rogerstgmarch

As an atheist, I really enjoyed the portrayal of a morally compromised evangelical Christian organisation. The acting was impressive, notably Keith David as head of the family. After season one, I still didn't know if he believed his own rhetoric. The varied biblical references used to describe behaviour and actions was were a lot of 'fun'.

,Problem was I felt like I was watching a soap opera. The direction was hamfisted, the plot had a lot of holes, coincidences were plentiful and too many scenes ended with dramatic music and excessively meaningful stares. Oprah Winfrey is executive producer and her cameo was nicely observed. I watched season one but that was enough.

13 episodes to tell a story that could be covered in 6-7 episodes. I'm on Ep 8 and sheer willpower will be needed to get me through the last five. It's a very cynical approach to series production. There's too much development of subplots that add very little to the central theme and storyline and serve only to pad out the length of the series. In this Ep 8, the police appear close to solving the case and yet there's still five episodes to go. Heaven knows what side streets we'll head down before a conclusion.

Should learn from the brilliant 'River' that ran just six, wonderfully scripted and acted, episodes.

An older couple, him struggling with retirement and her devoted to law firm job. They are unable to communicate to any depth with an emotional range from 'good' to 'nice'. He's paranoid about his wife's relationship with her boss and spends his time haplessly meandering around the house. They adopt a black daughter after the death of their son soon after his birth. No, they can't/don't communicate with her either.

By the end, or rather well before the end, I was more than happy to pay the lodgement fee for their divorce application. Congratulations to Walker and Bean for leaving their egos at the door to play these rather pathetic characters.

There's only one word for the sequel: Divorce.