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Preacher |OT| The Beginning Is Nigh - Sundays 10/9c on AMC

Im still shook, i know nothing about the comics, that whole last episode was an insane shock to me.

Was basically a prologue. Everyone in the town is dead, villain is setup, the trio are together.

I can't imagine how weird this all is for people not used to the universe.
 
You have a good eye. It was the only episode directed by showrunner Sam Catlin. His only previous directing credit was an episode of Breaking Bad. Really surprised you're the first to mention the episode seeming kind of "off". I spent much of the episode saying to myself "this seems awkwardly executed." The sheriff/Cassidy scene was a particular sticking point. With that said, I loved the episode. First that felt like the comic. The God scene was wonderful. I was full of glee when God started yelling and talking down to the town. Can't wait for full on dickhead God in S2.

Ah that would explain some of it, yeah. I might have been a bit grumpy during my watch and it might have affected my view of certain scenes. I'll be going through the season one more time before it's second season is out, so Ill see then if my opinion of it has changed or not.

on another note, I started reading the comic the other day and it's pretty good, though I'm not sure if I should finish reading it before doing a rewatch, seeing how most of the comics connaisseurs are the ones who dislike it the most. :(
 
I'm quoting both of these posts because my response is incomplete without the both.

The ending was mean-spirited precisely because some of the town folk weren't crazy. The best example of this is how the girls got their revenge or enacted their own form of justice on their sexual predator the bus driver.

Knowing that God is missing they know heaven has lost it's guide on divine judgement. The whole point of not attacking the bu driver themselves is to be good and faithful in the eyes of God. God being missing means God had stopped caring so they need to take matters into their own hands.

The Sheriff eventually learns that Custer sends Eugene to Hell. In the end he clearly doesn't blame Custer for this debacle because it's the fact that God is missing (who is omnipotent) that has allowed a huge oversight like the whatever gave the Preacher his power to happen in the first place.

Everyone whether they were driven mad or not by the revelation correctly took the bad news as nothing really matters for now except what they believe is the right thing to do.

That collective group realization makes blowing up the whole town extra mean spirited because we the audience are deprived of seeing how anyone moves forward with this news other than the trio.

It's certainly tragic and the small time we do get with the town after the service but before the explosion is worthwhile.

I actually thought that God may have had a hand in causing the explosion. This is definitely a reach but we know the He is not in Heaven and it's heavily implied that He's on Earth. Meanwhile, the Fart Technician's on the phone trying to talk his lady into some sexytime but gets the promise of a chaste night of moviegoing instead. The next time we see him he's dead (?) and his bondage prostitute can't vent the gas in time.

Im still shook, i know nothing about the comics, that whole last episode was an insane shock to me.

It's impressive simply due to the sheer audacity of it.
 

KarmaCow

Member
Was basically a prologue. Everyone in the town is dead, villain is setup, the trio are together.

I can't imagine how weird this all is for people not used to the universe.

Seriously, what the fuck? That season was pretty shit save some interesting sequences like angel fight with bodies piling up but the absurdity of the entire season being setup for the actual story next season at least makes me curious enough to watch. Also the show was always pretty camp but that finale was ridiculous in every way. I don't even know what to say.
 
Read the comic so I knew this was coming but im still sad, I knew I was gonna feel this way when they decided to stretch out the town part. I wanted Emily to stick around dammnit, she had an intersting dynamic with the trio and then her heel turn.........
 

Morrigan Stark

Arrogant Smirk
(Was behind, finally caught up)

Yay, finally we get this show on the road (literally)! Only took an entire season of worthless filler and tons of character assassination, but... cool, I guess?

Most of my gripes have been mentioned already. Butchering the SoK's origin and arc, Arseface, Emily's absurd murdering of the mayor, the overly long hell cowboy loop, etc.

And while I'm glad that stupid town finally exploded, I just have to wonder... why. Why bother having this "setup", introducing all these characters, having all this drama with the townspeople, when they're ALL going to die and become irrelevant at the end of S1? This is absolutely terrible storytelling. They did this on purpose and think they're being clever. It's amazing in its stupidity, really.

That said, I'm still glad I got to saw SoK fuck shit up, even if it was all wrong in its execution. At this point, I'll just... take it, I guess. Go ahead and be the most murderous badass on TV and I'll be happy. xD I guess I'll watch S2 now that the boring town shit is gone for good, but man, what a waste of a season. It's literally as if, as someone else said earlier, Bran got pushed out of the window at the S1 finale of Game of Thrones instead of in the first episode.

I just hope S2 actually starts adapting Preacher properly. Like,
stuff with the Grail and their crazy-ass fatty leader, Herr Starr, the evil grandmother and the creepy redneck family, and all that craziness
.

Show honestly feels like it would be better off in a half hour format. Kind of confused why the angels would go all the way to hell to find someone to kill Jesse when they seemed perfectly capable of hiring real world killers?
That one killer has a particular... gift.

But the real question is why they wouldn't simply get Eugene out of hell to satisfy the Preacher, really. Since he was cooperating, even. Maybe they saw it was Genesis that wasn't cooperating and decided they had to resort to killing him. IDK

I've been enjoying the show for the most part, but holy hell Emily randomly deciding to murder the mayor for a guy she doesn't even like has to be the most ridiculous out of character act I've ever seen on television.
Yeah, it was complete nonsense. No matter though, she's dead, everyone's dead, we can basically pretend S1 doesn't exist.

More DeBlanc/Fiore spoiler talk:

In a very exaggerated manner. Almost as if he were trying too hard. The two issues I have with this theory is the wanted poster and that they can both come back to life instantly. Obviously we don't know how all this stuff works yet but seems strange a demon would come back to life in exactly the same way an angel would.

With that said, the evidence for them being the parents is littered throughout the show. The most obvious to me is during their meeting with Jesse. DeBlanc tells Jesse "We're from Heaven." Fiore tries to speak and is immediately cut off by DeBlanc saying "BOTH of us." Add to that the numerous hints in just the most recent episode and you don't even need all the other bits of evidence like how only Fiore uses the Angel phone.

Edit: After reading one of the posts above mine it occurred to me that, as far as I can remember, DeBlanc has lied numerous times while Fiore just doesn't speak or gets cut off when trying to tell the truth.
I am liking the story. The deviations from the comic makes me happy because I don't know where they are going and some of the scenes have been awesome.

I love the angels theory ... would explain why
they need to sing a lullaby for genesis to go to them
Okay, that is indeed a good theory. This would be a major deviation but one I wouldn't necessarily mind because it's kind of clever.

That said, seems like [potential comic spoilers]
Fiore is dead for good, as he was shot by the Saint (no one survives that) and Deblanc came back troubled and alone
, so who knows if they'll follow up on that...

I think you could lose every scene with Emily in it and lose absolutely nothing. What a strange addition.
You could say that about most of S1, really. All the meat factory subplot which takes up way too much time. All the stuff with Donnie. All the background stuff with Tulip and Carlos too.

I'm going to miss Emily.
Really? Why?

I can't find anything interesting, compelling, funny or entertaining about that character. She was bland and boring as all hell and just kind of there, and that sudden twist with the mayor at the end was just nonsensical instead of entertaining or whatever.
 

Xanathus

Member
Really? Why?

I can't find anything interesting, compelling, funny or entertaining about that character. She was bland and boring as all hell and just kind of there, and that sudden twist with the mayor at the end was just nonsensical instead of entertaining or whatever.

Cos Emily is a hot MILF.
 

Grizzlyjin

Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
Powered through to the season finale. I liked it, except the last minute or so. They should have saved that for a trailer or first moments of Season 2. It didn't really feel that ominous tacked on to the end here.

Very uneven season, but I enjoyed the majority of it. We've got more of a bead on the main trio, so the road trip aspect is going to be meaningful from the get go.

Not really sure if this will continue to be a week to week watch for me. If the glacial pace sticks around into Season 2, I'll just wait and binge in big chunks.
 

jerry113

Banned
How long has God been missing? Is the fact that he's missing the reason why we have so much pain and suffering in our world?
 
That said, seems like [potential comic spoilers]
Fiore is dead for good, as he was shot by the Saint (no one survives that) and Deblanc came back troubled and alone
, so who knows if they'll follow up on that...

Well, in the comics
the Saint of Killers shoots Cassidy in the chest point blank, and he survives. I'd assume that his target would have to be possible to kill with bullets for them to be lethal. At least in the comics. It might look like DeBlanc and the seraphim angel are permanently dead in the show, but it remains to be seen next season.

How long has God been missing? Is the fact that he's missing the reason why we have so much pain and suffering in our world?

I don't know if this is an actual spoiler for the show or not, but in the comics, the answer to your question is
that God left Heaven at the same time as Genesis was born, which was very recently.
 

Morrigan Stark

Arrogant Smirk
Well, in the comics
the Saint of Killers shoots Cassidy in the chest point blank, and he survives. I'd assume that his target would have to be possible to kill with bullets for them to be lethal. At least in the comics. It might look like DeBlanc and the seraphim angel are permanently dead in the show, but it remains to be seen next season.

I don't know if this is an actual spoiler for the show or not, but in the comics, the answer to your question is
that God left Heaven at the same time as Genesis was born, which was very recently.
Hmm I don't remember
that part about Cassidy, but SoK does kill God himself with a bullet, so clearly, even otherwise bullet-immune creatures can die from it (unless, well, God can be killed with regular bullets xD)
 
Hmm I don't remember
that part about Cassidy, but SoK does kill God himself with a bullet, so clearly, even otherwise bullet-immune creatures can die from it (unless, well, God can be killed with regular bullets xD)

Cassidy is shot pretty early on in the comic, while they're still in Annville. He's clearly established as impossible to kill with regular bullets, while we get no indication that God (or the devil for that matter) has a similar immunity.
 
Right.
I think it's really just a wonky thing that they'll handwave away by saying The Saint has super duper actual death powers. In the comics, no one except for Cassidy is implied to be immortal in any way. They even mention at least some portion of God's power comes from the throne itself. In the TV show's case, they've already established that the angels have some power of reincarnation.
 
Wow! Fantastic episode! I loved every moments in this episode, from Donnie and his wife to the church scene and fake god. amazing finale!
I liked the whole season too. it has some flaws, but as a person who haven't read the comic, it really worth watching it.
Can't wait for the next season.
 

Alpende

Member
I haven't read the comics but from what I can tell this episode is basically the first issue or something? Anyway, I really liked the episode. This is probably one of the weirdest TV episodes I've ever watched. The fake God stuff was great and I did not see the town getting blown up coming and killing everyone. I'm just glad Eugene was 'safe' in hell and hopefully is still alive, I dug his character.

Season 2 should be good.
 

Grizzlyjin

Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
I haven't read the comics but from what I can tell this episode is basically the first issue or something?

I'd say that is fairly accurate. There are elements of the first issue spread across the entire season, but the finale probably had the most similarities to any other point in the series with major events (kinda) matching up to the comic. Still very its own thing though.
 

Zoe

Member
Well, in the comics
the Saint of Killers shoots Cassidy in the chest point blank, and he survives. I'd assume that his target would have to be possible to kill with bullets for them to be lethal. At least in the comics. It might look like DeBlanc and the seraphim angel are permanently dead in the show, but it remains to be seen next season.

One theory I've seen is that
since they clearly changed SoK's origin, he may not have had the permakill guns yet when he shot DeBlanc.

There could be other explanations why Fiore came back alone like DeBlanc looking for Eugene or tending to demon business if we go with that theory too.
 
I can appreciate different takes from comics to TV series, but I don't know about this one. They could have had another Walking Dead on their hands, but I don't see this lasting more than one more season if it continues like this.
 

dperrin

Member
I can appreciate different takes from comics to TV series, but I don't know about this one. They could have had another Walking Dead on their hands, but I don't see this lasting more than one more season if it continues like this.

I think season 2 will be great, and I enjoyed season 1 a lot. Hope it can keep an audience for next season so we get more.
 
"I haven't read the comics but from what I can tell this episode is basically the first issue or something?"

The entire season is basically the first issue.
 
I'd say that is fairly accurate. There are elements of the first issue spread across the entire season, but the finale probably had the most similarities to any other point in the series with major events (kinda) matching up to the comic. Still very its own thing though.
"I haven't read the comics but from what I can tell this episode is basically the first issue or something?"

The entire season is basically the first issue.

It's worth pointing out that the TV show also handled, and eliminated, one major story arc from the end of the comic books (Salvation). The whole Quincannon thing was lifted from that arc, and it's probably a good thing. There's a loooong stretch there where the main plot doesn't move forward at all, and it was a major bummer back when we still had to wait for the comics to be finished. By putting Quincannon in this season, they've demonstrated that they're not going to include Salvation in the show, so we don't have to worry about that happening. Probably.
 

Mudcrab

Member
Cassidy is shot pretty early on in the comic, while they're still in Annville. He's clearly established as impossible to kill with regular bullets, while we get no indication that God (or the devil for that matter) has a similar immunity.
"No wound [from the colt revolvers] would be anything but fatal"

The loophole is Cassidy is already dead since he's a vampire.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
Ratings:

Episode 1: 2.4 million viewers and 0.9 A18-49
Episode 2: 2.1 million viewers and 0.8 A18-49
Episode 3: 1.8 million viewers and 0.7 A18-49
Episode 4: 1.1 million viewers and 0.4 A18-49
Episode 5: 1.4 million viewers and 0.5 A18-49
Episode 6: 1.5 million viewers and 0.5 A18-49
Episode 7: 1.5 million viewers and 0.6 A18-49
Episode 8: 1.6 million viewers and 0.6 A18-49
Episode 9: 1.6 million viewers and 0.6 A18-49
Episode 10: 1.7 million viewers and 0.6 A18-49
 

GeeTeeCee

Member
Just finished the last episode. I didn't expect the finale to be quite so, uhh... explosive, but I'm on board if there's going to be a season 2. Haven't read the comic, so that may have contributed to the fact that I really enjoyed the first season, not having anything to compare it to.
 

Morrigan Stark

Arrogant Smirk
It's worth pointing out that the TV show also handled, and eliminated, one major story arc from the end of the comic books (Salvation). The whole Quincannon thing was lifted from that arc, and it's probably a good thing. There's a loooong stretch there where the main plot doesn't move forward at all, and it was a major bummer back when we still had to wait for the comics to be finished. By putting Quincannon in this season, they've demonstrated that they're not going to include Salvation in the show, so we don't have to worry about that happening. Probably.
That's a good point. I won't really miss the Salvation arc, except I'm sad we didn't see the
meat fucking
xD that's still the most fucked up thing I've seen in fiction, I think, so I was hoping to see it happen on TV just to get the WTF reactions haha.

"No wound [from the colt revolvers] would be anything but fatal"

The loophole is Cassidy is already dead since he's a vampire.
Ahhh so that was the deal. Thanks.
 

Platy

Member
Cassidy is shot pretty early on in the comic, while they're still in Annville. He's clearly established as impossible to kill with regular bullets, while we get no indication that God (or the devil for that matter) has a similar immunity.

Wasn't God in the comics
kinda depowered when the Saint shoots him ?
 

Sinatar

Official GAF Bottom Feeder
Wasn't God in the comics
kinda depowered when the Saint shoots him ?

We really shouldn't be talking about shit like this in this thread, tags or no. But he was killed because he wasn't on the throne of heaven.
 

Dalek

Member
Not sure how I feel about the season as a whole-but the final scenes from the diner on were basically everything I've been waiting for. I just hate that it took so long to get to that. I too feel like the momentum has been wasted and this could have been a big hit like The walking dead. But now, I'm not so sure. Unless season 2 gets a lot more viewers...
 

Salsa

Member
was banned during almost all season

im conflicted on it tbh

im a huge fan of the comic, made a bunch of threads about this adaptation cause I was actually hopeful when they cast Gilgun and such

some stuff I liked, some stuff I loathed, some stuff im really not sure they're gonna do

I feel like the show itself is conflicted. At times it tries to be more.. like a TV show, like a serious TV show drama, spending more time with the characters, the relationships.. rather than start steppin on it hard like the comic does

... but then it does go the comic route, among all that kind of.. TV seriousness.. and.. it just doesnt really work

it doesnt work that you end up the series killing fucking everyone and Jesse Custer doesnt even think about that new lady love interest working at the church

it doesnt really work that he goes "fuck it" without giving it a thought. It worked in the comic, but they built a world on the TV show where it feels like he should earn that, and he doesnt. Everyone's motivations just service the plot in a really odd way. And, since we're on it, it doesnt really work in the same manner that she doesnt give a fuck about killing the mayor for Cassidy

I get what they're going for, I get that they wanna keep the shock and "no fucks given" the comic had

but make a decision, mixing up the two is really fucking weird and it just feels a bit all over the place. Jesse is like a completely different character every episode. making wild different decisions without ANY sort of motivation other than some inner realization. that's not how good TV is supposed to work

anyway, more hopeful now that we got into comic territory plot-wise, but the tone really needs some work man. it's like a show with a personality disorder. and no, I really doubt that's "the point", they're having trouble
 

Platy

Member
Finaly saw the finale !

Read the comics
It is not the comics

But I liked !
Even if I am not sure if I understand some of the adaptation choices =P

But season 2 looks to go pretty close to the comics since it feels that season 1 was like getting viewers ready to all the weirdness that comes after
 

Salsa

Member
they'll never go as far as the comics go, ever

that was an issue since day 1 with it being picked up by AMC and I wanted to believe

but yeah, at this point I know they wont

and it's not a throwaway thing either, it's pretty important for the story, and they wont do it

the Preacher's whole backstory is already fucked hard. beyond the whole tone thing this is easily what bummed me out the most
 

Monocle

Member
Wait, so the idea is everyone either loses all their inhibitions or kills themselves because God is missing? Those scenes were like a fundamentalist's idea of what would happen to society without a god. How embarrassing.

Spoiler: atheists exist and we don't run rampant in the streets, lol. If I were a touchier person I'd feel mildly insulted. Anyone who would go nuts like that was never of sound mind in the first place.

Weak season overall, with some notable exceptions when the writing got out of its own way. The cast and style are great. I hope season 2 as a whole is more in line with Tulip's intro, Quincannon's shotgun massacre, the hotel room fight, and the diner scene.

That's a good point. I won't really miss the Salvation arc, except I'm sad we didn't see the
meat fucking
xD that's still the most fucked up thing I've seen in fiction, I think, so I was hoping to see it happen on TV just to get the WTF reactions haha.


Ahhh so that was the deal. Thanks.
Yeah, that's a defining moment in the comic. Really wish the show had adapted it.

It just hit me that Bryan Fuller would have made a great Preacher adaptation. I mean, based on the way he and his wonderful collaborators knocked it out of the part with Hannibal. On NBC, no less.
 
Wait, so the idea is everyone either loses all their inhibitions or kills themselves because God is missing? Those scenes were like a fundamentalist's idea of what would happen to society without a god. How embarrassing.

Spoiler: atheists exist and we don't run rampant in the streets, lol. If I were a touchier person I'd feel mildly insulted. Anyone who would go nuts like that was never of sound mind in the first place.

Those people weren't atheists. That's the big difference here.
 
I have some questions about finale and next season:
1. Is Odin dead or he was in a far place compared to the others? is he an important person in comic?
2. I know Eugene is in comic, but what's his role? a real person or something in preacher's mind? Is the "hell story" about Eugene in the comic or it's only in TV series?
3. Should we prepare for some supernatural creatures in next season? (other than things like angels)

Please answer in spoilers.

Those people weren't atheists. That's the big difference here.
Yes! there is a big difference between an atheist and a person who believes in god and goes to church, but faces that situation! It can easily make them crazy.
 
1. Is Odin dead or he was in a far place compared to the others? is he an important person in comic?
First part is unknown for sure however in my opinion I would assume so. Second part is that he only comes into the comics later in the story but it seems the show has merged several elements of the comics and taken creative liberties to create this season. Ultimately though in the comics, I would say Odin's role is inconsequential to the overall story being told. Great storyline though.
2. I know Eugene is in comic, but what's his role? a real person or something in preacher's mind? Is the "hell story" about Eugene in the comic or it's only in TV series?
In the comic's he plays a completely different role, pretty much non-related to the main plot. In this adaptation, it looks like his role has been merged with another character from the comics and acts as a way for preacher to externalise thoughts for the medium. The hell story is show only.
3. Should we prepare for some supernatural creatures in next season? (other than things like angels)
Not really. There's a lot of depraved people though

If you want specifics or have anything else, feel free to give me a shout.

I know this gets said a lot round here but I only started the comics after seeing the first few episodes and I've just finished my second read this morning but they are well worth checking out if you can.
 
First part is unknown for sure however in my opinion I would assume so. Second part is that he only comes into the comics later in the story but it seems the show has merged several elements of the comics and taken creative liberties to create this season. Ultimately though in the comics, I would say Odin's role is inconsequential to the overall story being told. Great storyline though.

In the comic's he plays a completely different role, pretty much non-related to the main plot. In this adaptation, it looks like his role has been merged with another character from the comics and acts as a way for preacher to externalise thoughts for the medium. The hell story is show only.

Not really. There's a lot of depraved people though

If you want specifics or have anything else, feel free to give me a shout.

I know this gets said a lot round here but I only started the comics after seeing the first few episodes and I've just finished my second read this morning but they are well worth checking out if you can.
Thanks! :)
I think I should start reading comic soon. Need a new comic these days and maybe Preacher is best choice!
 

Monocle

Member
Those people weren't atheists. That's the big difference here.
I mean, if we want to get picky...

- Some religious people become atheists, and it doesn't drive them insane. Sorting out your beliefs and values would make people better adjusted, you'd think. And it's not like all religious people are fragile babies who can't handle a sudden realignment of their worldview.

- The revelation that God is missing and no one knows where he went implicitly confirms that God exists. Kind of a big upside if you're religious, IMO.

- Missing doesn't mean dead or irretrievable, so it makes zero sense to start murdering and suiciding just because God is currently unavailable.

I don't know, it's not really necessary to pick this apart point by point. I just thought the mass hysteria thing was dumb.
 
Jesse is like a completely different character every episode

Enjoyed the season but this would be my main criticism. I'm still not sure what to make of him.

Also don't get the townspeople going crazy. Like, they don't know god is gone for good and how long he's been gone. What if he comes back the next day. Awkwaaaaard :p
 
Enjoyed the season but this would be my main criticism. I'm still not sure what to make of him.

Also don't get the townspeople going crazy. Like, they don't know god is gone for good and how long he's been gone. What if he comes back the next day. Awkwaaaaard :p

They found out that God isn't anything like what they've been told their whole lives, though. Even if he does come back, from the look they got into Heaven and how disorganized/crazy it seems to be, the whole basis of their religion looks like a lie.
 
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