When 2% of the world’s population abruptly disappears without explanation, the world struggles to come to terms with what happened. Three years later, the HBO drama series, 'The Leftovers', is the story of the people who didn’t make the cut.
Based on the bestselling novel by Tom Perrotta, 'The Leftovers' follows Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux), a father of two and the chief of police in a small New York suburb, as he tries to maintain some semblance of normalcy when the notion no longer applies. Created by 'Lost' co-creator Damon Lindelof and acclaimed novelist Tom Perrotta, the series is executive produced by Lindelof, Perrotta and 'Friday Night Lights' executive producers Peter Berg and Sarah Aubrey. Lindelof serves as the series showrunner.
What we know before we even watch the episode is 'The Leftovers' is basically about a small town in New York called Mapleton. After re-reading the book I can tell you that the creators remained very faithful to the source material, which is a good thing because the novel is very well written and the characters are deep, complex and fun. Two percent of the world's population has vanished into thin air on a day everyone has labelled as the 'Sudden Departure'. For those of you who think this is not a lot of people it's approximately 140,000,000; almost half of the population of the United States. We get a glimpse of the actual event, but the story mainly takes place three years later and follows the lives of a small family in Mapleton as they try to cope with the aftermath of this unexplainable event.
The pilot episode is very good and I can't wait for everyone to watch it and read your reactions. One thing I know everyone will love is the music selection in the episode is amazing. There are parts that made me laugh and there are sad parts as well. The acting is incredible and the creators/writers did a very good job with the pilot. This isn't a cliffhanger type show, but I guarantee you will not be able to wait to watch the next episode. I'm excited for the first season of The Leftovers and feels just right at HBO.
I don't want to give to much away in this preview, but if you have any questions I would be glad to answer them in the comments section. If not, then I hope you will read my full review next week after the episode airs this Sunday night on HBO.
Thanks for this George!
ReplyDeleteI caught an interview with Mr. Perrotta on Canada's "Q" radio hour with Jian Ghomeshi last night and he did warn that there are a lot of new characters created and that book characters would be used in different ways, but I'm glad the Pilot seems initially faithful to the source material for book fans.
LOST is also my favorite series of all time, so I was delighted that Damon Lindeloff signed on for this, since I think between his work on Lost, Crossing Jordan, and Prometheus, he's someone who I think understands grief, loss, and searching for meaning.
Looking forward to Sunday night! Thanks again for the great preview!
Lol, I would love to, no problem.
ReplyDeleteSo, the show basically is about this one family and how they deal with the 'Sudden Departure'. The family is the Garvey's consisting of the dad - Kevin, the mom - Laurie, and their children - daughter Jill and son Tom. I could give you in-depth details about each character, but the Pilot does a great job at showing what each characters thoughts and feelings are toward each other.
Tom was in college when the Sudden Departure took place and left afterwards "to find himself" or his purpose in life. (sorry, I'm trying to type this without giving too much away, lol)
There are great scenes and clips in the episode that show the thoughts of the characters and I thought it was a great plot device utilized by the producers - and in one of these you will understand what I am talking about right now.
So, without giving too much away, I can tell you that Tom found a "holy" man named Wayne - aptly named "Holy Wayne". Wayne started a movement where he can "Unburden" people from their issues with the Sudden Departure and their loss. Tom decided to join the movement and subsequently took on an important role in Wayne's organization. I don't want to give too much away because I know what Tom goes through in the book and it looks like they will end up doing the same thing with his character from what I saw in the Pilot.
I looked at the trailers and I think I know what scene you are talking about. Tom is not in bed with anyone. He was just sleeping and that man woke him up. The man that woke him up is Holy Wayne. He had something important to talk to Tom about. It is a very good scene and one of my favorites of the Pilot.
I hope this answers your question. If you want more I would be glad to give you more, but I didn't want to spoil anything for you Helen. But I will if you want, lol. I could talk about this show and book forever.
You're welcome! Thank You!
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest differences from the book to the TV show is that the main character Kevin is the mayor in the book and chief of police in the show. Mr. Lindelof explained that he did this so Kevin would be on the front lines when an issue arose in town and would be involved in everything, which makes sense. But, I thought the Mayor's position was important so I think that's why they created a new character for the Mayor, Lucy Warburton. She is a very good actress and her character is really well done for the show. She will definitely be a favorite amongst fans of the show.
I think everyone will really like the show in general. It has a really unique premise and doesn't go overboard with it. It's about characters in a unique position, which is great I think.
Some people might think it's strange that ONLY 2% of the world population has disappeared, but, like I stated, that's a lot of people. It definitely is a lot when you think about HOW they disappeared - just into thin air. Because of that event, that defies everything we know about physics, religion, and everything, the world turns upside down. If I could ask the creators one thing I would ask if we will ever know the reason for the Sudden Departure before the series finishes or not.
I saw an add for this the other day on the back of Entertainment Weekly. I hadn't heard much about it before but it did say "From the Co-Creator of Lost and the director of Friday Night Lights." I have to admit, I could not get into Lost when it aired. I have yet to go back and give it another shot but FNL is one of my absolute favorite shows so I will try The Leftovers. Thanks for getting my hyped for it!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review.
ReplyDeleteBut the concept of this show still didn't buy me ... anyway, maybe I'll watch the pilot.
You're Welcome!
ReplyDeleteAnd this show is NOTHING like LOST if that helps you - I LOVE LOST, but it's a completely different kind of story. Yes it does have elements of Faith versus Science, I suppose, but not the way that LOST did. The only similarities I can see is that Damon Lindelof is a genius that co-created LOST and he is still a genius co-creating The Leftovers.
I suppose you could call this a Sci-Fi show, but it does not focus on the event that the main story revolves around. They don't know what caused 2 % of the population to vanish and that's it. They don't try to figure out how it happened - no scientific tests - no people sitting around a room figuring it out. It's not like Under The Dome in that regard. It's about this small town dealing with the 80+ of it's own citizens that disappeared and this family (The Garvey's) in this small dealing with whats happened since the Sudden Departure happened 3 years prior. What sets this story apart from other apocalyptic type stories is that the people that are "gone" in The Leftovers just vanish into thin air. There is no virus to cure, no zombies attacking. And that's why I love this story so much - because you will have to say to yourself "it's God" or "It's Science" and "What if it was God? what do we do now" - "Why didn't God take me?". And those are the questions that the characters ask themselves but without hitting the audience over the head with it. I honestly think that this is going to be one of the best shows on TV and that is from just watching the Pilot...ok maybe that was a little too far, but it is really good. :) If I type anymore I won't have anything left to say in my Review, lol. I'll just copy and paste this I think, lol.
You're welcome!
ReplyDeleteI think you should give it a shot at least. What kind of shows do you enjoy following?
I am sure a few people will be disappointed that it's not the kind of show they thought it was. A lot of people think this is an apocalyptic show and it deals with that event and what happened and that is not true. The "Sudden Departure" was just a catalyst for the plot that we will see in the first season. I mean, the event where 2 % of the population vanishes into thin air is central to the plot, but the story jumps ahead 3 years and that's where we find all of our characters in this small town. But I cannot stress how great all of these characters are and I think everyone is going to want to follow them through their separate journey's.
Cool! Thanks for all the info!
ReplyDelete"f I could ask the creators one thing I would ask if we will ever know the reason for the Sudden Departure before the series finishes or not."
Perotta had said in the interview last night that the concept/human reaction of the unexplainable was more important and the point of the story rather than explaining the truth behind it. He said, 'if people are watching for answers, then they will be disappointed.' I have also read other interviews in which Lindeloff also says that's something that may remain a mystery...
Personally I think it just depends how successful they are, as I would assume the more seasons they would have further away from the novel they may go and may feel more inclined to explain it. I guess only time will really tell :)
You're Welcome!
ReplyDeleteAnd Thanks! I guess I can come up with a different question to ask, lol. To be honest, I really don't mind (In this show) if we find out or not. The characters and story are so compelling that it wouldn't matter anyway plus I think it would detract from the plot. It's a fun story without that knowledge or just making it up in your head whatever you want it to be. Know what I mean?
I guess I'm trying to say that the story would change a lot if they ever do decide to tell us what the reason is for the SD. It would definitely turn the show into an all out Sci-Fi series, which is not bad, but I like this show for what it is now - about the characters and the groups that have formed as a result of what they believe the SD is all about.
Thanks that was more than enough. Answered my question without giving to much away :) Can't wait
ReplyDeleteHi. Well, I'm not expecting a supernatural/apocalyptic thing.
ReplyDeleteThis show very much sounds like a drama basically about a loss-grief process.
The fact that it is focused on a small scale, focusing on a little town and a single family as its main core, also hints at this perspective. The whole 'Rapture' storyline could be replaced with a similar dramatic irony (for example: a virus that kills lot of people, a pandemic disease, etc.). So I guess this will be 99% a story about how someone deals with the loss of someone else. This isn't a stuff that appeals me, sorry :-) Maybe adding Damon Lindelof as writer could spice up some things but ... basically I don't think I'll watch more than the pilot episode.
You're welcome! My Pleasure!
ReplyDeleteI look forward to reading your thoughts after the episode on my Review. Have a great weekend Helen.
I understand. Hopefully you like the Pilot. And I agree that possibly Damon Lindelof will as a writer and showrunner could spice things up a bit.
ReplyDelete