The Leftovers - Off Ramp - Advanced Preview
Oct 18, 2015
GN Reviews The LeftoversThe first two episodes of The Leftovers showed us both sides of the two families that the series will focus on this season - the Garvey's and the Murphy's. The town of Jarden experienced their version of the Sudden Departure and as a result Evie, and her two friends, disappeared plus Kevin was found tied to a cinder block lying on the bedrock where the event took place. The water in the pond is gone, Evie and her friends are gone, Kevin is sleepwalking again as well as hallucinating Patti - the mystery begins.
Episode 3 of this season, airing Sunday, will focus on Tom and Laurie and what they have been up to since the events of the finale last season. Last season, two of my favorite episodes were concerned with only one character at a time; Reverend Matt's, 'Two Boats and a Helicopter', and his sister Nora's, 'Guest', were great episodes showcasing two interesting characters. I have read that Damon Lindelof enjoyed that type of storytelling that he plans on doing more episodes like those and episode three is basically Laurie's time to shine.
I loved the first two episodes of this season and the third episode is equally creative and enjoyable. It was great to see Amy Brenneman have actual speaking lines. At the end of the first season finale I wondered how they would continue Laurie and Tom's story, but when I realized what they were up to during this coming episode I thought it was a very clever way to continue their story. The hour is slow going at first, but gets going quickly, which is common for some episodes of The Leftovers. And when you hear the last line of the episode uttered, it will most likely become one of your favorite episodes of The Leftovers.
Things To Notice
- Once again, the music in the episode is amazing.
- There is an extremely graphic scene in this episode that I'm sure everyone will be talking about afterwards. The scene is something we see occasionally in other series, however, the genius of The Leftovers is that they flip the concept on its head.
- Laurie's story is great and I was on the edge of my seat in some of her scenes.
- The episode opens in a car wash. You'll understand why later in the episode.
- At the very end of the episode Tom tells a story. Chris Zylka, who plays Tom, does an exceptional job telling this story and the final sentence, which ends the episode, is really going to make this season even more incredible than it already is becoming. It is really cool.
Thank you for reading my Advanced Preview! I hope you all enjoy the episode as much as I did. Please check back after the episode airs for my Review so we can discuss the episode and the series further. As always, if any of you have any questions about the upcoming episode please feel free to ask in the comments section below. I will answer in the most non-spoilery way possible. Enjoy, and have a great weekend everyone!