This show is unlikely to fill the gap soon to be left by Game of Thrones in HBO's income column, but I love that they make it and that it came from a short webseries on Vimeo. Probably this latter fact is one of the reasons I enjoy it, as it does feel like something I've watched grow. While I often mention that in a show-off way, I mention it now just to be clear that I am probably not open to its weaknesses. Certainly as a show it is not one that throws the doors open to casual viewers, and this season opening with an old naked man boiling water in a saucepan in a dirty home is unlikely to change that. It continues this with an oddity of characters and lifestyles, some of which will seem 'normal', others different, others weird - depends on who you are I guess (and I'm a 40-something white straight man, so I'm not exactly target for this stuff).
The third season may have its oddity, and it frequent views of male nudity, but I think it does a decent job this season of not being about the quirks, or the shock value of the people or alternative lifestyles. There are plenty of glimpses of lives here, mostly through a comedic lens, but there are enough that seem to have more heart behind them. I would have liked more full episodes though, the vast majority had two sections and often 10-15 minutes is not enough to get a lot from the characters. There are the usual nice overlaps with previous seasons/characters, but I did want that next step here and there, to make more of an impact.
The cast continue to do well in all they are asked to do - and Sinclair as one of the creators means his performance gets the tone right in terms of bemusement, acceptance, and reflection. Technically the show looks great, and the benefits of a HBO budget shows, although it retains what it always was, just now with a bit more polish to it.
The third season may have its oddity, and it frequent views of male nudity, but I think it does a decent job this season of not being about the quirks, or the shock value of the people or alternative lifestyles. There are plenty of glimpses of lives here, mostly through a comedic lens, but there are enough that seem to have more heart behind them. I would have liked more full episodes though, the vast majority had two sections and often 10-15 minutes is not enough to get a lot from the characters. There are the usual nice overlaps with previous seasons/characters, but I did want that next step here and there, to make more of an impact.
The cast continue to do well in all they are asked to do - and Sinclair as one of the creators means his performance gets the tone right in terms of bemusement, acceptance, and reflection. Technically the show looks great, and the benefits of a HBO budget shows, although it retains what it always was, just now with a bit more polish to it.
