Carnival (2003-2005)

Hey, Carnival starts March 18th on PBS at 8:40 PM, every Friday... GET EXCITED! 😁

Now go wild & scream 😁

So, what’s this all about?

Not screaming yet? Wow.
Come on... we're talking about the carnival here! 😁 Ah, well, I don't have all the details myself. 😁 Nick Stahl stars, and it's set back in the 1930s. He plays this fugitive—accused of murder, actually—who ends up joining a traveling carnival...

...and according to PBS, being in that new environment starts triggering his suppressed SUPERNATURAL POWERS.

Moving on, per PBS:

"Meanwhile, over in California, the father of brother Justin (Clancy Brown)—who has always been looked after by his fiercely loyal and protective sister, Iris (Amy Madigan)—starts being haunted by apocalyptic dreams and visions."

& and finally:

"He too begins to suppress his own supernatural powers."

Final thought:

"Both Ben and Justin are exhausted by their lives. They realize the world around them is essentially a game of chess, an ancient struggle between light and darkness in which they are key players."

&blah blah blah... 😁

If you’re a fan of everything HBO puts out, you definitely need to check out their new series "Carnival" tonight. I actually caught an episode via satellite recently, and I can't recommend it enough! If you want to dive into the plot details, head over to www.imdb.com ... or, here is the quick rundown from PBS...

CARNIVAL - the series
CARNIVAL

The year is 1934. The social and economic fallout of the Great Depression has gripped the USA, and Ben Hawkins (Nick Stahl), on the run for murder, joins a traveling carnival wandering through the American Midwest. In this strange new world, Ben begins to feel his suppressed supernatural powers resurfacing—with potentially deadly consequences. Meanwhile, in California, the father of brother Justin Crowe (Clancy Brown)—who has always been looked after by his fiercely loyal and protective sister, Iris (Amy Madigan)—starts being haunted by apocalyptic dreams and visions. He, too, is suppressing supernatural abilities. Both Ben and Justin are exhausted by their lives, realizing the world around them is essentially a high-stakes chess match: an ancient struggle between light and dark where they are the key players.

Episode 1: Milfay

In the premiere, Ben joins the traveling carnival after the bank forecloses on his family farm in Oklahoma. brother Justin encounters a poor local parishioner, while Sofia, a blacksmith for the carnival and a medium, experiences something truly bizarre at a gas station...

Cast: Nick Stahl (Ben Hawkins), Clancy Brown (brother Justin Crowe), Amy Madigan (Iris), Clea Duvall (Sofia), Michael J. Anderson (Samson), Adrienne Barbeau (Ruthie), Patrick Bauchau (Lodz), Debra Christofferson (Lila), Tim DeKay (Clayton Jones)
Clayton Jones:
Director: Rodrigo Garcia
Editor: Ranka Horvat

I’m really digging this series.

I didn't sit through the entire episode; I found it a bit too predictable, perhaps even premature... I kept waiting for something significant to actually happen, but nothing ever materialized. I suppose things might improve once the plot really starts to develop, but there is certainly some potential there.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!! What a show! It is absolutely incredible! I’ll admit, I was a little skeptical at first, even though I really, really liked the opening sequence 😁 but I ended up falling in love with it pretty quickly 😁 😁 😁 I can hardly wait for the next installment!

When I realized during the intro that Clea Duvall would be acting in this, what a total breath of fresh air! Even though she isn't exactly my favorite actress and usually ends up in these dark, heavy movies, seeing her name pop up totally caught me off guard 🙂

I am loving this soooooooo much 😁 😁 😁

Exactly. 👍 Kind of like Twin Peaks mixed with some Stephen King vibes. Could be really good. How many episodes are there?

That’s 12 episodes spread over two seasons, basically 😁
.
Here’s the list:

1. Milfay
2. After the Ball Is Over
3. Tipton
4. Black Blizzard
5. Babylon
6. Pick a Number
7. The River
8. Lonnigan, Texas
9. Insomnia
10. Hot and Bothered
11. The Day of the Dead
12. The Day That Was the Day Season 2

Season 2

13. 2- 1 Los Moscos
14. 2- 2 Alamogordo, N.M.
15. 2- 3 Ingram, TX
16. 2- 4 Old Cherry Blossom Road
17. 2- 5 Creed, OK
18. 2- 6 The Road to Damascus
19. 2- 7 Damascus, NE
20. 2- 8 Outskirts, Damascus, NE
21. 2- 9 Lincoln Highway
22. 2-10 Cheyenne, WY
23. 2-11 Outside New Canaan
24. 2-12 New Canaan, CA

And here are some pictures: 😁

I'm not entirely sure about the translation quality, but it's airing this Friday on PBS (though I’ve already binged the first nine episodes on Divix)

It's such a great series...

Honestly, it feels like a real breath of fresh air after being without anything good for so long.

Thanks to PBS, we've barely managed to catch two episodes over the last four weeks. Not that I'm complaining, though. I managed to snag the second one, and it actually feels like this series could be quite excellent. It reminds me a lot of Stephen King: he has that knack for weaving supernatural occurrences and monsters into the fabric of mundane reality. In this case, we seem to have a biblical struggle between Good and Evil set in the USA during the Great Depression in the early 1930s. Quite clever.

My primary reservation at this stage is the same one I had with "Lost": the premise is fantastic, but how many episodes can you stretch it before you descend into cliches and self-parody? I mean, sure, we have a circus full of freaks and mysterious happenings, but sooner or later, you’re going to have to explain who this crowd is and what is actually going on. Just look at the later seasons of "The X-Files"...

But then again, that’s something for the writers to stress over, not me. 🙂

Oh, and one more thing: I absolutely love the opening sequence with the tarot cards and the documentary footage of the 1930s USA layered in. The music is also superb—appropriately eerie. I'm looking forward to the upcoming episodes!

Since we're talking about HBO, I'm confident the story will stay engaging for at least three seasons.
Even if they do manage to release episodes on a regular schedule...

I totally missed that second episode—the one with the little guy who needs a good thrashing—but here we are at the third one (I honestly couldn't remember if this was the second or the third myself... 😁...by the way, where did that guy Nick Stahl get those photos from again? I can't recall what went down in the second episode?) Anyway, this series is absolutely phenomenal!!!! 😁

😍 😍 😍 😍 😍

love, love, love, love, love 😁

Spooky, fabulous & love it 🙂

& funny & smart also 😁

Look, I really tried to give it a chance, but it’s just not happening. It’s trying way too hard to be cool, spooky, and mysterious. Every single frame, every character, every tiny non-event is supposed to have some *deeper*, *different* meaning. It’s incredibly pretentious and relentless. They lean into every cliché and generic setting with such heavy-handed seriousness that it actually makes my stomach turn.
🙂
They tried far too hard; that’s my honest takeaway.

But hey, who actually likes.... 😁
It’s not my cup of tea. I'll stick to OZ 👍

Alright, I'll say it. Paul Mendoza8, you're just wrong. This isn't about having different tastes; it's just a lack of understanding. Carnival is a phenomenal series—top-tier production and an inspiring script packed with clever, sharp humor. Honestly, sure, some elements might feel familiar, but they've never been wrapped up in such a perfectly balanced package of incredible atmosphere. I genuinely enjoy this show. And I don't mean that in a shallow way, but in a deep, layered appreciation for everything it offers. Carnival manages to say more intelligent things in two sentences than Augustus Hill ever did during his entire career behind bars.
Oz is nothing but pretension and senseless violence. I can't stand the show anymore because it has simply lost its way. Try explaining what actually happened in the last five episodes—if you can even wrap your head around that much chaos—and you'll realize you're just talking nonsense. You're throwing out a billion plot points that lead absolutely nowhere. Oz sucks. Big time.

Brian Williams => Your sheer level of insight makes continuing this conversation with you an impossible task.
👍

Brian Williams said:Alright, let me just say it. Paul Mendoza8, you’re being dense. This isn't about having different tastes; it’s about you missing the point. Carnival is a phenomenal show—top-tier production and an inspiring script packed with sharp, witty writing. Sure, maybe some elements feel familiar, but they've never been wrapped up in such a perfectly balanced, heavy atmosphere. I genuinely enjoy this series. And I don't mean that in some superficial way, but on a deep level, appreciating everything it brings to the table. Carnival manages to say more intelligent things in two sentences than Augustus Hill did during his entire career behind bars.
Oz is just a pile of pretension and senseless violence. I can't stand the show anymore because it has completely lost its way. Try explaining what actually happened in the last five episodes—if you can even manage that without getting confused—and you'll realize you're just talking nonsense (throwing a billion random plot points at the wall that lead nowhere). Oz sucks. Big time.

And you’re apparently so brilliant that you think "tastes differ" settles every argument.

frozentiger6 said:Oh, please. You’re acting like you’re some kind of genius because you know you can't argue with taste. Give me a break.

Oh, sure, you're clearly the smartest person on the planet—I’m positive all the world's collective wisdom originated from you alone.

How on earth do you manage to spit out such profound sentences every single time?

Paul Mendoza8 said:I truly did my best to enjoy it, but I just can't bring myself to. It’s trying way too hard to be cool, spooky, and mysterious. Every single frame, character, or non-event is treated as if it carries some profound, hidden meaning.

I think I know exactly where you're going with this. That was my initial reaction, too. It’s like, "Okay, we have a traveling circus," except this isn't some standard troupe of performers—it’s the kind of twisted circus we all imagined when we were kids, teeming with dark and impossible secrets. It’s a classic trope, something we've seen since Bradbury's *Something Wicked This Way Comes* or even the movie *Freakshow*. Everything seems charming and wonderful at first, but much like those conspiracy theories in *The X-Files*, the creators eventually trip over their own attempts at being "cool" and "mysterious," and the whole thing just turns into a joke.

The thing that makes Carnivale such a compelling world to explore is the setting: we’re looking at the 1930s, where the Great Depression is ravaging the USA and the entire Midwest has been transformed into a literal dust belt. We like to think things are rough for us today, but that doesn't even begin to compare to the economic catastrophe faced by the most powerful nations on Earth back then.

As a direct consequence of that fatherly figure, we're seeing the influence of extreme political factions gain serious traction among the public. Their main talking point? The supposed inability of Western democracies to manage the Great Depression and its various fallout. It’s exactly what this Protestant pastor from California is doing: he’s a populist who genuinely wants to help people, yet he's perfectly willing to get his hands dirty to achieve his ends.

What I’m hoping for from this series is that it mirrors Stephen King's *The Stand*, focusing on a biblical struggle between good and evil, but viewed through the lens of ordinary people who aren't exactly saints or monsters. At the same time, that conflict could serve as a reflection of the clash between Western nations and the totalitarian regimes that emerged during the latter half of the 20th century. If they managed that, adding a dark and creepy circus element wouldn't just be okay—it would actually be pretty cool.

Well, we'll just have to wait and see. I'm not entirely convinced the series will hit the level of hype I'm hoping for, nor am I certain it'll actually be any good. Regardless, I have no intention of hunting down spoilers online. As it stands, ever since "Firefly" wrapped up, "Carnival" and "Lost" are really the only shows left on my regular watchlist.

@casualotter21/">@@casualotter21 - You've convinced me. I'll give it another couple of episodes before I call it quits. We'll see which direction this thing takes. 😁