I did too but it felt like it was on a shoe string budget and was acting like there was more happening then their really was. The scenes with Washington were great. Sent from my Note 3
Waited until the season ended before watching it...now half way through it and will probably finish it tomorrow night. As good as ever. You have to watch this show. And, if you really don't want to watch a foreign British show...HBO are remaking it for a US audience. http://seriable.com/utopia-creator-us-remake-brilliant/
It's great enough that HBO wants it, yet we're probably still the only 2 people here who've watched the show despite us heaping praise on it. As soon it's on HBO, however, it'll have it's own thread with half the lounge talking about it. Typical Americans. LOL
Game of thrones Masters of sex The white queen Topless prophet SENT FROM MY LG G-FLEX ON THE NOW NETWORK FROM SPRINT!
just finished season 2 of Utopia. Totally kicked ***. I pray HBO does it its proper justice with the remake. Don't see how it can surpass the original though. I read that something like only 1% of its viewers are American. Total shame. Utopia joins Misfits and The Inbetweeners as three must-see shows that aren't being seen by Americans.
I watched Misfits based on your recommendation and loved it. So I checked out Utopia. I can't get into it. I don't know why, but it's just not catching on with me. I liked the premise, but it's... I dunno. It's not happening. Maybe it's the characters. I just don't think they're interesting. I'll check out HBO's version because I like the premise. Hopefully they do a better job w/characterization.
That's understandable. If there's one thing that can quickly ruin a good show for me it's the inability to feel it with the actors. If HBO can maintain Utopia's integrity, the show itself is f***ing awesome. Not sure how many episodes you got through, but I know it took me a few to get into it before I got hooked. If you liked Misfits raunchy style, you might wanna give The Inbetweeners a few episodes b/c if it's for you, you'll end up loving it as well. So how'd you like Nathan & Rudy? I was really bummed in the final episode knowing it's the last time I'd get to enjoy the hilarious brilliance that is Rudy2.
Anyone watching Happy Valley? It's another solid Netflix original. I thoroughly enjoyed season 1. Has the style and feel of The Killing and Broadchurch. I'd put it close to on par with season 3 of The Killing for quality. Has an impressive 8.4 user rating on IMDb. It started out a little slow but picked up by the 2nd episode.
Nathan was GOAT on that show. Had me in tears every time he was on screen. Rudy was good, but I always missed Nathan. Didn't watch any seasons after 3 because I heard the show went way downhill. First thing I noticed was Ian (Utopia) was Curtis from misfits. So far, I've watched the first three episodes. Does it get better from there? Fin D mentioned Happy Valley. From the description, it sounds like my kind of show. I'll be on to that one next.
I think Claymore would share my feelings that Misfits only went downhill temporarily. I hated seeing Nathan go and was unsure about the show after season 3, but IMO it picked right back up again in season 4 after needing a season to establish new characters and allow viewers to adjust to them. You already suffered through the downhill part so you might as well start on season 4 where it gets good again. I thought Rudy was slightly annoying in season 3, but once Joseph Gilgun settled into the role he was unstoppable and outshone Nathan in my eyes [and Claymore's as well]. By season 5 he was a f***ing riot. In the long run I think changing characters and introducing fresh faces prevented any potential issues with viewer complacency, because as great as Nathan was, I'm not sure I could've appreciated his eccentricity the same by seasons 4 and 5. Meanwhile, Rudy stepped in and essentially gave us a brand new Nathan to become fascinated with. Season 4 introduces 4 new members to the group- Jess [X-ray vision], Finn [a fumbling telekinetic], Abby, and Alex [can rid people of their powers by having sex with them], plus a new community service boss- Shaun Dooly who's a trip. Jess & Finn essentially replaced Alisha & Simon, both of whom I thought were improvements, and Dooly was easily the best boss of the show. Alex replaced Kelly and offered some crazy episodes by nature of his power. In the end I thought the characters from seasons 4 & 5 proved to be at least as good as those from 1 & 2, if not better. Yeah, Ian was never a favorite of mine either. Thankfully his role isn't a big one. The show is constantly unfolding and introducing new elements, even in season 2, which makes it get better and better. Did you reach the point where they disclose what the show is actually about, what "Utopia" is and why the network is after the manuscript? That's where it really starts picking up steam, but IIRC it takes a little time to build up to that, necessarily so though. I rated it an 8 on IMDb after season 1. By season 2 I gladly bumped it to 9. I thought it turned out even better than it sounds. Very well made. Solid story line.
Excellent show. I've honestly never seen a show that felt more....realistic. The lead actress, Sarah Lancashire, was flat out incredible in that role. There will be a second season. Apparently it was a huge hit in Britain.
Phinsational: OK. Decided to finish season 1 of Utopia. Episodes 1-3 are not that great w/o the explanation of Janis and what it is. Once they explain the origin and purpose of Janis, it finally all syncs together. Anyone watching this show must get to episode 4 (Season 1) before judging it. That's when things start to get good. The explanation and purpose of Janis and it's actually pretty interesting... I love the concept. Before the explanation of Janis, I couldn't wrap my head around why The Network would want to do something sinister. It felt like Masochism and that is about as uninteresting and lazy as it gets. Once you get to episode 4, everything makes sense. And Episode 1 of season 2 is ****ing awesome... Reminds me of Fringe, where they show young(er) Walter trying to cure Peter's disease and he sees Walternate missed the cure and all the moral and ethical dilemma's that follow. Episode 1 (s2) is amazing. Excited to see how the rest of season 2 plays out.
Glad you're enjoying it man. I love the bilateral nature of it where the two sides ultimately share a similar belief centered around compassion for mankind but have opposing mentalities about how to employ such compassion. I loved S2E1 as well, including the way in which they filmed it.
I spent the first couple of minutes of S2E1 thinking my TV was broke. We might have to really pray that HBO do a great job of the remake. Season 1 didn't have very impressive viewing figures over here, 1% of American viewers is almost on a par with UK viewers, and it was really only critical acclaim that got it back for a second season....which has had even worse viewing figures. As of now, there's been no word of it being renewed. People that love the show REALLY love the show, but as for all the others not watching...
LOL, I spent the first couple minutes going through different links looking for widescreen. that's really disappointing and depressing, especially considering HBO thinks enough of it to remake it. ....and HBO is gonna be the one to get all the praise for the show as if the original didn't exist. Yeah, at least with HBO doing it we might have a chance for more than 2 seasons so at least that's a silver lining.
Finished season 2. The problem with Utopia and BBC writing in general, is lightning fast character and story progression. 6 episodes per season is too few. 10-13 is the sweet spot, IMO. While the idea for HBO's Utopia isn't original, I think they'll do a better job with the material. HBO is the best in the business and they know how to make great TV. EDIT: Spoiler Anyone else hoping that Wilson releases an updated Janis at some point and we'll get some kind of children of men type season? I'd love to explore the unintended consequences. The Network thought Janis would create Utopia, but it created the same violence and genocide Janis was suppose to avoid. Off the top of my head, how ironic would it be that Carvel, a holocaust and concentration camp survivor trying to avoid a 3rd Reich, gives fertility to the Roma people, and they end up being rounded up and medically studied against their will? There's all kinds of crazy dystopian scenarios.
I agree about the 6 episodes, 13 is the ideal IMO. American seasons with 22 in them are overly long, with too many filler episodes padding them out, and on the other hand even 10 episodes (like GoT) can feel slightly crammed sometimes. Spoiler I thought the same about Carvel. I could imagine a Utopian future for the Roma people that would be more like Hell, with their women in particular likely not enjoying their adult lives too much when they're held by desperate people wanting to keep them perpetually pregnant, or to medically study them as you say.
