FX's "Fargo" (Season 5)

[Poya]

It comes full circle: Fargo inspired Breaking Bad, and now we have a show that's the new Breaking Bad.

"Say my name"
"Lester Nygaard"
"You're gosh-darn tootin'"

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by DoubleDownAgain

Ten minutes in.. ugh... this is what I was waiting for? ugh

You just haven't gotten to the scene where the shit hits the fan yet... Wait until

[Show spoiler]Lester beats his wife to death with a hammer.

[CallSaul23]

Geez that was good.. Ya very good.

[Lemmy Lugosi]

Originally Posted by Walts Ghost

It's not supposed to come close to the film, just a companion to it. I thought it did a helluva job. The Coen brothers did a great job putting this together, in my opinion. This is going to be a fun ride.

A "companion" to it? What, was the original lonely or something? I don't get this "companion" logic at all. Hannibal, Bates Motel, Fargo, Rosemary's Baby.... honestly? I wish they'd just air the original films in these airtime slots, no "companionship" needed at all.

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by Lemmy Lugosi

A "companion" to it? What, was the original lonely or something? I don't get this "companion" logic at all. Hannibal, Bates Motel, Fargo, Rosemary's Baby.... honestly? I wish they'd just air the original films in these airtime slots, no "companionship" needed at all.

Well, every time an episode airs, you can just plop in your copy of the film.

[chris_sc77]

great show.
Its a pleasure to watch Billy Bob and Martin Freeman work in this one. .

Lots of unexpected turns and surprises. Especially for a first episode .

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by Lemmy Lugosi

A "companion" to it? What, was the original lonely or something? I don't get this "companion" logic at all. Hannibal, Bates Motel, Fargo, Rosemary's Baby.... honestly?

Boy, who peed in your corn flakes?

The reasoning behind the existence of such "companions" is the same reasoning why series (both books and movies) do so well. People want to revisit characters or worlds that they like. It's no more complicated than that.

Consider three of the examples you mention above:

Hannibal -- Thomas Harris has published five novels. Four of them are Hannibal Lecter novels. Shouldn't Red Dragon have been sufficient?

Bates Motel -- Robert Bloch wrote two sequels to his original novel. Shouldn't Psycho have been sufficient?

Rosemary's Baby -- Ira Levin wrote a sequel to his original novel. OK, you know the drill.

Hell, for that matter, why bother adapting novels into films? Why not just read the book?

I wish they'd just air the original films in these airtime slots, no "companionship" needed at all.

For the most part, the people who want to see the original movies again have several opportunites to do so, from DVDs/BDs to streaming to digital download from iTunes or Amazon or whatnot.

Why is it that you never see the major broadcast networks showing theatrical films anymore? It's because they were getting ridiculously low ratings, because the the people interested in watching them had those other options to see them unedited and uninterrupted by commercials.

These "companion" shows should be treated like any remake or sequel or even an original film or series: if it's good, that's the only justification needed. If it's bad, it shouldn't matter if it's original or just a retread.

With respect to that last, I feel it worth point out that I don't care for any of the Hannibal Lecter movies, but I love the TV show. On the other hand, I love Psycho (the Hitchcock film), but didn't like what I saw of Bates Motel, so I don't watch it. But I don't have a problem with it existing, because other people do enjoy it.

[Lemmy Lugosi]

I'm just really tired of the disposability of it all, I suppose. Music, movies, books, magazines, whatever. New generations throw out the old, and I'm feeling my age today.

[bsweetness]

Originally Posted by Walts Ghost

It's not supposed to come close to the film, just a companion to it. I thought it did a helluva job. The Coen brothers did a great job putting this together, in my opinion. This is going to be a fun ride.

Agreed

Originally Posted by Lemmy Lugosi

I'm just really tired of the disposability of it all, I suppose. Music, movies, books, magazines, whatever. New generations throw out the old, and I'm feeling my age today.

No one is throwing anything out with this, so I'm not sure how that comment is relevant.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by bsweetness

No one is throwing anything out with this, so I'm not sure how that comment is relevant.

In fact, didn't MGM release a new edition of the original film just a couple of weeks ago?

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by Lemmy Lugosi

I'm just really tired of the disposability of it all, I suppose. Music, movies, books, magazines, whatever. New generations throw out the old, and I'm feeling my age today.

Disposability? It's not a remake that'll make the original redundant. If anything it'll hopefully bring a new audience towards the film, after all if they have time to invest in a TV show, them it should be easy to get them to watch a film.

[theusher]

strong debut for fx’s universally acclaimed limited series fargo? You betcha!!!

draws 4.15 million viewers and 1.79 million adults 18-49 in its debut

los angeles, april 16, 2014 – fx’s new 10-part limited series and critical juggernaut fargo received a warm reception among viewers, drawing 4.15 million total viewers and 1.79 million adults 18-49 for its first installment, a very strong initial number which will amount to only a small fraction of its final tally once time-shifted viewing arrives.

“we are incredibly proud of the towering creative achievement by noah hawley and everyone involved with fargo,” said john landgraf, ceo of fx networks and fx productions. “the performances by billy bob thornton, martin freeman, allison tolman, colin hanks, and the entire stellar cast are nothing short of extraordinary. This is truly one of the best shows we’ve ever had on the network. We’re thrilled with the initial viewership last night and really excited for audiences to see the rest of the miniseries.”

the premiere episode, “the crocodile’s dilemma,” which ran from 10:00-11:37 pm, and encore telecasts (11:37 pm and 1:13 am) combined to deliver 4.1 million total viewers and 1.79 million adults 18-49. Fargo’s first-run episode at 10:00 pm posted 2.65 million total viewers and 1.02 million adults 18-49, which were respective increases of +100% and +67% over its lead-in half hour (the broadcast premiere of the movie contraband). The network expects a massive spike in viewership when live+3 ratings data becomes available on monday and inclusive of live+7 data in approximately three weeks.

Fx will air three additional encore runs of the premiere episode of fargo, “the crocodile’s dilemma,” this week on wednesday, april 16 at 12:20 am et/pt; thursday, april 17 at 1:00 am et/pt; and saturday, april 19 at 1:00 am et/pt.

In next tuesday’s second episode, “the rooster prince” (airs tuesday, april 22 at 10:00-11:15 pm et/pt), deputy solverson (allison tolman) begins to suspect that lester (martin freeman) is involved with the murders, but her new boss points her in a different direction. Meanwhile, malvo (billy bob thornton) investigates the blackmail plot against a man known as the supermarket king milos stavros (oliver platt). (written by noah hawley; directed by adam bernstein.)

[Walts Ghost]

Originally Posted by Foggy

Disposability? It's not a remake that'll make the original redundant. If anything it'll hopefully bring a new audience towards the film, after all if they have time to invest in a TV show, them it should be easy to get them to watch a film.

Exactly. Just because these versions exist doesn't take the originals away.

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by Walts Ghost

Exactly. Just because these versions exist doesn't take the originals away.

Not to mention, this series has exactly jack shit to do with the film, with the exception of the setting being somewhere in Minnesota, Fargo, ND being a factor, and some characters being similar.

[Walts Ghost]

Originally Posted by demonknight

Not to mention, this series has exactly jack shit to do with the film, with the exception of the setting being somewhere in Minnesota, Fargo, ND being a factor, and some characters being similar.

Yeah, it's supposed to be a new tale, and they've said that the movie May tie in a tiny bit. But nothing crazy. Just a new story. I just wish people didn't see things like this as a threat, and accepted them for what they are: more stories with some of our favorite characters. Or In this case, more stories being told by the guys who brought us the original.

[LynxFX]

Netflix is starting to spoil me. I think I'll wait until all 10 have aired and then binge watch it. This feels like one of those types of series.

[Talal86]

I wish the accents were stronger tbh.. it wasn't noticeable enough

[DoubleDownAgain]

I finished it, and liked it much more than my initial response. I just thought the accents and acting was a bit too much at first.

[The Rusty Urinal]

I know it's only the first episode, but so far it's lived up to the film for me. I liked Billy Bob Thornton's character the best, he was terrific.

[Scottie]

One of the greatest pilots that I may have ever seen.

I cannot believe we're only one episode in. So much has already happened!