# Alcatraz starts tonight. Anybody watching? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 16, 2012, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743 "2012-01-16T23:59:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/1 "2012-01-16T23:59:41Z")
I plan to. Not sure what to expect but it does have some positive factors working for it. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/2 "2012-01-17T00:05:39Z")
I definitely plan to. In the little I’ve seen on it, it looks interesting enough to give it a go. This is another JJ Abraham’s, right? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/3 "2012-01-17T00:47:12Z")
Sam Neill and Hurley? I’m there. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/4 "2012-01-17T01:19:23Z")
First impression: It kinda reminds me of the short-lived _Brimstone_ - I gather the premise is these prisoners who vanished from Alcatraz back when it was a functioning prison will reappear one by one, or perhaps in pairs, go on rampages to be stopped by the determined loner cop? It’s similar to _Brimstone_, though those “escapees” had busted out of Hell. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/5 "2012-01-17T01:22:27Z")
I do plan to watch, but not tonight. DVR’ing it instead. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/6 "2012-01-17T01:29:16Z")
Brimstone was awesome. But why are we spoilering? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/7 "2012-01-17T01:38:03Z")
Well, I assume the show hasn’t started airing yet in the Mountain and Pacific timezones. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/8 "2012-01-17T01:44:48Z")
I’ll watch it tomorrow, and I’m excited. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/9 "2012-01-17T02:25:46Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I’ll watch it tomorrow, and I’m excited. I’m an hour and a half into it and you have good reason to be excited. ---
**Author:** ![Shadez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Shadez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shadez)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/10 "2012-01-17T03:05:57Z")
I liked it. I was expecting a bit more supernatural stuff in the first two episodes, but only hints of oddness. Interesting that present day Jack had a ticket in his pocket to get off The Rock. Oh, and the Hurley (Jorge Garcia) goodness is also a plus. He acts similarly. I’ll definitely tune in next week. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/11 "2012-01-17T03:52:08Z")
Great cast (including Sam Neill, Bob Forster, Jorge Garcia), an intriguing plot and superior production values. I’m hooked and I’ll definitely be tuning in again next week. This one shows real promise. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/12 "2012-01-17T04:04:42Z")
I am SO glad it had a great start. I haven’t seen it yet but I’m looking forward to it because Jorge Garcia is my pretend boyfriend and his RL girlfriend is my pretend wife. Just don’t tell anybody. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/13 "2012-01-17T04:20:14Z")
A “breakdown” Winchester Model 70 in “sniper” configuration? :dubious: An “obsolete” Winchester Model 70? :rolleyes: Did NOT do research. :smack: Still, an interesting premise for what might be an interesting show. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/14 "2012-01-17T04:28:24Z")
I don’t get why a gun salesman who’s gotten in trouble with the law before would volunteer information that would instantly get him in trouble again, right after the detective tells him that whoever sold the rifle would get in trouble. “I ain’t sayin’ nuthin’!” “Whoever helped is in trouble.” “Okay, I helped.” ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/15 "2012-01-17T04:29:01Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > A “breakdown” Winchester Model 70 in “sniper” configuration? :dubious: It’s done, bro. Maybe not breakdown, as that would throw the fuck off your aim. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/16 "2012-01-17T06:16:16Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > It’s done, bro. Maybe not breakdown, as that would throw the fuck off your aim. Well, yeah, I know the 70’s accurate enough (with a bit of fine tuning by master smiths) to be used as a sniper rifle. Hell, it’s accurate enough as-is, out-of-box, to be used reliably by military and LE sharpshooters. It’s the whole “breakdown” _and_ “sniper rifle” in combination. And while the pre-'64 might be considered a collector’s item amongst some, and there are certain limited editions of the 70 that are no longer commercially available, the show made out that the 70 was some sort of classic, hard-to-find collector’s piece. That’s a little hard to swallow in a rifle that’s been in production since the mid-30s. It’s like saying there’s a bad guy travelling around killing people with a Ford F-150, and the cops making out like the -150 is some kind of rare, hard-to-find model of vehicle. Eh. It’s probably no more than esoteric gun-nuttery nit picking. ---
**Author:** ![brocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@brocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brocks)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/17 "2012-01-17T06:56:31Z")
I don’t know; looks kind of stupid to me. [spoiler] Why have the guys from 1963 wake up in a cell in Alcatraz? They only explicitly showed Sylvane, but it can’t be a coincidence that he appears in that particular spot, and Cobb was also in SF, even though the map showed that he had victims all over the country, and SF wasn’t one of them, so he must have materialized there, too. If they came back at random locations, you’d have a show. But if they come back in cells in Alcatraz, duh, close it to tourists, lock all the cells, and check them each morning to see who showed up. Problem solved.[/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/18 "2012-01-17T07:31:28Z")
Well, now that it’s finished airing, I can say openly… it _is_ an updated _Brimstone_, with some _Men in Black_ elements thrown in. That’s not a _bad_ thing, certainly - I rather liked _Brimstone_. I’ll give this one a fair shot. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/19 "2012-01-17T08:22:13Z")
It also has the lead chick who was on Sons of Anarchy for a season as Zoebel’s daughter. I liked her then and I’ll watch her in this. Good opening episodes. Wonder if she’ll ever hook up with Jorge? ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2012, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743/20 "2012-01-17T14:17:02Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > Eh. It’s probably no more than esoteric gun-nuttery nit picking. Yup… you have to remember that to 99% of the people watching this would never ping their radar. If this is the part you have trouble suspending disbelief for… well I’m not sure what to say. (and yes I thought the same thing about the accuracy of a break down gun… I’m just easier to forgive for a TV show) Still, a show I’m sure I’ll continue to watch. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alcatraz-starts-tonight-anybody-watching/609743.md?page=2)