MovieChat Forums > Big Love (2006) Discussion > One of those shows I just love to hate

One of those shows I just love to hate

posted 10 years ago by Hillius
2 replies | jump to latest

Empathizing with many other posters frustration with this show and having read the whole board I just had to add my two cents. Originally I watched this show disc by disc via netflix and am now rewatching it online for a second time. I don't feel the need to rehash what many others have said on here, but have a few points to add. Yes, Nikki is a horrible person who I just love to hate due to her vindictive and conniving nature. Yes, Barb tries to do the right thing, but often butts her head against a wall. Yes, I do see a lot more love for Margene on here than most anyone else other than Ana and yes she is quite often marginalized and not taken seriously by the rest of the family. To all this I also say that Margene is also young and very naive, and rather stupid for having gone sneaking off with Pam (could a woman actually be that invasive?) and Carl in SI. She behaves very inappropriately with Ben as well and IMO is quite a lazy person when it comes to being a mother- doesn't clean the walls after the lipstick episode, vegs in front the TV as her children are screaming from the play pen, etc. Nikki takes the cake though in terms of being a horrible mother. When she and Marge are food shopping her little trolls destroy the aisle and she doesn't say or do anything to discipline them. She often dumps her kids on one of the other wives and that birthday party for poor Wayne was the most pathetic display I've ever seen and I've seen some lousy parties. Obviously she never disciplines her children so that they behave like little monsters which is just infuriating to watch. If I wanted that I'd watch the other show I love to hate: Nanny 911 which also makes me mad enough to yell at the TV screen. On Ben I don't know WTF that whole "WOOD" thing was about but it seemed pretty homoerotic to me and made me wonder if the writers were trying to paint him as a repressed gay person, especially after that sleep over in SI and that whole car incident. WTF? I found Tina Majorino's character to be quite annoying. What teen guest would talk like that to your host parents? Unlikely. Her wholesomeness was rather sickening to watch and being that candid with people is no way to make friends. I do agree with many many on here that Bill is an absolute pig of a man. Don's not much better. That any women are stupid and brainwashed enough to go along with polygamy makes me just shake my head in disgust. For being religious the family does seem to treat God and prayer as kind of a miracle pez dispenser. (Teeny-please god help me find my coat/hunting:please god make the rifle shoot straight) Just..yikes. Finally that compound reminds me of a third world country. Who in their right mind would want to live in that filth? My only favorite character in all this is Lois. She's tough as nails and funny as hell IMO. If you're anything like me you can only watch shows like these when everything else in life is going OK because I don't think I could handle the added stress of this show if I had too much going on without spontaneously combusting ha ha. Like I said, it's one of those shows I just love to hate!

[–] chas437 10 years ago

Big Love is a show I just love to love. I think the writing and character development are brilliant. Every character in the show has their rough edges, whether we sympathize/empathize with them or loathe them.

Most of you gripe is about how unlikable some of the characters are. I believe this is quite intentional. The central theme of the show is how polygamy causes people to compromise their principals, and live in hypocrisy. Many of the compound characters, as well as Nicki are permanently damaged goods. When we find out that Nicki was married off to a man she hated at age 15 by her own father, then raped, don't we come to understand why she acts the way she does?

I'm a civilian, I'm not a trout

[–] Hillius 10 years ago

No, I do agree that the acting is intentional and that any actor or actress can evoke such strong emotions (even extreme dislike) is proof that they are pretty darn good. That doesn't mean its any less frustrating to watch though. I also agree that the history of some of the characters, especially Nikki do play into the reasons they behave the way they do. Nikki does have some redeeming features. She is quite handy, can repair things and ran off her brother Alby which was pretty brave. Still most of the time she does make me want to pull my hair out ha ha. I do think it was sad that Bill runs a hardware store with his much touted home and garden section, but it falls to Margene to put in the lawn.