Under the Dome (TV series) - Stephen King

***Neil*** · 08-Aug-2013

From what I can see, it's been very successful viewing figures wise. Second series given the green light!

**MinionZombie** · 08-Aug-2013

Originally Posted by EvilNed

But there's a certain charm about it as well. I, like many others I'd wager, was grown up on a healthy diet of Stephen King-films and lore. Apart from The Mist, which was awesome, it's been awhile since we had anything to add to the Stephen King "cozy horror" category. I think this might be it. We've got the same run-of-the-mill Stephen King characters, hometown and world. It feels like revisiting parts of your childhood. That's what gets me going.

I'd probably have preferred a mini series, tho. And one aimed at a more mature audience. Something more like The Mist, that is.

That's a good way of putting it, Ned. I get the same feeling - it's not the best adaptation, but yeah ... "cozy horror" with typical King tropes. It does feel 'very King' with the town and the people within that town ... although I would like a little less 'idiot mob mentality' ... by which I mean, an entire mob goes nuts and only a couple of main characters have a cool head. It's like all the townsfolk who don't have speaking parts are just total idiots who'll snap at any second and listen intently to any crazy idiot, but will then whip back the other way whenever Barbie gets in on the act to calm things down. A bit too 'all one way, then all the way back'.

Originally Posted by Neil

From what I can see, it's been very successful viewing figures wise. Second series given the green light!

Yeah I've heard it's been going great guns for the summer period. That's another thing - this 'seasonal' approach to TV in America is moronic. If they weren't such slaves to that form, you could have shows with less gaps in their viewing schedules (e.g. 6 months worth of The Big Bang Theory spread out over 9 months) ... these gaps also affect British scheduling ... so, in the case of TBBT, or 2 Broke Girls (as mainstream seasonal scheduling), we have a late start, then a single mid-season break so there's enough episodes to air in an uninterrupted block when it comes back.

Just broadcast the show and move on to the next one and keep the schedule solid, save for a very few instances (e.g. apparently everyone watches the Superbowl, so there's no point airing an episode during that time).

Anyway - yes, UTD is doing well in the ratings ... but perhaps there isn't the competition for it either?

***Neil*** · 19-Aug-2013

Starting tonight in the UK. 10pm Ch5 - http://www.channel5.com/shows/under-...about-the-show

**MinionZombie** · 19-Aug-2013

Just having a squiz at the show's Wiki page:

Critical reception

On June 10, 2013, Under the Dome was one of the six series chosen for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Most Exciting New Series.[16]

As of June 25, 2013, the series has a rating of 72 out of 100 on Metacritic – indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on the pilot episode.[17]

But by August 13, 2013, eight episodes into the season, reviews of the show had declined sharply, with TV.com's Tim Surette calling it "mediocre TV"[18] and ''Geek Speak Magazine'''s Rachel Hyland calling it "a silly, silly show" of "abiding awfulness."[19]

On June 27, 2013, Stephen King acknowledged that "the TV version of Under the Dome varies considerably from the book version", and called the series "very good" while commenting on some of those differences:[2]

[If] you look closely, you’ll see that most of my characters are still there, although some have been combined and others have changed jobs. That’s also true of the big stuff, like the supermarket riot, the reason for all that propane storage, and the book’s thematic concerns with diminishing resources. Many of the changes wrought by Brian K. Vaughan and his team of writers have been of necessity, and I approved of them wholeheartedly. Some have been occasioned by their plan to keep the Dome in place over Chester’s Mill for months instead of little more than a week, as is the case in the book. Other story modifications are slotting into place because the writers have completely re-imagined the source of the Dome.

Ratings

The June 24 "Pilot" established records for the highest rated CBS summer premiere since Big Brother's 2000 season, the highest drama summer premiere on any network since 1992 and the second highest rated premiere of the 2012–13 United States network television schedule after The Following.[20] With DVR figures added, the series premiere was viewed by a total of 17.76 million viewers.

Started off at 13-odd million viewers, and it's been weaving in and around 11 or 10 since then ... still doing very well in the figures, but there's not much competition out there at this time of year, and it's interesting that the critical response has been shifting apparently. Started fairly strong and interesting, but it's softened over the last two months - I've certainly found my initial interest and excitement for the show taking a considerable hit. I'll at least see out the season, but unless they really buck up their ideas - and get rid of that "network" feel (dumbed down scenarios, some catastrophically bad moments of dialogue, a general sense of 'safe for TV' about it etc) - I'm not sure if I'll be around for season two if it continues to slide.

**MinionZombie** · 27-Aug-2013

Three episodes left in the season and they've finally rediscovered a bit more of a sense of pace - a little more actually happened in this episode.

Still though, there's some appalling dialogue throughout that crops up, filled with blunt-as-a-rock-to-the-face exposition ... like characters speaking to each other in a way as if they've never talked about this piece of information before - doing so for the 'benefit of the viewer' ... when, if course, such blunt writing isn't necessary. We can follow along without it, and it can even help add a further layer of mystery as we keep watching to dig up little slivers of extra information (see "The Returned" as a great example of that kind of well crafted mystery writing).

The quality has really dropped a lot since the first episode though ... as I've said before, it feels awfully "network" in its presentation. A real shame. I'm hanging in there till the end of the season - if it manages to pull itself up then I might stick around for season 2, but yeah, they've really gone out of their way to sap the intrigue and quality drama prospects out of this concept.

**Morto Vivente** · 09-Sep-2013

Maybe my expectations were to high, but since the 2nd episode or so the ability of the show to engage has declined dramatically IMO. The pace of each episode really drags and most of the characters are rather bland. I haven't read the novel but I'll hazard a guess that the characterization isn't so pedestrian. For me the most interesting character was the reverend who was murdered around the 4th episode

. Anyway I'll hang in for the rest of the season, nothing ventured etc.....

**MinionZombie** · 09-Sep-2013

Yeah, I'm hanging in for the end of the season ... but I really don't know if I'll watch the second at this rate. The Reverend annoyed me - a typical King 'psycho preacher' that felt done-to-death, so I was glad when they snuffed him out ... yeah, the show feels like a big old let down. I was interested to begin with, but then that interest waned gradually over the season, and now I'm just sticking it out for the last couple of episodes to round-out the season ... but beyond that? Hmmm...

A wasted opportunity ... big style.

***Neil*** · 09-Sep-2013

I've got all these recorded, but from your comments I really should just delete them and save the time!

**Morto Vivente** · 09-Sep-2013

@ MZ: I found it difficult to find any of the characters remotely interesting, but failed clergymen amuse me somehow. Did any of the characters stand out for you?

- - - Updated - - -

Originally Posted by Neil

I've got all these recorded, but from your comments I really should just delete them and save the time!

I'm sure you have a "gazillion" other things to give your attention to. IMO deleting wouldn't be a rash choice based on season 1.

**MinionZombie** · 09-Sep-2013

Yeah, I don't think you'd be missing much, Neil ... aside from a chance to say "OH DEAR!"

If I knew it was going to get this shoddy I'd not have bothered in the first place, but with two episodes left in the season, it's only the completist in me that is forcing me to finish out the season.

Morto - I like Barbie, but even he gets little to do that really thrills, and he's written in a bit of a linear fashion without much depth or range of character. Other than that, my interest in the characters I do/did like is fast waning/practically non-existent at this stage.

First episode = I thought 'hey, this is kinda cool, not perfect, but pretty decent'

Two episodes left in the season = Consistently groaning out loud at the awful dialogue, bored rigid by the wafer-thin, surface-deep writing, constantly annoyed by the lack of daring and the general sense of 'safe Network TV' vibe about the whole endeavour ... etc etc. A total missed opportunity.

And good lord - the music is a joke - for one, it's constant through the entire damn show, and it's so unsubtle - such as that stupid 'squealy string build up' thing you get before ad breaks. Ugh. Piss off.

/rant

***Neil*** · 09-Sep-2013

Such a shame

Oh well, I'll go and watch the rest of the last season of Spartacus instead then...

**clanglee** · 11-Sep-2013

I've been rather upset with the show. Progressively so. It's just missing the mark over and over. I almost quit when they introduce a whole new character that was not in the first half of the season. Stupid unnecessary padding. . . . .sigh

**MinionZombie** · 11-Sep-2013

Originally Posted by clanglee

I've been rather upset with the show. Progressively so. It's just missing the mark over and over. I almost quit when they introduce a whole new character that was not in the first half of the season. Stupid unnecessary padding. . . . .sigh

You mean the one who was only in it for like 3 episodes? Yeah, it felt like a late-in-the-game inclusion that had little bearing on the plot beyond an eventual reason for a double-cross, and the stuff of like 'yeah, I've just been hanging out for a couple of weeks and only just decided to pop my head in' was bullshit. The penultimate episode had a bit more going on in it, but any good will has long since been used up ... all the big problems with the show remain.

Yep ... it does feel padded, Clang, it really does. I'll join you in a *sigh*, if I may.