FlipBoard
Hemlock Grove (Netflix, Anytime) — There’s not jack sh*t on TV on Friday and Saturday, so if you’re aching for some mediocre horror, you can dive into the second season of the Netflix series, although early notices have not been kind.
The Leftovers (HBO, Sunday 10 p.m.) — Everyone among the critics says this episode is the one to watch, that the third episode will CHANGE OUR LIVES. I haven’t watched it yet, but then again, I liked the first two episodes just fine. However, I wouldn’t object to a remarkably strong third episode, if only so viewers will stick around and continue to watch it with me. It’s not like the old days, before Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead, when people would give a new drama a half season or so to find its feet … oh wait, didn’t both of those shows start off slow, too (especially The Walking Dead)?
The Strain (FX, Sunday 10 p.m.) — Before the Sunday premiere, here’s everything you need to know about The Strain. I get the sense from the reviews so far that FX’s Guillermo del Toro series is schlocky good fun. I’m OK with that, although I’m less OK with another Sunday night at 10 p.m. drama, especially now that …
Masters of Sex (Showtime, Sunday 10 p.m.) — … Master of Sex is set to return. One of my favorite new shows of 2013, Lizzy Caplan, Michael Sheen, and the soft-core porn and nudity are back, but it’s all in service of the plot!
Ray Donovan (Showtime, Sunday 9 p.m.) — Ray Donovan also returns for its second season, and I still want to know who Jon Voight had to bang to get that Emmy nomination, and what kind of sick f**k would give Jon Voight a nomination for sleeping with him/her?
Fifa World Cup Final (ABC, Sunday 3 p.m.) — Germany vs. Argentina, followed by four more years of Americans not talking about soccer.
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wait, when did the walking dead find its feet? I thought I saw every episode…
Isn’t The Leftover’s showrunner Lindelof? If so, I bet it isn’t getting better.
I’ll take that bet (good odds)!
Can’t get much worse
That’s one busy Sunday.
This is Chris Eccleston’s episode. It’s amazing.
I don’t know about you, Dustin, but I don’t think I’d consider superfast ice zombies, a bunch of decapitations, and a little kid getting pushed out a window after seeing royal incest as starting off slow. That’s just me though.
I was about to say, GoT had probably the most shocking ending to a first episode of any show. I’m glad I was able to binge watch the first season because there is no way I would have wanted to wait a week to see the second episode.
I don’t blame anyone for thinking it was slow in retrospect, though. The Walkers were barely there, and all they did was kill some jobbers nobody cared about. The kid who got pushed from the window was not and still is not one that many people care much about, either. Royal incest is cool, but that was just one scene.
The second episode of The Leftovers already had me thinking, “Oh no, it’s already feeling like a throwaway episode of LOST in the 4th season.”
Agreed. The pilot was amazing and the 2nd episode was a big step back. Rooting for a strong showing in episode 3.
Agree with this
The only good episode of The Walking Dead is the first one.
The only way for you to know this is if you’ve watched 4 seasons of show that has “no good episodes.” Maybe you should get a hobby or something.
@Flying Penguin I have hate watched all of the seasons to the Walking Dead and can confirm the pilot is the high point to this show. My hobbies include reading the wonderfully snarky recaps of the Walking Dead over at videogum.
@rage Fair enough. But why would you actively watch a show for 4 years if you really don’t enjoy it?
Because my wife is really into it, so I tolerate it. However, even she agreed to save up all the episodes this upcoming season and marathon it after how slow the second half of last season was. I give them credit for trying to develop characters, but they fell flat on their face doing it.
The first episode of the Leftovers had me captivated immediately, the second episode not so much, but I’m totally still going to watch and give it a chance. People are so impatient these days.
I gave up on Ray Donovan by episode 3. I like Leiv Schrieber, I’ve long said he was the only tolerable part of X-Men Origins Wolverine, but this show is just bad.
There were a one or two strong episodes later in the season, but yeah, not a good show overall. I like to think it showed potential, but AV Club says season 2 is just as bad as season 1. Oh well.
Yeah it is a sloppy show but GODDAMN Jon Voight chews through scenery on there.
That ending scene in the gay club was pretty good.
The Legend of Korra is, at the very least, jack shit.
There is a new Phineas and Ferb on
The Leftovers pilot was promising enough for me not to quit yet, everyone seems to agree that this third episode is ‘make or break’. But if Leftovers doesn’t recover, I’m gonna feel that 2014 has been an incredibly disappointing year for new TV. Especially since gaps like Breaking Bad and Mad Men will need to be filled. I hope The Strain delivers, but I wasn’t banking on it as much as Leftovers.
Regardless, I know Masters of Sex won’t disappoint, which unlike 2014, I can undoubtedly choose as one of the best new shows of 2013.
True Detective and Fargo both started this year, so I will vehemently disagree with your assessment of 2014 being an incredibly disappointing year for new TV.
@Flying Penguin
And Hannibal season 2.
I dug both episodes of the Leftovers. I’m still pretty scared of the Lindelof Drop that may eventually come, but I’m pretty intrigued through both episodes.
2nd episode of Leftovers: Blows chunks…….. ? any likable characters?
I think Wayne is pretty cool. Him and Garvey’s dad are the only ones I’d say are particularly likable. Those twin dudes also seem decent enough, and Garvey’s daughter’s bestie is mostly cool, though she was kind of an ass about following Nora. The dog killer is interesting, though not particularly likable. Tom, Christine, and the mayor are just whatever.
Garvey, his daughter, and all the GR women are all pretty annoying.
Wayne is creepy as fuck.
I’ve accepted the Leftovers into my life, I think Andie Mcdowells daughter is super cute, and I’m intrigued by whats going on. So I’m sticking with it.
ICYMI: Halt and Catch Fire has been pretty good the last two weeks.
I haven’t watched The Leftovers for a few reasons. First, I’m not a fan of Lindelof and his utter disregard for proper storytelling, when I heard going in to the last season of LOST that they weren’t going to resolve a lot of the mysteries they had built up I decided that I didn’t really need to ever check that show out. On this end, it doesn’t help that they already said they aren’t going to tell you where the people went, fuck that. Second, the people talking about how it’s “THE ONLY SHOW THAT MATTERS” and “IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE”, and all that bullshit. It’s a fucking TV show that’s had 2 episodes, calm the fuck down. Third, though it is an interesting premise, it looks boring and bland as fuck.
There were at least 2 episodes of “Hey Vern, Its Earnest” that changed my life.
@crispyaod
Reason and logic are not words in Lindelof fan’s vocabulary. That’s part of the reason they consider all of his projects to be “Important” or “life changing”. That and they don’t know jack about deep, quality characters or a coherent story, hailing Lindeloff’s scattershot approach at plot, and one dimensional characters as “genius”.
Jon Voight is really good on that show. I don’t know what your problem is.
“followed by four more years of Americans not talking about soccer.”
Hallefuckinlujah!
The Walking Dead started off strong and hasn’t been good since.
Voight didn’t bang anyone, he’s just a revered film actor taking his first role on tv…aka Emmy bait