Support NeoGAF

[neptunes]

Was that a reference to the Son of Sam killer when Candy was talking about the lady who used to wear that suede jacket?

If so, that was a cleverly placed callback of that period. (Mid 70's summer NY) It's only natural that people would be talking about an atrocity like that.

 

[KingKong]

not too sure about this slice of life of all the pimps and their hookers hanging out at the bar with the girl that dropped out of college

 

[orioto]

They barely mention it??

Maggie's character have starred in a porno and we got to see how that got shot. She has also expressed an interest in how you shoot one and the legality of selling hardcore pornography in Europe vs America.
Darlene unwittingly starred in a porno and we get to see how the market works before the birth of the big porn industry (i.e. under counter).
We have also been in a theatre with CC and "I can't believe she's 37" and seen how that particular outlet works at that time.

Yes there is a whole lot of else going on, but it is necessary to show the workings of society at that point, to establish what forces were behind the porn business, and how the legal aspect of it worked.
It's hard to show why and how something was a revolution unless you show what it revolted against.

The entire show is nothing but a giant mention of the birth of the porn industry i you ask me.

Of course they talked about it. What i mean is it seems the show teases it but it takes a while. Last episode didn't mention it at all. And that's how Simons does things. Like in the Wire where the actual wire was so difficult to happen you know. Or Treme where people couldn't really move on or grow their business.

 

[BlueTsunami]

Is that Slim Charles as the diner owner? Awesome

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

The show is a slow burn, but I actually like that. I am a huge Mad Men fan too.

 

[Cornballer]

Is that Slim Charles as the diner owner? Awesome

Yeah, I didn't notice it until this week, too.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Now that I've found out that The Hi-Hat is based on a real bar and Vince on a real guy, I want to learn more about them.

 

[wenis]

I really like this show quite a bit. I look forward to it every week.

 

[kingocfs]

I really like this show quite a bit. I look forward to it every week.

Yeah, I’m loving it. Hanging on every scene. Franco is so good.

 

[Dabanton]

Is that Slim Charles as the diner owner? Awesome

I thought it was him last week but forgot to check.

Good to have it confirmed.

Also need to catch up with this weeks episode.

 

[Cornballer]

 

[lunchtoast]

Everyone is really good in this show, but there's some things I don't understand. What is the no go territory the police are talking about and what papers are they asking for when they line them up? Are cops just being paid off to not interfere certain areas?

 

[lucebuce12]

Everyone is really good in this show, but there's some things I don't understand. What is the no go territory the police are talking about and what papers are they asking for when they line them up? Are cops just being paid off to not interfere certain areas?

"The Deuce" has basically been set up as a no-go area for the police meaning that anything short of a legitimate violent crime (armed robbery/rape/murder/assault with a weapon) isn't getting the cops' attention. So prostitution, selling drugs, petty theft and other misdemeanors are "ignored". I don't think they've explicitly said who's set this up (my assumption is that Rudy Pipilo and the Mob might have set this up seeing as he has plans for the area). Yeah, someone has basically paid off either the middle management or the higher ups in the Police force to not interfere in that area.

In regards to the prostitutes, I'm not entirely certain what document it is but taking in the prostitutes is essentially a formality. If they have those papers, they let them go and if they don't then they bring them in so that they can have those documents made. None of the police take the matter particularly seriously since they just don't see prostitution as a crime that's worthy of their attention which is why it was somewhat of a big deal when Officer Alston decided to take EVERYBODY to the station regardless of the documents.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

I think they explained the papers in one of the after-episode bits. When they pick up a prostitute, she gets a 48 hour grace period of not being picked up again. They give her a voucher. So those who have already been busted in that period are free to go.

 

[Cornballer]

I think they explained the papers in one of the after-episode bits. When they pick up a prostitute, she gets a 48 hour grace period of not being picked up again. They give her a voucher. So those who have already been busted in that period are free to go.

Yup. This is what I posted before:

Sepinwall's review:

The episode’s title comes from the police ritual that we see Alston and Flanagan act out in the opening scenes. Prostitution is illegal, so theoretically cops should be able to arrest any sex worker parading their wares out on the street, but this would be overwhelming to the system — not to mention rough sledding on the women doing work that most of the cops aren’t too troubled by — so there’s a grace period where those who were arrested on the last sweep of the Deuce are allowed to go free on the next one. (“Show and prove” means they are giving the cops a property voucher confirming they were in police custody in the last few days.) The whole thing is arbitrary and pointless, but it’s the way the system works, and as we learned so often on The Wire, systems don’t often change, even for logic. So some of the women get rounded up and brought to the station — the sequence where Alston orders them all take-out and eats it with them in the precinct courtyard is both extremely charming and a mark of how little Chris and other cops seem to think the hookers need to be locked up — and then it’s someone else’s turn the next time. You can see Chris being annoyed by having to shove this particular bolder up the hill in this way, and when Rodney taunts him in the closing scene with a chant of, “The hos go in, the hos go out,” Alston decides to lock everybody up for once, to stick to the actual letter of the law rather than the way he’s been trained to enforce it.

EDIT: They talk about it in the Behind the Scenes video, too.

 

[Mollymauk]

Knew I recognized C.C.

 

[The Illiterati]

I finally caught up with the first four episodes. It's brilliant. I don't care if anything progresses, David Simon makes characters I want to spend time with, their world is so richly defined.

 

[Frost_Ace]

So this show is good for now right? It's starting in Italy in 2 weeks

 

[Budi]

So this show is good for now right? It's starting in Italy in 2 weeks

Yes it's good! It's not (atleast yet) my favorite in recent years, but really like it so far. Great perfomances and really nice variety of interesting and layered characters. Expecting to get even more hooked as the season progresses. To me the 3rd episode that was directed by Franco was the weakest so far, I do appreciate his acting in the double role though.

 

[Finalow]

So this show is good for now right? It's starting in Italy in 2 weeks

yes, watch it.

Of course they talked about it. What i mean is it seems the show teases it but it takes a while. Last episode didn't mention it at all. And that's how Simons does things. Like in the Wire where the actual wire was so difficult to happen you know. Or Treme where people couldn't really move on or grow their business.

I'd call that the "natural flow" of things.

one of the strongest points of Simons' shows is how real they feel, mostly thanks to top-notch writing and direction. if they were to move faster and put forced development or drama every 2 episodes they wouldn't be as good, especially those 2 you mentioned.
that's also the reason why when the drama hits, it's probably gonna hit you harder than any other show you've seen. I've just finished watching the first season of Treme and that was the case

 

[RatskyWatsky]

New episode tonight:

What Kind of Bad?

Spoiler

Abby is disappointed when Dominique returns from a trip home with a new girl; Bobby tries to change Vincent's mind about Rudy's offer; Candy mulls a career change after she's roughed up by a john; Chris explores the exhilaration of gay life in the city; Sandra scores a key interview with a pimp with some help from Alston.

 

[ComputerBlue]

Another great ep. I really want to see Maggie/Candy get out of the game. My heart breaks for her.

Also, good to see more of Method Man.

 

[TVexperto]

Im hesitant to start watching it, can somebody compare it to antoher show maybe?

 

[berzeli]

Im hesitant to start watching it, can somebody compare it to antoher show maybe?

I mean it's the most obvious one so; it's The Wire but with porn instead of drugs.

 

[ComputerBlue]

I mean it's the most obvious one so; it's The Wire but with porn instead of drugs.

Well, prostitution. For now at least.

 

[Hazmat]

Another great ep. I really want to see Maggie/Candy get out of the game. My heart breaks for her.

Also, good to see more of Method Man.

The scene between Candy and Method Man was heartbreaking.

All of Candy's stuff was rough this week. Putting on makeup to cover up a beating she took as she listens to an answering machine message from a normal romantic interest about a cocktail party she could never go to.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

- Sepinwall's review
- Onion A|V Club review
- Rolling Stone review
- Promo for next week’s episode (please spoiler tag any discussion)

 

[stenbumling]

I wasn't completely feeling this at first, but this episode truly felt like The Successor to The Wire I've been pining for. Every character, major or minor – hell, they don't even need any lines – feels like a real person, interesting in its own subtle way. Like some other poster here said, it doesn't really matter what happens in the show because you're really watching it to hang out with these characters, even if they're just shooting the shit. It's impossible to play favorites, because I am in love with pretty much all of them, but I'll just say that Maggie Gyllenhall is crushing it. What a fantastic actress.

 

[Curious Puppy]

Method Man was laying it down tonight.

And the pimp in the barbershop who gave the interview to the reporter girl is hilarious.

Great performance from Gyllenhaal as usual.

 

[Net_Wrecker]

I love this show. Every character is working for me. Great performances across the board, very natural and realistic atmosphere. The way the bar and restaurant act as hubs for everyone to come back to every night/morning after dealing with the grime is a wonderful set up.

 

[HotHamBoy]

I love this show. Every character is working for me. Great performances across the board, very natural and realistic atmosphere. The way the bar and restaurant act as hubs for everyone to come back to every night/morning after dealing with the grime is a wonderful set up.

Same here. I actually felt a pang of sadness last night when I realized there was only 3 episode left. 8 episodes just doesn't feel like enough.

That said, apparently this has been plotted out across a tight 3 seasons and this all sounds fantastic after what we've seen so far:

The creators have shared a plan to cover more than a decade over the course of three seasons. Season 2 will likely skip ahead to the later part of the ’70s, Pelecanos told HuffPost, when the characters introduced in Season 1 are living it up.

“As of now, it’ll be the late ’70s will be the next season, when all the craziness went to the mountaintop. It was an ascent to decadence.”

But if the show is renewed for Season 3, that will all change.

“You’ve got to go down the mountain once you go up,” Pelecanos continued. “That would be the ’80s, when AIDS came to New York and video tape replaced film and the porn industry moved out to the San Fernando Valley. And it’s a money story, so a lot of people swooped into Times Square and bought up all these properties when they hit bottom, and that’s when they started kicking those folks out, and started building the idea of Times Square that we know today.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-deuce-renewed-season-2-hbo_us_59c15e8fe4b0f22c4a8d22fc

Im hesitant to start watching it, can somebody compare it to antoher show maybe?

Watch it with your mom. It's a good show to bond over.

This year has been an exceptional year for serial programming. Outstanding.

 

[Grizzlyjin]

This show is just hitting all the right notes for me. I know there have been some complaints about the story not moving fast enough, but it's pretty much perfect the way I see it. The characters are building at a great rate, keeps them from feeling like worn out tropes.

 

[ilikesanta]

I'm a episode behind, but I'm loving the show. I just wish they didn't sell the show as it being about the porn industry, because it's killing me just waiting for Candy to start making/producing movies already.

 

[LordAmused]

I'm a episode behind, but I'm loving the show. I just wish they didn't sell the show as it being about the porn industry, because it's killing me just waiting for Candy to start making/producing movies already.

Yeah well they did advertise it as the rise of the pornographic industry. Pretty sure David Simon got it in box for ep.6 or 7.

 

[curi0usBystander]

I really liked the episode. And the scene between Rodney and Candy/Eileen was incredible.

 

[Dmax3901]

That scene where the older prostitute (who gets jealous of the younger new girl) walks into the bar to see the pimp with the short hair and aforementioned young girl who's crying... The epitome of showing not telling.

Have the scene open with her walking in confidently, then walk in on a conversation that's been going on for a while and suddenly the cocky young woman is no longer on top. Such a clever way of 'dropping in' on a couple of characters that the episode wasn't focussing on.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

- Washington Post review

 

[Kvik]

I finally catched up.

The revelation of Candy's violent assault was actually a reoccurrence was not only haunting, but masterful. Excellent acting by both Method Man and Gyllenhaal. And just for a second, I thought that Rodney actually has staged these robberies for the sole purpose of having Candy to relent and accept Rodney as her pimp.

 

[ComputerBlue]

And just for a second, I thought that Rodney actually has staged these robberies for the sole purpose of having Candy to relent and accept Rodney as her pimp.

Might have, never though of this but it's a fair point. We've seen him try to recruit her a couple times.

 

[g11]

Really fantastic so far, not that I'd expect anything less from Simon & Pelecanos. Not that I'm an expert on the 70s at all, but whoever is doing the set dressing seems to have nailed it based on what I know of NYC in the 70s from movies (Dog Day Afternoon, French Connection, Taxi Driver, etc). It definitely feels more like Treme to me than it does The Wire. Even though both shows had excellent characters, The Wire always felt like it had something driving the plot whereas Treme felt like it was reveling in the lives of the people in this particular place and time. The Deuce definitely feels more like that to me thus far which is not a bad thing. Still an episode behind but loving every minute of it so far. Good to see some alumni from The Wire in the mix like D (although seeing him as a cop was a trip), Slim Charles, and Method Man. I also recognized the gay bartender as the journalist from Treme. I don't know the actor's name but he's pretty versatile. He also played a very convincing white supremacist on Banshee.

 

[DontBeThatGuy]

The scene between Method Man and Gyllenhaal during this last episode was seriously excellent.

Great show.

 

[Dmax3901]

Stuff like the junkie becoming the bouncer (who turns out to be super loyal even to his gay colleague), and the brother-in-law becoming a brothel owner is such great writing and so satisfying in a way that can only remind me of The Wire. But the Treme comparisons are also sound. Treme would definitely take it's time to just soak in the music and vibes though, The Deuce has definitely got a story to tell.

 

[Addi]

Candie and the pimp on the street has to be the best scene so far, really well written and acted.

The only thing I'm still not sure about in this series is if Franco's twin was necessary. He plays well as both, but why not just use an other actor as his brother, not a twin? It's a bit distracting. I'm guessing it will have something to do with Vince using Frankie as a double in porn or something.

 

[berzeli]

The only thing I'm still not sure about in this series is if Franco's twin was necessary. He plays well as both, but why not just use an other actor as his brother, not a twin? It's a bit distracting. I'm guessing it will have something to do with Vince using Frankie as a double in porn or something.

I'm hoping we get a twist in the final episode that there only is one of them and he has wrecked his head on LSD splitting his personality in two. The drug usage coming after getting dumped by his wife and getting fired from his job at the Korean restaurant (which his psyche obv. gives a more positive spin)

 

[Addi]

I'm hoping we get a twist in the final episode that there only is one of them and he has wrecked his head on LSD splitting his personality in two. The drug usage coming after getting dumped by his wife and getting fired from his job at the Korean restaurant (which his psyche obv. gives a more positive spin)

That's what I hope doesn't happen I'm tired of that type of twists. It's plausible though, we don't see much of Frankie by himself.

 

[berzeli]

That's what I hope doesn't happen I'm tired of that type of twists. It's plausible though, we don't see much of Frankie by himself.

It's David Simon, it's pretty damn unlikely he'll go for such a cheap trick.



Also, I just realised that my previous post isn't obviously a joke so I'm just pointing it out now in case anyone didn't pick up on it.

 

[jph139]

I feel like "cast a big actor as a pair of twins" is some sort of new trend - Zach Galifianakis in Baskets, Ewan McGregor in Fargo, and now this. It always feels kinda gimmicky for me to start with, but all of those performances are good enough that I sort of forget about it after a while.

 

[Blackhead]

The Deuce Director On Filming That Masturbation Scene [and pimp proposition scene]

 

[Addi]

It's David Simon, it's pretty damn unlikely he'll go for such a cheap trick.

Also, I just realised that my previous post isn't obviously a joke so I'm just pointing it out now in case anyone didn't pick up on it.

Haha, yeah, I wasn't completely sure, so I chose a diplomatic approach

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Aren't Franco's characters based on real twins?