[Craigbob]

I keep looking at what appears to be the Petersen Auto Museum behind them (red stripes). They must have some food and clothes. Who knows what else.

I agree, even if it's only a portion of the museum, it should provide shelter of some sort.

 

[astrohip]

The dumb is starting to hurt. Where do we start? How about when Eve pokes a stick in the edge of the river, it only goes in a foot or two, and proclaims the river isn't deep. Because we all know rivers never get any deeper than their banks.

How about Heroin Boy? All that nervous twitch of a character has to do is explain to everyone what he found, what he did, and that's that. But no, let's keep it a secret, so Druggie can hold it over him. Possibly the dumbest sub-plot in the history of sub-plots.

The fully equipped plane horse lady built? Or the fort they found, that was wide open. Unless it's abandoned, isn't the idea of a fort to keep people out?

But my favorite has to be the massive government cover-up. Wouldn't the LA Times or WaPo or NYT or somebody be asking a few questions? Like WTF is at the bottom of it? Any show that depends on a massive government conspiracy as a plot point is doomed to failure.

 

[Steveknj]

The dumb is starting to hurt. Where do we start? How about when Eve pokes a stick in the edge of the river, it only goes in a foot or two, and proclaims the river isn't deep. Because we all know rivers never get any deeper than their banks.

How about Heroin Boy? All that nervous twitch of a character has to do is explain to everyone what he found, what he did, and that's that. But no, let's keep it a secret, so Druggie can hold it over him. Possibly the dumbest sub-plot in the history of sub-plots.

The fully equipped plane horse lady built? Or the fort they found, that was wide open. Unless it's abandoned, isn't the idea of a fort to keep people out?

But my favorite has to be the massive government cover-up. Wouldn't the LA Times or WaPo or NYT or somebody be asking a few questions? Like WTF is at the bottom of it? Any show that depends on a massive government conspiracy as a plot point is doomed to failure.

Because you can't have one of these types of shows without a massive government coverup. That's just how they are done. Yeah, three seems like NO panic at all outside the hole.

 

[astrohip]

Yeah, there seems like NO panic at all outside the hole.

That's part of what makes shows like this fail. You have to be true to your reality. You can make up rules, but they have to be honest to the setting.

In this case, if a sinkhole this big opens up in LA, it would be a story the equivalent of 9/11. It wouldn't leave the front page for weeks. The writers could have come up with a better story for the top-side story than... well, no story. It just disappeared off the radar of the average American? Right...

 

[Steveknj]

That's part of what makes shows like this fail. You have to be true to your reality. You can make up rules, but they have to be honest to the setting.

In this case, if a sinkhole this big opens up in LA, it would be a story the equivalent of 9/11. It wouldn't leave the front page for weeks. The writers could have come up with a better story for the top-side story than... well, no story. It just disappeared off the radar of the average American? Right...

And there seems to be too much backstory history with the people in the hole too. Did we need to have Natalie Zea's lover be the pilot who flies in? Really? Why do we need to have the heroin story in the first place. Unlike something like Lost, where from the opening episode it was CLEAR that the show was going to be about relationships, in this case, the story is all over the place. I'll stick with it for awhile longer, but yeah, it's starting to lose me. NBC has been touting the show as the best rated new drama, but I wonder what the ratings are like a few episodes in?

 

[Anubys]

The dumb is starting to hurt. Where do we start? How about when Eve pokes a stick in the edge of the river, it only goes in a foot or two, and proclaims the river isn't deep. Because we all know rivers never get any deeper than their banks.

How about Heroin Boy? All that nervous twitch of a character has to do is explain to everyone what he found, what he did, and that's that. But no, let's keep it a secret, so Druggie can hold it over him. Possibly the dumbest sub-plot in the history of sub-plots.

The fully equipped plane horse lady built? Or the fort they found, that was wide open. Unless it's abandoned, isn't the idea of a fort to keep people out?

But my favorite has to be the massive government cover-up. Wouldn't the LA Times or WaPo or NYT or somebody be asking a few questions? Like WTF is at the bottom of it? Any show that depends on a massive government conspiracy as a plot point is doomed to failure.

Wait a minute...you didn't think the fact that the plane landed without a pilot is dumb? all that black smoke was the engine burning itself out (and not the rest of the airplane)?

 

[madscientist]

The dumb is starting to hurt. Where do we start? How about when Eve pokes a stick in the edge of the river, it only goes in a foot or two, and proclaims the river isn't deep. Because we all know rivers never get any deeper than their banks.

Right?? Not only does she not use the stick, she actively throws it away. Even if you are confident that the river won't get deeper (why?) of course you'd still keep the stick to look for submerged rocks and just to keep your balance!

I guess on the farm where she grew up they didn't have any rivers or creeks.

Even stupider is that it turns out it doesn't even have any purpose in the plot! It would be dumb if they had her toss it away to make something else work better, but it's even sillier to do it for no reason.

I know it's a little thing. But sometimes little things bug me more than big things. It just screams sloppiness and carelessness.

 

[Tony_T]

So, this guy has real time ‘visions’ of what’s going on, and they (the “government”) just let him walk around.

 

[Tony_T]

Right?? Not only does she not use the stick, she actively throws it away. Even if you are confident that the river won't get deeper (why?) of course you'd still keep the stick to look for submerged rocks and just to keep your balance!

I guess on the farm where she grew up they didn't have any rivers or creeks.

Even stupider is that it turns out it doesn't even have any purpose in the plot! It would be dumb if they had her toss it away to make something else work better, but it's even sillier to do it for no reason.

I know it's a little thing. But sometimes little things bug me more than big things. It just screams sloppiness and carelessness.

That's not really a little thing. As you said, it's sloppy writing and directing.

…and a 2nd Saber Tooth Tiger killed and left behind.
Are they all Vegans?

 

[Anubys]

That's not really a little thing. As you said, it's sloppy writing and directing.

…and a 2nd Saber Tooth Tiger killed and left behind.
Are they all Vegans?

To be fair, the pilot had all the MREs

But at least we're uncovering the mystery of why that species is extinct!

 

[astrohip]

Wait a minute...you didn't think the fact that the plane landed without a pilot is dumb? all that black smoke was the engine burning itself out (and not the rest of the airplane)?

It's clear I'm going to have to start taking Dumb Notes during each episode.

 

[Howie]

The big python thing was really stupid, too. It had the lady all wrapped up in a death squeeze and then Natalie's boyfriend dove in and I guess killed the snake with his gun. How did he not hit the woman with a bullet, too?

I see comparisons to Lost here, but to me there is no comparison. Lost was incredibly interesting and compelling. This show is incredibly stupid and ridiculous.

 

[Anubys]

It's clear I'm going to have to start taking Dumb Notes during each episode.

I see the rolleyes...I hope you were not upset, I wasn't attacking you...I was just adding to your list with a little snicker about the most outrageous dumb thing in that episode

 

[madscientist]

Since the shooting of the snake happened off-screen we can imagine it happened in some not-dumb way: for example maybe he had the head of the snake away from Riley and shot it in the head. In the end I guess if he had hit her she'd just be dead, in a different way. So...

 

[astrohip]

I see the rolleyes...I hope you were not upset, I wasn't attacking you...I was just adding to your list with a little snicker about the most outrageous dumb thing in that episode

No, the opposite. There is so much dumbness, a bounty of brainlessness, that I need to take notes, so I don't forget them for next week's post.

Keep pointing them out!

 

[Rob Helmerichs]

And there seems to be too much backstory history with the people in the hole too. Did we need to have Natalie Zea's lover be the pilot who flies in? Really?

Well, to be fair, they did go to some lengths to explain that one...he was on the list of potential candidates, and they picked him to make Vision-Dad happy.

But yeah, there is a whole lot of stupid going on. Oddly enough, though, I keep watching (e.g., Under the Dome and...what was the show about the anti-social genius with the consulting company who had crazy/stupid adventures?... were in the same league of stupid, but I found them unwatchable).

 

[kdmorse]

...what was the show about the anti-social genius with the consulting company who had crazy/stupid adventures?...

Well now I need to know which show you're talking about, so I can tell where you set the bar.

 

[Rob Helmerichs]

Well now I need to know which show you're talking about, so I can tell where you set the bar.

It's driving me crazy, I can't remember the title. There was a scene where he was in a jeep, hacking into an airplane via Ethernet as it was taking off, or something like that...

 

[Tony_T]

It's clear I'm going to have to start taking Dumb Notes during each episode.

It would be a shorter list to note what was reasonable each episode.

 

[madscientist]

It's driving me crazy, I can't remember the title. There was a scene where he was in a jeep, hacking into an airplane via Ethernet as it was taking off, or something like that...

I think you mean Scorpion.

I never watched past the first episode, nor could I watch Under the Dumb, but like you still watching LaBrea. Weird. Maybe the Natalie Zea effect.