S01.E03: Goring Oxes: How You Can Survive the War on Government Through Five Easy Steps

[formerlyfreedom]

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When a bizarre and deadly incident takes place on live television, Agent Onofrio's investigation into it causes Laurel, Gustav and Rochelle to dig deeper into the bug mystery. Also, Luke attempts to cover up his affair with his Chief of Staff, Scarlett, before his opponent for the minority whip position, Senator Ella Poundstone, can make it public.

[shapeshifter]

24 minutes ago, saoirse said:

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When a bizarre and deadly incident takes place on live television, Agent Onofrio's investigation into it causes Laurel, Gustav and Rochelle to dig deeper into the bug mystery. Also, Luke attempts to cover up his affair with his Chief of Staff, Scarlett, before his opponent for the minority whip position, Senator Ella Poundstone, can make it public.

Agent Onofrio? Like Vincent D'Onofrio?

[Primetimer]

And more not-quite-burning questions sparked by the latest BrainDead!

View the full article

[Free]

On 6/20/2016 at 10:43 PM, shapeshifter said:

Agent Onofrio? Like Vincent D'Onofrio?

That would've been interesting.

[thuganomics85]

So, I'm guessing these alien bugs can effect animals, too?  Poor Gustav's cat!  I can't see this show actually having his or her's head explode though...

I know Gareth is suppose to be a brilliant strategist, but if anything, a lot of his ideas were pretty obvious in that they would work (no matter how cheap or low they were), so instead of really thinking of him as a genius, I kept wondering how that other woman even got hired.  I would think that it is basic political knowledge knows that if you want a certain candidate from an opposite political party to be in charge, you don't actually throw your support for them, because that would just make the candidate's actual party turn against them.  At least in this current political climate. 

Already suspicious of the FBI agent who isn't flirting with Laurel, because he's played by Glenn Fleshler, who I learned from True Detective, Hannibal, Boardwalk Empire, or, hell, any of his roles, that he can't be trusted to be on the right side of things.

Luke has got to be the worst at keeping his affairs under wraps.  How could he not see earlier that he was making it incredibly easy to find out he was having an affair with Scarlett?

Laurel/Mary Elizabeth Winstead continues to be my favorite thing about this show, which is a nice change of pace.  A lot of times, it's a supporting character that steals the show, and while I do enjoy some of them (Gustav and Gareth mainly), I'm finding Laurel to be a very likable lead.

[shapeshifter]

44 minutes ago, PreviouslyTV said:

And more not-quite-burning questions sparked by the latest BrainDead!
 

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Why not send flowers to everyone?

Scarlett's tactic of sending flowers to Ella (as an apology "from Luke" for their fight) and then placing some in Luke's office as a delivery mechanism for the space bugs is simple and brilliant. Since, presumably, part of their mission is to spread, and since having flowers delivered to basically anyone is easy and fairly inexpensive, why not make the invasion more efficient right now? Or take over a laundromat? Or a pizza parlor? Do I have to do all the parasitic aliens' work for them?!

View the full article

I guess the space bugs, like most extraterestrial invaders, are trying to take over without being discovered (before they have enough control).

 

Poor Gustav. My daughter has had her cat 4 years and through as many boyfriends. But Gutav doesn't have too many friends. So, will his cat head off to a new role in Zoo?

Edited June 28, 2016 by shapeshifter

[Free]

27 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I guess the space bugs, like most extraterestrial invaders, are trying to take over without being discovered (before they have enough control).

 

Poor Gustav. My daughter has had her cat 4 years and through as many boyfriends. But Gutav doesn't have too many friends. So, will his cat head off to a new role in Zoo?

I thought the cat was infected and was going to attack him tbh.

[BooBear]

I like Gareth but I was sort of stunned by how worried Laurel was about his potential death.  But enjoyed how they amped up the kissing. I would think Gareth should be in line for an ant treatment soon from his boss. 

I liked Laurel's brother getting her out of the FBI questioning... but I hate her brother. He is the worst. Thinks he is a good guy but isn't.  What was he thinking in attacking the other WIP candidate? You don't attack others if you have open skeletons.

I am rather concerned about the idea that people's heads are exploding on tv and things aren't more dire. I know the world didn't see it but like 30 people did.

ETA: brain dead, I can take ants (in the middle of the summer) I can take all the shots at Trump; I am completely fine seeing people lose their heads in nasty bloody explosions (please let Luke go that way), but where I draw the line is any harm coming to a defenseless cat. Be advised. Any harm comes to that cat... I will no longer be watching.

Edited June 28, 2016 by BooBear

[shapeshifter]

11 minutes ago, BooBear said:

ETA: brain dead, I can take ants (in the middle of the summer) I can take all the shots at Trump; I am completely fine seeing people lose their heads in nasty bloody explosions (please let Luke go that way), but where I draw the line is any harm coming to a defenseless cat. Be advised. Any harm comes to that cat... I will no longer be watching.

I'm hoping the PTVer is right:

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Not every member of Gustav's household escapes the brain bugs. He seemed like a really good kitty too. Though if my own cat lost a portion of his memory and his ability to think, I'm not sure how I'd be able to tell the difference?

[cardigirl]

Oh my god, I love this show.  Can't wait for the next episode!!!!

Poor kitty kitty.

[ketchuplover]

I am expecting kitty to open his/her mouth and flood the room with aliants

[Ms Lark]

I can put up with exploding human heads, but do not mess with the kitty!!

[Maximum Taco]

Gotta believe Gustav's gonna sacrifice the cat to SCIENCE!

Cat autopsy will confirm the brain bug hypothesis. But he'll have to kill the kitty before his head explodes. I assume the head explosions destroy or disperse the brain bugs, otherwise they would've been discovered long ago.

Poor kitty.

[torqy]

15 hours ago, ketchuplover said:

 aliants

Hee!

Wasn't sure I'd like it, but this show is a hoot. Winstead is perfect for the part of Laurel.

[Bruinsfan]

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Not every member of Gustav's household escapes the brain bugs. He seemed like a really good kitty too. Though if my own cat lost a portion of his memory and his ability to think, I'm not sure how I'd be able to tell the difference?

I'd love it if the cat's behavior didn't change at all. Why should alien bugs be able to make a cat do anything it doesn't want to when humans can't?

[cardigirl]

My ex always said that cats don't have brains so the bugs may die from lack of food.  :)

(He liked cats, BTW)

Edited June 29, 2016 by cardigirl
clarification

[Gimmick Genius]

I couldn't tell from the short clip, but IF the cat was bobbing its head in time to "You Might Think..." that would've been a GREAT way to clue Gustav in that it's been 'infested.'

[Gimmick Genius]

My questions: Is there a finite number of 'Aliants' :) or are they reproducing/making more? We saw the swarm flow out of the Russian meteorite -- is that still their base/hive? Is there a "Queen" in there that they all come from or do random pairs (or whatever) procreate? After Laurel stomped a few, there was a quick closeup of other bugs going to the stomped ones but I couldn't tell; were they eating them? Rendering first aid/repairs? And how many ants does it take to take someone over? Clearly more than one - but we've seen long lines and swarms of bugs approaching people. Do the bugs 'know' when enough have gone in? The ear is clearly the preferred entry point and Gustav's Red Solo Earmuffs foiled THAT, but can they get in through the mouth? Nose? EYES???

[shapeshifter]

55 minutes ago, Gimmick Genius said:

My questions: Is there a finite number of 'Aliants' :) or are they reproducing/making more? We saw the swarm flow out of the Russian meteorite -- is that still their base/hive? Is there a "Queen" in there that they all come from or do random pairs (or whatever) procreate? After Laurel stomped a few, there was a quick closeup of other bugs going to the stomped ones but I couldn't tell; were they eating them? Rendering first aid/repairs? And how many ants does it take to take someone over? Clearly more than one - but we've seen long lines and swarms of bugs approaching people. Do the bugs 'know' when enough have gone in? The ear is clearly the preferred entry point and Gustav's Red Solo Earmuffs foiled THAT, but can they get in through the mouth? Nose? EYES???

First, I loved Gustav's Red Solo Cup earmuffs--held in place by yellow duct tape, I think.

Roswell did some cheesey Queen of the hive that was really shark jumpy, so I hope they don't go there.

And I'm pretty sure the live space ants were eating the dead ones rather than repairing them, otherwise they would be analagous to the Stargate replicators, which also became shark jumpy because they were seemingly immmortal. So if I were a fly (or ant) on the writers' room wall, I would whisper: not that either.

[Bruinsfan]

I would think they have to be making new aliants, for swarms of the size we've seen to be crawling all over Washington and taking over random people. Surely it's not just one swarm going from place to place.

[Tarasme]

And what's with the candy bar sharing? Does the ant-think cause humans to share other food too? Muffins? Smoothies? Steak?

Then again, I'm assuming Gustav's paranoia about the candy bar sharing really justified and those guys were ant-fested and not just creepy.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, Tarasme said:

And what's with the candy bar sharing? Does the ant-think cause humans to share other food too? Muffins? Smoothies? Steak?

Then again, I'm assuming Gustav's paranoia about the candy bar sharing really justified and those guys were ant-fested and not just creepy.

Good question. My guess is they're communicating. 

[bref]

I've seen carpenter ants come and retrieve the bodies of their fallen brethren after a visit from the exterminator. I kind of assumed that's what the alien version was doing.

[TheRabbi]

I must admit I kind of love this show, which I was not expecting at all. Its getting anemic ratings, so hopefully CBS at least lets the episodes play out

Edited July 1, 2016 by TheRabbi

[redpencil]

I love the straightman reactions of the uninfected to the nonsensical things the infected are saying. Like, "You're outnumbered." "By who?" "By the people you're outnumbered by." And then the reporter friend's comment about Belgium (or whatever country it was) giving free healthcare to all children until 50.

Edited July 2, 2016 by redpencil

[wendyg]

I for one appreciated the aliants' attention to correct grammar: "Whom."

[Dowel Jones]

Let us hope, then, that they can get the two houses of Congress to write bills in understandable language.

[atomationage]

Hooray for the musical opening again!  Tony Shaloub and Jan Maxwell are rocking this show.  She played the mom on Billy and Billie, and I barely recognized her because she looks so much older here.  Loving Gustav and the whole show.  It's reminding me of Galavant.  One dumb thing was not closing the blinds when they were talking about Scarlett.   This episode did a great job of combining drama with comedy.

Edited July 2, 2016 by atomationage

[expateliz]

This show is so deeply weird (in a good way) that it's alleviating some of my anger at the Kings for later seasons of the Good Wife. Like most people here, I care more about the characters than the plot, but that's fine because the cast is so much fun to watch. (I keep imagining how much better Blacklist would be if they had cast Winstead instead of dumb Liz.)

[tessaray]

I just watched the first 3 episodes in a mini-binge and I am hooked.  I'm used to being able to predict what happens next in most shows, but this one is off-kilter enough that it's keeping me guessing. (And watching through my fingers at times.)

The big question is if something can overcome the bugs.  When Laurel was trying to make her friend remember, I was hoping that it would work... because you know one of the team is going to get infected.  

[shapeshifter]

Gustav knows that the bugs enter through the ears. So shouldn't he be stockpiling and distributing those foam earplugs that are so handy when you're on an early morning walk and encounter a fleet of leaf (dust) blowers? They're also useful when an overnight guest snores. Of course, the cup and tape halo was much funnier.

[Browncoat]

I would think you'd need something solid that covers the entire ear, like the Solo cups, and the tape helped create a nice seal so the aliants couldn't get under.  Earplugs of any variety don't always block the ear canal entirely, and since most of them are soft and pliable, the bugs could probably chew through them (or wedge their way around).

[JasmineFlower]

I'm so unsure about this show. I've just started this episode and I grow more and more confused about the direction it's going. The end of the last episode was a major step back since I loved her friend Stacy and she became an alien. 

I LOVE Mary Elizabeth in this, she's the main reason why I'm trying to think of a way to make this work. I mean, I've enjoyed her before, but she's great here. I'm enjoying Aaron too, and even though Danny is smarmy, I'm liking him too, especially the brother-sister relationship. I like this Gustav character now too.

But they are turning way, way too many people into aliens. It feels like too many and it makes me wonder what I'll be watching in another 4 episodes, will it be a full-on alien show with 2 or 3 humans remaining? Because I'm not a real sci-fi person, so that premise idea holds zero interest to me. I find the ants really and leaky brains really disgusting, couldn't even watch what I think might have been happening to Gustav's poor cat. I think the show with the idea and knowledge of aliens was plenty, feels like the continuation of turning so many is going to take away so much of what I like about this show.

I think I'll try to watch another 2 episodes and reevaluate. I'm hoping against hope that Laurel talking to Stacy and Stacy almost seeming to return to herself for a few minutes was an indication that some of the turned aliens can become themselves again without dying or anything, though with the whole losing brain matter while trying to fight back seems dire. Without a few going back to being regular people as others change into aliens, it seems like it'll be a show of automaton people strangely and inappropriately sharing candy bars and water bottles while listening to The Cars.