Boomtown
 

So what did you guys think of this show? I thought it was pretty good. At times it seemed like a Tarantino rip-off, but overall it was pretty original, especially for TV. I will probably keep watching this one.

Isn't "Tarantino rip-off" redudant since everything that guy does is a rip-off?

Anyway, I liked it, I'll wait a couple more episodes to make a final judgement but what I saw had promise. I don't know how long the nonlinear story will work before it gets old. Having said that, though, the actors seem to make it work. Who knew Donnie Wahlberg had acting chops?

Yeah, it was a pretty good show. I'll give it a couple more weeks before I decide for certain.



Overall, it was good, and although it's cliched a bit by now, I really enjoyed the changing viewpoint. While it might not be that original anymore, it's certainly something different for TV.

Definitely the best new show this season. The only problem I had were the cuts to commercial. I can see the cliffhanger going to commercial working, but it just never felt right this episode.

I think the funniest thing about this episode for me was I was trying to figure out what it reminded me of and I thought of Run Lola Run and then the Run Lola Run music started playing. But I was thinking, it's not really like Run Lola Run, there's something else and then they had the line, "Do you know what they call an orgasm in French?" and I was like oh yeah, Pulp Fiction.

I hope the show doesn't start to feel too gimicky, but I'll definitely keep tuning in because I enjoyed all the characters so much.

I put him on my "to watch" list after The Sixth Sense.

Good show...better than Robbery Homicide Division but worse than The Shield (two other L.A. cop shows). I could have done without the Pulp Fiction and Run Lola Run rips, but overall the show worked.

Overall I thought it was a good episode. Like most people I will give it a few more episodes before making a final decision. I do like the way everything seemed to come full circle:

I learned that several perspectives on one boring story makes for several boring stories.

I'm not one for the police drama, but I imagine the only reason this show is on is because of its "gimmick". I'm not sure it's going to last long-term, 24 had a gimmick too but followed it up with interesting episodes, Boomtown felt like your average cop show.

My $.02

It also reminded me of <b>Go</b>.

Great show, I will definitely keep watching. Especially since <i>The Practice</i> is so bad now -- its quality level has gone down so much that it's in negative numbers now, if that's possible.

Based on this episode, and what I have seen so far of the other new shows, this is probably the best new drama. I thought that it was a great show, and I liked how everything tied together, and you got a complete look at the story, from all of the angles. I hope that the rest of the shows from this series is just as good.

I soooo didn't plan on watching this one but I did and I liked it.

I’m like many that will give Boomtown a couple of episodes before making a final decision.

That's the last thing I need a late Sunday night show. ;)

I really liked it. Forget all of the Tarantino references- it actually borrows more from Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon, one story from multiple viewpoints, differing depending on the characters involvement.

Anyway, I think it will work based on the neat narrative trick. Something like Law and Order or CSI becomes passé and predictable because of its fill-in-the-blank, paint by numbers plotting. Homicide and Hill Street Blues worked based on its characters, once the character arcs became boring and tired the shows tanked. Boomtown has a chance to leap both hurdles. You take a basic crime plot, but every character has different reaction to the crime, likewise if you dont like a character, their development, well, just wait five minutes and they jump to a different viewpoint. It is definitely different and has potential to be quite entertaining.

wow, this is a kick ass show.

Best New Show of the Season.

It's just refreshing to have the different points of view from all characters.

I don't care who ripped what off because I like the show.

Actually, the creator/writer has never seen Rashomon and says he won't see it until the show is over. Whereas I can guarantee you he's seen Pulp Fiction. Also, I thought the main thing about Rashomon was that the facts of the story changed depending on who was telling it. Boomtown didn't really show different points of view, it just followed different characters like Pulp Fiction did. That's not to say they won't do a Rashomon style episode in the future. I just find it amusing how many things are compared to Rashomon when people are much more likely to copy their contemporaries.

Well knock me down with a feather, got around to watching this last night, and I have to say no tv show in quite a while, has left me anticipating more.

I love the cast, Donnie was amazing in the 6th sense, and is quite the actor, and Neal McDonough I really enjoyed in band of brothers. I think they have enough of a cast whereby they can have little bits going on.

Not sure how I feel about the deputy DA banging the reporter, not a great way to start out the show.

but until the shield comes back on tv, this is the best cop show on television

Yeah, I was going to get into all that- the specifics- but didnt want to open that can of worms. I guess what I mean, is with each stories aim becoming a sole focus on the crime from that person, instead of the twisting path of something like Fiction. Waht I mean is, Fiction is different stories that intersect, Rashomon is one story with differening viewpoints. Boomtown takes cues form both, but its launching point is that single crime, that one story.

It's an oversimplification to say <I>Boomtown</I> steals from <B>Rashomon</B> or <B>Pulp Fiction</B>/<B>Jackie Brown</B> or any other countless works that utilize a unique story-telling device. It's doing many things, weaving many forms of presentation, into an hour-long show. And we've only seen one episode; who knows how it will play each week? In any case, there are many ways to tell a story, and when a show tries to go outside of the typical 5 act script, it's inevitably going to resemble something someone else has already done. Anyone having a problem with that should rewatch the <I>South Park</I> episode 'Simpsons Already Did It'.

Personally, I enjoyed it quite a bit and look forward to tonight's episode. The style worked well for the first episode, and the cast is very top notch. Wahlberg already established himself as a fine actor, so there's no reason for surprise that he's doing well here.

das

tonights episode wasn't all that bad, though the jumping around does get old fast. nothing sells like sex I assume.

Interesting show. It is definitely confusing but I guess the payoff comes when everything is tied up into a nice little package. I'll keep watching.

I liked last night's episode. I was tricked on two events.

When "Doofus" came up on the screen, I couldn't help laughing. I think they switched me from watching Practice live with that one screen :) This show has some promise. I like a lot of the characters.

BTW, Practice is going downhill fast for me anyway, good to have a replacement. I may still tape it for awhile. Dunno.

Good episode. Not as good as the first one, but still better than anything than most of the regular cop shows. I really like the seperate views, but it was put to better use in the first episode, rather than the second.

So far so good, this show and Without a Trace are tops on my list for news shows. Slightly disappointed with the comedies, but Boomtown has more than made up for that.

Help me out here. The part where the Hispanic who’s only been in this country for 6 months and uses better English than most who post in this forum: what's up with that?

I’ve never heard “notwithstanding” used in conversation in my entire life, much less by somebody soon after a car wreck. :hscratch:

It's an interesting idea. On paper. Doesn't work for me on the screen, with that type of writing. The fat cop is about the only believable character. And he's almost over the edge.

I love live-action cartoons.

The show is good but critically overhyped. I can see the frenetic cross-cutting getting tired very quickly. I'm already losing interest; some of the varying viewpoints aren't compelling enough in and of themselves to justify their existence.

Anyone else catch the in-joke? As Doofus tumbles off the back of the pickup, the cop driving past remarks 'Nice try, Keanu', or something like that. This is a reference to Speed, which was Boomtown creator/writer Graham Yost's breakthrough screenwriting project.

I love the show's melodious theme music.