Big Love (HBO)

[William769]

Think having three wives is a dream come true? Meet Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton), a modern-day Utah polygamist who lives in suburban Salt Lake City with his three wives, seven children, and a mounting avalanche of debt and demands. The owner of a growing chain of home improvement stores, Bill struggles to balance the financial and emotional needs of Barb, Nicki and Margene (Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloë Sevigny and Ginnifer Goodwin), who live in separate, adjacent houses and take turns sharing their husband each night. While managing the household finances together and routinely sharing "family home nights," they try to keep simmering jealousies in check and their arrangement a secret — polygamy is illegal in Utah and banned by the mainstream Mormon Church. Adding to Bill's woes are a series of crises affecting his parents (Bruce Dern and Grace Zabriskie), who live on a fundamentalist compound in rural Utah, and his ruthless father-in-law, Roman (Harry Dean Stanton), the powerful head of the polygamist commune where his parents live. Bold, funny and wholly original, Big Love explores the evolving institution of marriage through a typical atypical family.



http://www.hbo.com/biglove/

Personnaly, I love this show! But where is the outcry from the Christian right?

[CrazyOrangeCat]

1. Maybe it's the barometric pressure today . . .

. . . but I'm not feeling even a little sane.

So, this Mormon dude really has three babelicious Stepford wives. And gets away with it.

And they sit around the table and smile and eat bundt cake. And deal with jealousies. And in-laws.

And they have three houses. And four-ways, most likely.

Isn't income tax time a little perplexing?

What planet am I on?

on edit: okay, it's fiction. duh.

[MsTryska]

2. Nope - no 4-ways....too much jealousy.

I've been watching this show actually. and it's pretty subversive.

the dark-haired older one (the first wife) - she's a closet liberal. everyone else is a bushbot.

the Fundie Mormons are some dirty-dealing bastards - lots of subversion of fundie Mormon beliefs there.

[CrazyOrangeCat]

5. thanks for clearing that up!

I don't watch TV much anymore . . . thought is was some weird reality thang . . .

I dated a RLDS girl when I was young. Freakin' twilite zone, lemme tell ya.

:D

[elfin]

6. I am hooked on it

Really just a soap with an interesting cultural twist. The acting is superb and the topic is strange enough to hold my interest in all things weird.

So many plot twists available with the "extended" family that the writers should have fun for quite a while.

[Shipwack]

3. Well, I don't watch the show, but in real life...

(from what I've read; IANALDS)

No four ways. That's just plain wrong (as is one wife, three husbands)

The other wives of the family typically collect welfare/food stamps.

Since only one marriage is declared, tax time is not particularly complicated.

I've heard that in the show, there isn't much smiling or even necessarily good will between the wives (which makes for better drama, in any event). How this works in real polygamous communities, I know not, though I gather they are strongly patriarchal, and (open)dissension/squabbles are not tolerated.

[dr.strangelove]

4. Its a pretty good show

It hits all the problems (well not the group sex) that you mentioned. There is the inherent jealosy, the "cheeting" with one wife on another wife's "night" and the power grabbing between the wives. I'm not really sure any of these actresses fit the stepford role. While Ginnifer Goodwin is a relative newcomer, Jeanne Tripplehorn's and Chloë Sevigny's resumes are fairly well respected, especially indie darling Sevigny. All are attractive in their own right, but hardly the traditional blond big chested Hollywood actress type of attractive.

Bill Paxton plays the part remarkably well, showing respect for all three, but disrespecting them with the nature of the relationships all the time.

The marriages and their sanity are all doomed for failure, but they nonetheless seem to want to fight to keep the disfunction alive.

[gatorboy]

7. I find it interesting that Chloë's character Nikki

is the only wife that is originally from this religeous community. The other two were essentialy talked into this way of life. Which is what's so confusing about Tripplehorn's character. She's obviously the most level headed of the group. So how did Paxton talk her into this polygamy thing?

As an added bonus, Paxton's mother and father in the show are hilarious!

[HerbieHeadhunter]

9. It seems like there are little clues to your question with....

every episode, such as when you learn of Barb's cancer, the financial problems, the loan from Roman, the questions from her children, etc... It is one of the clever threds in the episodes so far - that is, how each came to be married to Bill.

[helderheid]

11. I think she was talked in because she thought she was dying

but she recovered.

[HerbieHeadhunter]

8. It is very good show....

I'm hooked as hell even though like most people, when I first saw it was coming out I thought there would be no way I would watch. The show runs about a dozen complex and compelling story lines through this family whose relationship you strangely want to work out.....and Harry Dean Stanton is incredible as the villian. I think it is one of the best shows on TV now.

[Atman]

10. "Group" doesn't enter into it.

That is the male fantasy aspect! LOL! Jean Triplehorn is the first and legal wife, for tax purposes. And apparently, the one Bill really considers his soul mate. She is the "Mom." She keeps the schedules and runs the house(s). The youngest one, Margene (sp) is new to all this, but is getting swayed toward more "traditional" religion, the LDS (Church of Latter Day Saints, the Mormons). Nikki (Cloe Sevigny) is a product of the real hard core polygamist life. Her Daddy is a mormon "Prophet." She's got all the hang ups and jealousies, ironically enough.

They NEVER do group. They have assigned nights with Bill, and if there is a scheduling conflict, they trade nights. Like scheduling your shift at work, literally. Nothing titillating about it...except for that Bill is really digging his first wife, and is "cheating" on the other two wives by sneaking off to hotels to have sex on the other wives' nights. And while they're all hot to look at in the still pics, they all have their serious personality issues (except for Triplehorn, imho) which make it tougher for Bill.

Add to this mix way too many kids, and different child-rearing styles by the different moms. And each one has their own house, so as not to raise suspicion among the neighbors (it doesn't work), but all the houses have connected back yards so they can come and go among the three. Bill has shitloads of bills trying to support the three wives and three houses. The writers make no pretense that this is any sort of fantasy lifestyle. It looks like HELL.

It is a great show. Lots of plot twists, backbiting, intrigue...tons of cool story angles. Don't get hung up on the three wives angle and it is just damned good teevee!

[bj2110]

12. This is an absolutely phenomenal show... The fundie Mormons are

actually the bad guys, and Bill Paxton's extended family (deep in the fundie Mormon camp) are pretty fucking nuts. So far, in my view, it seems that everyone involved with the strict religious society is totally fucked in the head, yet somehow Bill Paxton managed to escape. (albeit with a polygamist lifestyle) Really reinforces that life's responsibilities are hard enough being married to one person. It's a fucking joke when there are three wives involved. And that religious fundamentalism is horribly bad, no matter what form it takes. The polygamy angle is usually pretty minor compared to the strict fundamentalism.

[Brazenly Liberal]

13. the show's a lot better than I had thought it would be.

I've seen it several times and it's really well done. HBO hits it again!

I haven't heard any outcry from the Rel.Rt, either, which is pretty weird now that you mention it.