HBO: Show Me a Hero

[The Argonaut]

Great first two hours.
The new mayor practicing in the mirror for how he's going to ask the clerk to call the roll for the big vote in ep2: "I'm trying to do it as dispassionately as I can." I think that line is key to understanding these first two hours. Very few people are acting positively out of passion or from ideals on this low-income housing issue. The politicians are just trying to stay alive--it's just dollars and votes. Low-income housing residents are nowhere to be seen politically. The guy from the NAACP even says that they're "tired".
So when Catherine Keener asks the mayor 'why don't you at least just say that you're against this plan', I'm hoping Mayor Wasicsko actually realized it's because he isn't or shouldn't be.

[Simple Torture]

Great first two hours.
The new mayor practicing in the mirror for how he's going to ask the clerk to call the roll for the big vote in ep2: "I'm trying to do it as dispassionately as I can." I think that line is key to understanding these first two hours. Very few people are acting positively out of passion or from ideals on this low-income housing issue. The politicians are just trying to stay alive--it's just dollars and votes. Low-income housing residents are nowhere to be seen politically. The guy from the NAACP even says that they're "tired".
So when Catherine Keener asks the mayor 'why don't you at least just say that you're against this plan', I'm hoping Mayor Wasicsko actually realized it's because he isn't or shouldn't be.

Yeah, it's already been fascinating to watch him do the right thing for the wrong reasons, or (at other times) falling ass-backwards into the right thing despite himself. Gray areas like this are far more fascinating than what we saw in Treme, I think, and it almost acts as a mirror to McNulty's arc in The Wire, especially season 5 (where he was doing good but in the most god-awful way possible).

[numbers]

Naymond from The Wire and the mayor's girlfriend favorited one of my tweets about the show, so that was exciting.

[Chris_H_2]

Naymond from The Wire and the mayor's girlfriend favorited one of my tweets about the show, so that was exciting.

i'm guessing it wasn't the one about skitch keeping his wire avatar.

[numbers]

It actually was that tweet, but not your reply about Skitch.

[Chris_H_2]

It actually was that tweet, but not your reply about Skitch.

[@SkitchP]

This show made a 30 year old housing debate engaging.

[numbers]

bump.

[Simple Torture]

lol, David Simon:

[jwfocker]

lol, David Simon:

hahaha, what a horribly written review.

It has a great cast. It should be good. I know a guy who doesn't like David Simon. It's realistic. Random reference. I don't like it. Blah blah True Detetiive. Blah blah. I'm not sure if the writer made a point or not. Weird.

[nyquillyn]

The acting and cinematography in this are top-notch. And the details you get from every segment of the city are incredible and add so much depth and humanity to something that on the surface is fairly mundane city council minutiae. Loving every second of it.

[E.H. Ruddock]

What is this about?

[numbers]

It's about Yonkers in the late 80s.

[Simple Torture]

Not much else to say after Week 2, except that I'm extremely excited for Week 3.

Also, working on the Michael Potts "I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed look" to use on my kids.

[Simple Torture]

Great line from the AV Club review:

That said, the best beat of the night goes to Alfred Molina, who’s gleefully gnawing at scenery in every scene as Spallone, and reaches DeVito-Penguin levels of not giving a fuck during the victory speech, where he parenthetically breaks his biggest campaign promise mere minutes after being elected.

[numbers]

I love this. I'd love a bunch of mini series like this.

[Simple Torture]

It's wild that fewer than 400,000 people watch this show.

[The Argonaut]

I'm sorry that this will only last three weeks.

[LoathedVermin72]

It's wild that fewer than 400,000 people watch this show.

I wonder if they aren't marketing it very hard? Outside of RM, I haven't heard a single mention of this.

[Monkey_Driven]

It's wild that fewer than 400,000 people watch this show.

I wonder if they aren't marketing it very hard? Outside of RM, I haven't heard a single mention of this.

Very little marketing, summer TV malaise, and the subject matter are likely leading to the ratings.