Sleepy Hollow

[Vyvyan Basterd]

Anyone else catch the premiere?

I feel like Fox dropped the ball in advertising this (I know, what a shock!). I'm sure they were trying to invoke some mystery, but I wondered how a show about the Headless Horseman would work. That wonder made me watch, but I could easily see much more discerning viewers avoiding the show for the same reason. (Never mind the cheesy plug during Bones! Hodgins: "I hope the DVR's recording Sleepy Hollow!" But seeing they have car commercials in the plot at times I shouldn't be surprised.)

[sblock]The tie-in of the Headless Horseman as Death in the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse was a interesting take. The Four White Trees demon was cool and creepy. The conspiracy surrounding competing good and evil covens should add good twists. And the previews of the upcoming season add in other forces of evil so we don't just focus on the HH and FWTD. Plus the humor was pretty good.[/sblock]

Overall I'm excited for the direction this show is headed.

 

[Hand of Evil]

completely missed it, thought every thing started next week, damn you FOX!

 

[Asmo]

I see what you did there.

 

[Radiating Gnome]

Crap. Forgot to set DVR.

 

[Janx]

It was alright.

Since it is on Fox, I give it 13 episodes before they cancel it to make way for a sleazier show.

Now for stuff about the show:

Spoiler

the police department felt inconsistent designed. One minute the female lead is eating dinner with the sherrif of a small town police department, the next she's getting chewed out by the Captain of a department large enough to rival the Miami Homicide division.

If you're going for small town police force, emulate Longmire with a Sheriff and deputies. If you're going for big city police force, emulate Castle with precincts, departments etc. There are of course big cities with sheriffs and stuff, but the small town police force seems a better fit for a setting like Sleepy Hollow.

The pacing was pretty quick. We didn't have to wait 3 seasons for either character to share their backstory of how they got there and why that's relevant. Even the ending seems to have gotten the Captain onboard with "headless horseman is real, this Crane guy is real, you two go solve it" which is refreshing from the usual pattern of "we have a secret, can't trust anybody, let's waste half the season thwarting each other though we're all on the same side"

the Horseman was all nice and headless. Glad we're not wasting time with people doubting his existance. Decent mythology on why he's there and why we need 13 episodes to resolve the matter.

And like any good vampire or immortal story, we get "historical" flashbacks to show times of yore, because who doesn't like acting in period dress?

Overall, I'll keep watching it.

 

[Herschel]

Watched it, thought it was okay. The incongruities of the police force bugged me also, and Tom Mison's promo picks made me think they were doing another Hitchhiker's Guide movie as they remind me of Sam Rockwell's Zaphod without the smirk.

 

[Zaukrie]

My wife and son watched it, figure it has a few episodes before it is cancelled, said they think last night will be the beat episode, and it was not that good.

 

[Vyvyan Basterd]

Now for stuff about the show:

Spoiler

the police department felt inconsistent designed. One minute the female lead is eating dinner with the sherrif of a small town police department, the next she's getting chewed out by the Captain of a department large enough to rival the Miami Homicide division.

If you're going for small town police force

[sblock]It struck me as odd too. I noticed as the camera swept into Sleepy Hollow that the town has a population of 114,000. That's not a small town by any means. By comparison, the small town of Antioch, IL (in which I live) is 14,000. Our county seat, Waukegan, IL (which is by no means small) is only 89,000. The actual Sleepy Hollow, NY has 10,000. 114,000 makes it as large as the 6th largest city in Michegan, Ann Arbor.

It almost seemed as if she was a part of the county sheriff's department, while the guy chewing her out was part of the SHPD. But then when she called for backup it was police units that showed up.

I can get over it as long as the supernatural aspect keeps on par with the first episode and others in the genre I enjoy, such as Supernatural and Grimm.[/sblock]

 

[Janx]

[sblock]It struck me as odd too. I noticed as the camera swept into Sleepy Hollow that the town has a population of 114,000. That's not a small town by any means. By comparison, the small town of Antioch, IL (in which I live) is 14,000. Our county seat, Waukegan, IL (which is by no means small) is only 89,000. The actual Sleepy Hollow, NY has 10,000. 114,000 makes it as large as the 6th largest city in Michegan, Ann Arbor.

It almost seemed as if she was a part of the county sheriff's department, while the guy chewing her out was part of the SHPD. But then when she called for backup it was police units that showed up.

I can get over it as long as the supernatural aspect keeps on par with the first episode and others in the genre I enjoy, such as Supernatural and Grimm.[/sblock]

spoiler vs. sblock tag in action....

[sblock]I guess that's what happens when writers from NYC try to write about a small town. I grew up in a town population of 300-400 people. The total population doubled during the school day for all the kids bussed in from the countryside.

10,000 is bigger than most folks realize.

I definitely think 114,000 is too big for the setting. What're you gonna do. the show will be OK or suck not based on these details. But it'd be nice if they tried a little harder (like actually drove to the town and looked at the population sign).

[/sblock]

 

[Vyvyan Basterd]

[sblock]Edit: It was actually 144,000. Which makes it a reference to Revelation 7:4-8. What some people (incorrectly?) think of as the population of Heaven. Hmmm...[/sblock]