to run away in 10 years, and the kid says I did run when I had the chance...yesterday. 

 

Biggest fail...the relationship between the father and the cop.  Puhleeze....f*cking in an interrogation room?  Get real.

[jmonique]

To me Adam looks a lot older than 18. 

 

I found a lot of the show a little overwrought at times, but I will say that's one of the things the show has done right. Liam James was solid gold as young Shawn on "Psych," bringing a depth beyond his years to the role. He's only 19, but I think he does a good job of making Adam seem older, yet younger than his years at the same time, and maybe a con man, maybe not, maybe Adam, maybe just a kid who escaped and is trying to survive all at the same time.

[peachmangosteen]

Too bad Zach Gilford's wooden/hollow character is too hung over to shave.  

 

Not too bad at all for me! The one thing I truly liked about this was Zach Gilford's hotness!

 

I figured this would be really bad, but I was hoping it'd be the fun kind of bad. It didn't really get there for me. For one, it's really too dark to be fun bad. But at the same time it wasn't really dark enough if that's what they're going for. Like it was way too soapy in some ways for a show that also kinda seems to want to be a riveting cable-like drama.

 

I think the actor playing Adam is really great though and he made me interested to see where this story goes. 

 

As for the twists, I feel like I called all of them at least 5 minutes before they happened. Twists in a mystery show like this are hard to get right imo. You want them to make sense so they kinda have to be things you could see coming, which in turn makes them not really twisty enough.

 

I wish the actress playing the detective was better because I really want to like that character and be intrigued by the situation with her and Adam's dad, but she's just not good so I never got there.

 

I'll be shocked if it turns out the daughter didn't plant the ship. That seems so obvious.

 

Is the reporter that's apparently trying to use Zach Gilford to get a good story a lesbian? I couldn't tell if the lesbian lifestyle blog thing was real or a joke. Or if she was really maybe into Zach Gilford or just 100% playing him.

Edited March 4, 2016 by peachmangosteen

[St. Claire]

I didn't DVR, so I can't go back to check this- we see Adam in the convenience store after he's been wandering along the highway, and he says he needs a ride, then we see him come to the police station in Red Pines and point to the ten-year-old article about his "murder" being solved. If this is not really Adam, why did he know to go to Red Pines? I wonder if the writers are going to create some long con on the part of the abductor that included him brainwashing the kid into thinking he was Adam, although to what end?

 

I was sufficiently grabbed by the pilot to set up my DVR to keep up on it, but not enough to make an effort to watch it live. I suspect this will turn into one of those shows that I record and watch a bunch of episodes in a row while I knit or become a show I watch for the ridiculousness of the plotline, like I did with Harper's Island  back in the day.

 

I was partly pulled in by drunk Matt Saracen and slightly off-putting little Shawn Spencer. 

[Shellie]

The main thing I have trouble with in this show is the concept that close family members (especially parents) won't know if a missing person who returns is really that person.  It's a point of disbelief I'm never able to set aside for the sake of fiction.  Maybe if 30 years went by, but not nine or ten.  

Edited March 4, 2016 by Shellie

[iMonrey]

Actually I thought Adam looked younger than 19, but I guess I'm just terrible at guessing ages. (Get offa my lawn!)

 

I found the premise intriguing but I have to agree with PTV's review - there's no way it can be sustained for any length of time. Shows that are based around a mystery should be restricted to limited series format. I'm not going to sit through two or three seasons of this thing still not knowing whether or not the kid is really Adam. I don't think anyone else will either. BUT - I'll stick with it for now.

[njudah]

"between the out-and-out bonkersness of Shondaland shows like Scandal and How To Get Away With Murder, and prestige fare like American Crime.'

lines like this keep me coming back (really, I'm not being a sarcastic internet commenter).

I am finding it hard for network television dramas to compete with anything Not On Broadcast Network TV these days, since they can't have swears, or boobs, or penii, or complex plots, but if you say it's ok, I'll try it out.

[AuntiePam]

The main thing I have trouble with in this show is the concept that close family members (especially parents) won't know if a missing person who returns is really that person.  It's a point of disbelief I'm never able to set aside for the sake of fiction.  Maybe if 30 years went by, but not nine or ten.  

 

I was thinking about that too.  There's some change between 9 and 19, but not nearly as much as say, between 4 and 14. 

[grandemocha]

That cop deserves to lose her fucking job, like what level of utter incompetence.. also, I only base my knowledge of kidnapping cases from books and TV of course haha, but wouldn't the FBI be in town ASAP with a case like this? The long thought dead boy of the Mayor returns ten years later, falsely accused man released from prison, it just seems like more authorities would be there to interrogate Adam?

 

Also, couldn't drunk son just wait until no one is looking, take a brush Adam used or something with his DNA on it and get another DNA test conducted if he's so suspicious?

I think the kid who says he is Adam really isn't but perhaps he was kept in captivity with the real Adam who eventually died but not before telling the impostor all about his family and other things.

The daughter is kind of weird and extremely Type A and my random guess is that she was doing something shady all those years ago that inadvertently led to Adam being kidnapped and she's felt guilty ever since that event.

Edited March 4, 2016 by grandemocha

[Readalot]

I was thinking about that too. There's some change between 9 and 19, but not nearly as much as say, between 4 and 14.

yes! And maybe its because my kids are ten years apart, but there is no way YOU JUST WOULDN'T KNOW IF ITS YOUR KID OR NOT! Impossible I say. Unless you are Michelle Duggar.

[JapMo]

I relate to 8 year old Adam who used to hate eggs.  When I was a kid, I couldn't look at an egg in the morning without my stomach churning.  As an adult, I eat them almost every morning.   

[St. Claire]

When I first saw promos for this show, I was reminded (vaguely) of the book/movie The Deep End of the Ocean. I didn't actually read the book or see the movie, but I remember it hinging upon a child who was kidnapped and the challenges resulting in his re-assimilation to his birth family when he returns nine years later. I can't imagine not knowing for sure whether or not a child was yours after ten years, but I suppose there is an element of wanting an outcome so badly that you wouldn't recognize signs that he's not. 

 

I was slightly surprised at how quickly the psychologist wanted to shut down Adam's questioning, considering that he didn't seem to be uncomfortable or breaking down or anything when the detective was trying to get information. I understand the parents wanting to stop it, since it can't be easy for them to hear about "the man getting on top of me" and all that, but Adam was speaking about it in a fairly calm and straightforward tone, so letting him talk is the best way to proceed. As such, I am not sure how much I trust the psychologist (or maybe she was a psychiatrist).

[grandemocha]

Adam creeped me out when he was watching those home movies at night and mimicking young Adam's speech pattern and cadence. He seems to be either slightly unhinged or perhaps he comes from an abusive background and decided he wanted to become Adam because his life is better than the one he originally had. If the drunk brother puts down his flask long enough, he'll probably be the one to figure out that Adam isn't their real brother/son.

[Readalot]

When I first saw promos for this show, I was reminded (vaguely) of the book/movie The Deep End of the Ocean. I didn't actually read the book or see the movie, but I remember it hinging upon a child who was kidnapped and the challenges resulting in his re-assimilation to his birth family when he returns nine years later. I can't imagine not knowing for sure whether or not a child was yours after ten years, but I suppose there is an element of wanting an outcome so badly that you wouldn't recognize signs that he's not.

I was slightly surprised at how quickly the psychologist wanted to shut down Adam's questioning, considering that he didn't seem to be uncomfortable or breaking down or anything when the detective was trying to get information. I understand the parents wanting to stop it, since it can't be easy for them to hear about "the man getting on top of me" and all that, but Adam was speaking about it in a fairly calm and straightforward tone, so letting him talk is the best way to proceed. As such, I am not sure how much I trust the psychologist (or maybe she was a psychiatrist).

it actually reminded me a lot of that book. Second son is kidnapped. First son is blamed. Middle Daughter. Marriage issues between the parents. One of the parents is close to the detective on the case. Son found in the area where they live. Acclimation issues. Edited March 4, 2016 by Readalot

[St. Claire]

I am also intrigued by the DNA doctor being non-existent. So someone- some member of the family, police, whatever- faked a DNA result? Who does that serve? I think only the convicted killer benefits from that, in that he gets out of jail. But it doesn't really benefit him because no one trusts him anyway; he was a convicted sex offender prior to the trial, so being innocent of this crime doesn't buy him any goodwill. It would be an awfully long con for "Adam" to pretend to have been held captive for ten years. The physical trauma has been confirmed, so he either was really being abused or let himself get whipped or slashed or whatever to simulate the abuse (the scars on his back were not fresh). So, most likely, if this is a con, the kid is being used as a tool and is not himself the perpetrator of the con.  My guess is that the writers will create some revenge scheme by the pockmarked man against the small-town mayor (he did say something about how the family "sure would [need lots of prayers]"  in response to the clerk). 

 

I am not sure I want to get sucked into this, but here I am.

[peachmangosteen]

Maybe if 30 years went by, but not nine or ten.  

 

This. Like yes 10 years is a long time, but it's not as long as the writing is making it out to be.

Edited March 4, 2016 by peachmangosteen

[BigBlueMastiff]

I will probably catch another ep this Sunday, but way too much was going on. Also, I kept thinking this cast looks very diverse for a small Maine town. Definitely, love diverse tv casts, but this one threw me because of the setting. I am intrigued by the daughter. I expect some Opus Dei self-flagellation at some point. And how on earth did small town reporter get such a huge scoop? Wouldn't, as someone else said, the cops and FBI be all over this DNA test, yet some fake doctor is able to fool everyone? Makes no sense, but I'll give another shot, mostly for the kid playing Adam.

[KaveDweller]

She looked surprised when she opened that drawer, so I don't think she planted it.   My first thought -- I'm not the suspicious type -- was that Hank may have showed Adam how to put a ship in a bottle.  If the Warrens didn't know that Hank was a RSO, they may have let Adam spend time with him, especially since the guy lived with his mother.  Safe, huh?  (No.)

 

The thing with the flashback is, I don't know this show well enough to know if it is completely true.

 

Wow, Red Pines, Maine is quite a metropolitan city, complete with a busy, modern downtown, mall, and huge, impressive town hall. Something tells me it looks more like Vancouver, B.C.

 

Why would the mother decide to run for governor when her traumatized son and troubled family should maybe be a priority? Her husband seemed surprised at her announcement.

 

She's obviously very ambitious with the politics thing and doesn't want this to derail it.  I don't think she's not really happy the kid returned, just that she may not really understand how hard it will be for the traumatized son to re-adjust. Also (and this is really cynical) it seemed like her son going missing probably helped her win her first election, and I bet she thinks announcing her campaign right now will give her some attention.

 

I just don't get why she told the husband that she wouldn't run, only to turn around and announce it. Was that necessary?

 

Adam snuck out of bed to watch the old birthday videos.  It looked like he was trying to mimic the speech pattern of the Adam in the video.  That was the moment I wondered if he was really Adam or an impostor.  Plus how fast can they do a DNA match?  It seemed like they did it so quickly that I was suspicious.

 

I think they can do them fast if they need to, it's just usually they need time to process labs.

 

However, I recently learned that they sell at home paternity tests in drugstores for anyone to buy. I didn't read the package of any of them, but I assume if they sell an at home test it gives instant results.

 

 

That cop deserves to lose her fucking job, like what level of utter incompetence.. also, I only base my knowledge of kidnapping cases from books and TV of course haha, but wouldn't the FBI be in town ASAP with a case like this? The long thought dead boy of the Mayor returns ten years later, falsely accused man released from prison, it just seems like more authorities would be there to interrogate Adam?

 

Yeah, I think the FBI would be all over something like this. I would also think someone else would be put on the case, since the cop apparently fucked it all up before.

[rue721]

I can see a lot of Adams sensory views changing like not liking eggs. That could be exactly what his mother and sister said. He was abused and starved for years.

 

Yeah, I like plenty of foods that I didn't like as a kid (including eggs). It would be a lot more suspicious if he used to be allergic to eggs.

 

Even then, though, you can grow out of an allergy -- it's just less likely than your tastes changing as you grow up.

 

If this is not really Adam, why did he know to go to Red Pines?

 

It's possible that the kid isn't really Adam, but he *wishes* he were. Adam has a loving family who misses him and has been searching for him, and whoever he is, this kid obviously got a raw deal in life; I can see him fantasizing about being this beloved long-lost son, and maybe even thinking that it's win-win for the family if he comes back "as" Adam. That way, the family gets their son back, and he gets a nice family.

 

Maybe he learned about the kidnapping back when it happened and has been fantasizing about being Adam ever since, or maybe the idea just occurred to him when he saw the poster in Red Pines.

 

Or maybe he really is Adam, although I actually think the odds are that he's not.

 

Adam creeped me out when he was watching those home movies at night and mimicking young Adam's speech pattern and cadence.

 

When I first saw it, that scene made me think that this definitely was an imposter, trying to learn how to "be" Adam.

 

But thinking about it more, it could just as easily be Adam trying to remember who he was before he was kidnapped and all this terrible stuff happened to him. I mean, even if he's the real Adam, the last ten years probably changed him so much that the kid in the video would seem like a stranger anyway.

 

So, most likely, if this is a con, the kid is being used as a tool and is not himself the perpetrator of the con.

 

I think it's really likely that the kid is being used as some con-man's tool and has been sent to the family as part of a scam. I'm not sure what that scam might be, though?

 

The thing that makes me think that maybe!Adam was probably sent home by his kidnapper/abuser rather than escaped captivity on his own is that he doesn't seem at all afraid of his kidnapper tracking him down again. If I were him, and I had just escaped, I probably wouldn't run directly home, because the kidnapper already snatched him from there once. And I wouldn't be willing to be filmed by news crews going into the house or having my whereabouts be publicly known anything like that. I wouldn't even want to sleep alone in my room. But maybe!Adam doesn't seem at all afraid of retaliation by his kidnapper or of being taken again.

[KaveDweller]

The thing that makes me think that maybe!Adam was probably sent home by his kidnapper/abuser rather than escaped captivity on his own is that he doesn't seem at all afraid of his kidnapper tracking him down again. If I were him, and I had just escaped, I probably wouldn't run directly home, because the kidnapper already snatched him from there once. And I wouldn't be willing to be filmed by news crews going into the house or having my whereabouts be publicly known anything like that. I wouldn't even want to sleep alone in my room. But maybe!Adam doesn't seem at all afraid of retaliation by his kidnapper or of being taken again.

 

Someone mentioned something about how they needed to find the kidnapper in case he has other boys. So maybe this guy kidnapped Adam and another boy, and the other boy is either pretending to be Adam or somehow started thinking he really was Adam. The real Adam could be dead or not in this scenario.

[grandemocha]

 

But maybe!Adam doesn't seem at all afraid of retaliation by his kidnapper or of being taken again.

I noticed this too. When he was with the therapist, his parents, and the incompetent cop, he just seemed so detached about his years of rape and torture. The actor playing Adam is doing a fairly good job so far, but I can't tell if the character acts unhinged/ slightly detached but child like BECAUSE of the years of rape and torture or because he's an impostor with psychological issues so this is all a fake roleplay for him to get a better life.

[millennium]

I think it's pretty shitty naming the kid Adam, considering Adam Walsh, the son of John Walsh, who is perhaps America's most tireless fighter when it comes to missing kids, never got to come home.   All they found of Adam Walsh was his severed head.

 

As for the show, what a collection of unlikeable characters.   I'm getting tired of the "slow burn" drama genre.   They never pay off satisfyingly in the end, and sometimes they get canceled even before they get there.

Edited March 6, 2016 by millennium

[TVHappy9463]

I'm in. The performances are great. I think the kid and the guy are in on it together.