As The Beach Boys “God Only Knows” fills the airwaves and the cast members wistfully whirl around, one can only wonder about what kind of show this will be. After watching the new HBO series’ pilot, however, it is clear that the writers have succeeded in performing the same task it has for the likes of gangsters and morticians by turning this
'Big Love' follows the story of Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton), and his beautiful family comprising of three wives and his bountiful children. The Henrickson’s have various problems too vast to describe here, involving money, Bill’s poisoned father, and the creepy Roman Grant (Harry Dean Stanton). One of the problems that some people are having with this series is the believability. However, having only witnessed the pilot now, it is at least an entertaining premise.
The cast of HBO is stuffed full of delicacies. It's a wonder how the openness and creativity of HBO's series bring out some of the best actors and actresses, who before their respective wprk with the network, most likely refused to do television. Headed up by Bill Paxton, who should need no introduction, and Jeanne Tripplehorn, the entire cast does at least an acceptable job in their roles, and most excel. Bill Paxton is given a role that he can shine in despite his recent lackluster work elsewhere. The wives (Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny, Ginnifer Goodwin) are able to show their attributes by displaying nuance in their various characters' roles. The 7 children and their friends (including two actresses from UPN’s Veronica Mars) round out the cast and supply the viewer with an alternate perspective to their predicament.
Having missed such lauded shows as 'Six Feet Under', I am left in the dark as to what direction this show will take. However, it is clear that the series will reveal further information regarding the past and one can be quite certain that these characters' quirks will create interesting storylines. Despite the show’s strange backdrop, the writers are able to focus more on the peculiarly ordinary lives of the characters and that is what will make 'Big Love' work. This is a cast capable of high-quality work; now it's up to the show's writers to provide us with great storytelling.
