Just wanted to see if anyone was watching this. Series premiere was
this past weekend. Appears to be a drama based in New Orleans
approximately 3 months after Katrina. Same writers as The Wire,
some of the same actors. First episode was ok, there is a lot of good
music in the show if you like jazz and that New Orleans kind of vibe.
Not sure how it will do in the long run, but so far it is passable.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I DVR'ed it, will probably get to it this weekend.

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Loved the opening sequences, especially the 'second line' trip.

Steve Zahn is so obnoxious, though. One of those annoying dudes that's always overlooked because he's got no profile and there are certainly worse actors out there, but man is he ever brutal.

Girlfriend's main critique was that the story felt too much like setup for an episode of GTA rather than a series. Thinking on it more I see her point.

Personally, I'm most interested in Clarke Peters' storyline (aka Det. Lester Freamon from the Wire, dude holed up in Poke's bar) and I figure he'll be given plenty of time to stretch out in that role. Can't say I was too impressed by the debut overall, and I knew full well what to expect so it's not like I'm disappointed that "this isn't The Wire."

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zahn's one of the reasons why i'm not sure about diving into this one. but i might give it a shot.

I'd be curious to get your take Zack if you decide to watch. I'll
stick with it at least through season one just because that is the
way I am. I think me and one other person watched all of John from
Cincinnatti a few years back. That was brutal and I should have
given up very early on.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I enjoyed it....but maybe that's just me

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

I am 99% positive that if I watch this I'll say "This isn't the Wire. I'm disappointed".

It makes me not want to watch it since that probably isn't fair.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I forgot about you RR. I thought it was pretty good. Hard to judge from just one
episode but it has potential. Some good actors at least.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Another pretty solid episode. I am just trying to get comfortable with the characters
because the way this is developing, it may take a while for things to really start
unfolding. Again, very good acting and great music. Just trying to get my arms
around where this series is going.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

+1

I would probably stick around for the season just for the music all throughout the show. The acting is pretty solid also. I finally checked out the Pilot on Friday and I will probably get to episode 2 tonight.

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Too many white people.

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I watched the 2nd episode last night and really dug it. It was much better than the Pilot.

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This continues to be a solid new series. This week was a little slow but
continued good acting and music keeps me tuned in. Nice cameo by
Dr. John this episode.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I like this show...but, I'm also a NOLA fan. my parents were there 3 weeks ago.

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@audioidkid

just watched the pilot. i agree that it's a bit slow and the characters are kind of thrown around.

zahn's kind of annoying but he seems to be an ancillary character. the main cast looks strong.

loved the music and really made me want to get some cajun food. maybe one of these days i'll go by heaven on seven and get some.

i'll be catching up with the rest of the episodes this week most likely.

seeing some of those homes kind of got to me. my sister had footage of my dad's old neighborhood including mawmaw's house. was pretty heartbreaking to see.

and they mentioned st. bernard parish! (that's where my dad grew up).

sunday night ep4 was really good...better than the Pacific.

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@audioidkid

I watched Episode 3 on Sunday. This show is definitely getting better week after week. The scene where the "Katrina Tour" shows up in front of the house where they found the dead guy was great. I was hoping the Big Chief would have kicked some tourist ass. It's also kind of scary that the "Tour Bus" thing was going on. Some people lost everything, and these people were just coming through and taking snapshots? Crazy...

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finished episode 2 and i promise i won't post anymore until i get totally caught up.

like Tbone, i'm a bit unsure where this show is going and what its purpose is. i really like the gig stuff the best. all of the scenes in the clubs are fantastic. the search for the woman's brother is somewhat interesting.

the restaurant chick scenes are, for me, where the show comes to a grinding hault. don't care about her, don't care about her predicament. she just is wallpaper to me.

zahn's kind of growing on me.

the scene with the wisconsin kids and the NO musicians was cringeworthy. i can't really say why...i just hated it.

and elvis costello is quite a presence...i guess?

Hope you continue to stick with it Zack. A few more things happen in the
next couple of episodes, but the pacing is pretty much the same. I am
enjoying the show, but sometimes I am asking myself exactly why since
nothing is really happening yet.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

ok i'm officially hooked.

i'm a tad disappointed it took 4 episodes because with an 80 minute pilot, more could have been done to flesh out the characters. but now, i'm totally in with these guys.

loved goodman's youtube video and the props he's getting.

zahn's now grown on me officially. i like his character.

even the restaurant chick has gotten stronger.

batiste still remains my favorite character; most flawed, most charismatic, and most talented.

but man alive i love the music, and the depth of the show. this IS new orleans. it's pretentious, it's cajun hipster; but it's absolutely lovable because of the music and the food. this show has captured that.

I don't know a damn thing about the city but I wholeheartedly agree with everything you just said, W_Z. I'm all in after that last episode.

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This show is nothing if not consistent. Another good episode last night.
They keep pasting flesh onto this complex storyline. Things are really
beginning to look like the bar owners brother was either murdered or killed
in the storm. Everyone seems like they are trying to hide something.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

the beginning had me feeling a bit dubious but it started coming round toward the end.

one question though...what was up between the houston bouncer and sonny's GF? was it just too awkward for her or something? i couldn't really figure out what the conflict was. i felt like i was missing something. but i was really tired last night so I know I was probably dozing off a few times. i also couldn't follow where the japanese guy came from. who was he? and why was he so interested in batiste? that whole sequence was strange to me. like i was waiting for something to happen, and nothing really did.

My take on things was that the Japanese guy may have had Baptiste confused with someone else.
It totally seemed like he was just feeding the Japanese guy what he wanted to hear in order to
get a new horn. Apparently the guy fell in love with jazz after a trip to New Orleans in the 80s
or something. As for the guy from Houston, that was an odd situation. After he helped save the
girlfriend during the shooting at the parade, Sonny obviously could sense something was going on
with the bouncer being attracted to his girl. I wonder if he'll continue to be in the show or not. I
could see Sonny getting hooked back on heroin and tailspinning out of control.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I think as much as you saw with Sonny and the bouncer and the GF was about it.
That's as interesting as their story arc will be...

I don't think the Asian Guy had Baptiste confused with someone else at all...you guys realize they were standing outside the pawn shop where his trombone was, before they went to the music store...

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@audioidkid

Just seemed to me when they were walking to the pawn shop before going to the
music store that all the recordings and artists that the Japanese guy were mentioning
to Baptiste, he didn't seem to recognize. He didn't seem like he remembered the
artists on the recordings and stuff, maybe he smoked a J before meeting with the
guy, or maybe I am completely reading it wrong. I may watch this episode again
later in the week.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

He didn't remember...b/c they all blend together. I think that was the point. The Japanese dude knew more about the history than the guy making it. He also mentions the records that Baptiste played on...found his website, etc..

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@audioidkid

This makes sense. Thanks for straightening me out on that.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

the only interesting thing about those two is how hot the fiddler is.

the holland dude i could do without.

i see what you're saying about the japanese guy. i just wasn't sure where it all originated. like i said, i was sleepy so i wasn't at 100% paying attention. i may watch the episode again, too.

much better stuff from episode 6.

"Davis Will Save Us"!!