MovieChat Forums > Mercy Street (2016) Discussion > So was the pilot any good? Supposed to b...

So was the pilot any good? Supposed to be the "new" Downton Abbey...

posted 9 years ago by A_l_a_c_h_u_a_1
22 replies | jump to latest

I read online the other day that Mercy Street is supposed to be the show that replaces Downton once the series ends. I recorded it, but haven't watched it yet. Frankly, it doesn't look that interesting. I don't mind the civil war era, but I'm not too interested in a show revolving around nurses during the war. I even disliked the storyline on Downton Abbey when they had opened Downton up to the wounded soldiers - I just find storylines like that so boring. And the whole "one is from the north, and one is from the south" is nothing new - nothing beats the miniseries from the 80s North and South for that type of storyline. That was a great series set in civil war times.

And that guy from How I Met Your Mother doesn't make me crazy about this either.

Curious what others thought of Mercy Street. Are the critics right that if you like DA, you'll like this show, or are they reaching? Too bad they can't just make a spinoff of DA.

[–] neptunenimph 9 years ago

I enjoyed it. I don't know if it can really be compared to DA, especially with only the pilot having aired, and they portray two entirely different situations, but the production value seems pretty good. It's definitely worth a watch.

[–] adamroger86 9 years ago

Im watching it as a fan of Mary Elizabeth Winsteads. I kind of had high hopes for this show. First episode was okay. There's no real character development. There's a lot of characters so we got to give it time i guess. It might have to do with the writing and acting too though. A lot of the dialogue is really bad and the delivery from the actors doesn't help at all. For me, tara summers and McKinley belcher III gave the best performances. Everyone else was okay. Josh radnor was probably the weakest though. Even in a civil war drama like this he manages to be the same as everything else ive seen him in. The acting by a lot of extras with lines were embarrassingly bad. I liked the conflict between everyones feelings and povs on the war and slavery and the politics, even how some characters like mary phinney seem to contradict themselves. At the same time i dont know how believable all of the moral conversations going on all the time are. I liked the costumes and and the set for the hospital looked great. I will keep watching. I doubt the show will reach the acclaim downtown abby has gotten. Im not sure who the audience for this show would be though. Maybe my grandma. Cant judge a show solely on the pilot though.

[–] A_l_a_c_h_u_a_1 9 years ago

appreciate the summary! I'm going to give it a shot this week when I have a chance, and give it a few episodes to see if it's something I want to invest my time in...

[–] TroopinFairy 9 years ago

It was an ok pilot. There really wasn't anything new to this show. It's a plot that's been done many times before in various settings. There was no real character development because most of the characters were being shoved into a 50 min timeframe. I found myself asking "Now who is this again?" many times. It is bloody and there was a disclaimer about content before the show started but, it's in a hospital during a war so I found that it's justified. (I don't like shows that have blood and gore just to have it.) I will keep watching it because I like these period piece shows.

[–] verucasalt23-1 9 years ago

It was only the first episode. I assume there will be character development as it goes along. TV series are different from movies that way.

"Arguing with trolls is like playing chess with a pigeon . . . ."

[–] peggygeordie 9 years ago

All I can say is that I decided halfway through that there was nothing here to keep me watching the episode or the series - and both my sister and my boyfriend told me the next day that they turned it off. Too many characters with ill-defined personalities, chaos with no drama, no real focus, and quite unbelievable dialogue. The Southern belle was ridiculously well-maintained for this far into the war.

Downton knew enough to open with a big event - news from the Titanic! - and introduce characters moving about their setting naturally just as they are about to be thrown into turmoil. "Gone With the Wind" started with the barbecue before news of the war breaks apart that world. Here we were just dropped in to an ongoing situation with severed limbs and nothing to connect with.

[–] Mayesgwtw39 9 years ago

I have to agree with you, peggygeordie--I am really wanting to like it. But found myself wondering about little things--like what seemed anachronisms-- instead.

There was a moment when one of the soldiers cries out "Yes!" when seeing something agreeable going on outside the window. It was like he was at a football game and his team had scored. I think "yes" was probably just an affirmative in 1862.

I realize that there needs to be a connection to the language of more than a century ago, but that seemed really out of place.

Also, it was annoying that the Dr. kept calling the Southern girl "hoopskirt." I get that he was pointing out her character's affectation, but that was a common sight in everyday wear at that time that seems unlikely to pick on.

I think the actors are good, but it remains to be seen if their characters will build into something as compelling a Lady Mary or a Thomas.

[–] bishop-69757 9 years ago

I liked it. I wish it would have been longer pilot but still interesting

downton and selfride started slow and took a a few episodes to really get going.

[–] itisnotme 9 years ago

Unless there is a complete overhaul in dialogue and, well, practically everything, it will never be a Downton Abbey! And it certainly will not be the excellent miniseries, North and South, that you mentioned. As soon as I saw the 2 southern sisters, one with blonde hair, and one with dark hair, I thought "uh oh" and "oh no". Sadly, it looks as if it is going to be a show that is full of stereotypes and Hollywood's ideas of the War Between the States. Did I really see only southern ladies in hoop skirts??? I also agree with mayesgwtw39, that there were many anachronisms that will jump out at you, if you know anything about the time period. The overall cinematography was excellent, I thought. The ending with the bugler playing and patients and others standing around the young dead soldier...as if he was the only young patient who had died that day, made me actually laugh out loud!
I love this era in history, and was hoping so much that this would be excellent, but sadly, I kept wanting it to be over. I will give it a few more episodes. Perhaps it will get better and/or grow on me! I really hope it will. If not, it is about time for me to rewatch my DVDs of North and South. 😉

[–] peggygeordie 9 years ago

As for the hoop skirts, by this far into the war cloth was in short supply in the South and any surplus cotton would have been going for bandages. Even Scarlett O'Hara would have known better than to wear a lawn dress to a hospital. And HER hoop skirt was made from curtains!

[–] jbredin-97852 9 years ago

Regarding the spoilered part the kid was (a) probably younger than everyone else in the unit, (b) the flagbearer, and (c) the officer's son, so he was like the unit mascot and not the average private. Their reaction was touching and perfectly normal, not hilarious. 

[–] steelblue55 9 years ago

And the kid's speech wasn't hilarious? Does anyone believe someone that is 16 would write a letter anything like that? "I'm a self-aware drama queen who signed up to fight....".... sorry, but a lot of the dialogue was so unrealistic or modernized way beyond what anyone then would say or even think about, that the whole show kept becoming hilarious....

I think they are going to regret ever letting those Downton quotes get out, it may draw for the first show but it won't keep people around when they see how bad it is..... imo anyway.

[–] tally1-934-484232 9 years ago

I do love the era which is why I can't forget the staircase in the family's house, which we see the oh so stereotypical southern belle walking down to breakfast in the pilot episode. The reason why I can't forget it is because the design and placement of that staircase did not exist in the 1860s and is about 30 years too young for the time.

Nitpicking, nitpicking, nitpicking, of course! But it's always hard for someone with a keen insight into a certain period not to nitpick over the little flaws and anomalies.

[–] verucasalt23-1 9 years ago

I liked it. I didn't like that plot thread on Downton because it seemed contrived. Like, what can we have them do? Hmm, let's have them start a hospital for wounded soldiers.

However, PBS has just announced that the replacement for Downton (meaning in its slot) is a series about the young Queen Victoria, not this.

"Arguing with trolls is like playing chess with a pigeon . . . ."

[–] auntmo1 9 years ago

Actually that wasn't contrived. Highclere was used as a hospital during WWI.

[–] verucasalt23-1 9 years ago

Not that, the part about the family members all becoming nurses.

"Arguing with trolls is like playing chess with a pigeon . . . ."

[–] maryrosenkranz 9 years ago

The comparison with Downton Abbey had nothing to do with the premise of the show. It means whether it will endure like Downton Abbey did & gain popularity. I would not compare it to North & South. This touches more on a hospital & those who work in there. I liked it. But it's only 6 episodes so far, so I am not sure how in depth it will get by the end. And I wouldn't judge Josh Radnor by HIMYM. Completely different character. I think you have to watch it to see.