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...


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.

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Based on the pilot the critics are wrong. I'm gonna watch one more episode but if it doesn't improve I'm gonna ditch it.

I watch The Knick and one of the MS doctor' s storyline is too similar to The Knick's so I have that bias and I'm having a real issue with story editing. One of the posters mentioned the soldier screaming yes has no background context so that could have been edited out and one of the gal's luggage issue keeps getting beaten to death. It's just all over the place and not focused enough for my taste.

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I'll probably watch another two or three episodes before deciding whether to stick around. The first episode was nothing special. It felt claustrophobic, with (IIRC) only one long shot--a fairly decent street scene. Also, the dialogue was painfully unsubtle. They beat the viewer over the head with the character conflicts.



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"Walt is a racist, moronic, troll. Ignore his stupid ass." -- I_Destroy_Stalkers

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I'll give it a few more episodes, too. It wasn't bad, but some parts were uninteresting.

If you're not taking any steps forward, you're not moving at all.

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After the second episode, I think it's more of a public broadcasting version of a Civil War M*A*S*H. We kind of have a Hawkeye (Foster), Hot Lips (don't know her name; the senior nurse) and Frank Burns (Dr. Hale), the old doctor is Col. Potter. Haven't come up with a Radar or Trapper John, but maybe they're to come.

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I was thinking exactly the same thing during episode 2.




*****
"Walt is a racist, moronic, troll. Ignore his stupid ass." -- I_Destroy_Stalkers

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