# The Bridge on FX (Wednesdays at 10 pm Eastern) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 11, 2013, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188 "2013-07-11T00:38:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/21 "2013-07-13T00:00:40Z")
I quite liked it, especially the ambience that **deltasigma** praises. The long shots are gorgeous and the close-in gritty bits are, um, gritty. The scene in the car was quite tense. I was ready to close my eyes or hit the Pause button that whole time. I like Ruiz, and I started to like Cross when she was so calming to the guy in the car. I agree that she shouldn’t have been sent to the judge’s house to deliver the bad news. It looks like she’s not only driving her dead sister’s car but also wearing her jacket. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/22 "2013-07-13T14:16:42Z")
Merged duplicate threads. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/23 "2013-07-13T17:44:10Z")
> [@What\_the](#): > > I didn’t mention this earlier but it seems that the disbelief suspension started in the first minute of the show. Is there a bridge where there wouldn’t have been a human component right on the border line under those circumstances?? I would venture to guess most bridges don’t have a human at the exact millimeter border line in the middle of a bridge. There was a bridge between East and West Berlin ages ago, and the official border was in the middle of the bridge, but you simply showed your passport on both entries to the bridge, and then just saunter across. The only exception was transfer of spies…they would walk out and meet in the middle of the bridge to do this, maybe to make sure the spy didn’t jump off the bridge on the way to the other side? Otherwise, why would you build a checkpoint, ON a bridge? Costly and not particularly smart - especially if you have tons of cars/trucks driving across it. Would probably be a strain on the construction and just a bad idea all around. So far, the show is OK - we’ll see how the next episode or two go before I keep it on the DVR. ---
**Author:** ![BrokenBriton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@BrokenBriton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrokenBriton)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/24 "2013-07-13T18:22:28Z")
It’s the border for the purpose of legal matters. In the original the bridge was a jointly funded project but, in any event, it’s a very simple and transparent plot device. There are more substantive ideas and themes. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/25 "2013-07-13T19:47:27Z")
I’m just glad that the captain from Monk got enough experience to be such a comforting mentor when he joined the El Paso PD. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/26 "2013-07-13T19:53:38Z")
> [@obfusciatrist](#): > > I’m just glad that the captain from Monk got enough experience to be such a comforting mentor when he joined the El Paso PD. Oh shit. That’s where I recognize him from. I don’t remember him looking quite that haggard and decrepit. Since Monk ran until 2009, that musta been 4 years of some really hard living. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Ed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Just\_Ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Ed)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/27 "2013-07-13T22:04:45Z")
Been a long time since [Jame Gumb](http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0001411/), too. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2013, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/28 "2013-07-15T15:33:11Z")
> [@DMark](#): > > I missed the first episode - but I am sure I can find a repeat this week to catch up. > > BTW, the Hollywood Reporter has an interesting review that mentions something they kind of forgot to mention in the first three episodes, but is kind of important. > > I guess you could call it a spoiler of sorts, but it might make the series a little more understandable if you know one little fact. > > The review (and mini-spoiler) is [here](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/bridge-tv-review-575826). NPR’s review on Fresh Air last week also mentioned this “spoiler”, so I had no idea it was meant to be a mystery either. Not sure if it changes much if there is a reason why she’s “quirky”. The real El Paso PD homicide squad is pretty boring in real life, the city has an extremely low homicide rate, especially compared to Juarez across the border. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2013, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/29 "2013-07-15T15:55:01Z")
Saw it - meh. I find Diane Kruger distracting - her character feels unrealistically “off” and, while I find her pretty in a brittle sort of way (she looks like a pretty skull to me), the fact that the actress was Helen of Troy in a movie keeps intruding on my thinking. Flawed and hot is a tough line to walk - Clare Danes mostly pulls it off, as does Benedict Cumberbatch as a guy (I am assuming ;)). Kruger? She didn’t during the first ep. Given the forced darkness of it, I will be surprised if I stick with it. I like the male lead, but that won’t be enough. Unfortunately, this was complicated by the fact that my son finally got me to watch the first season of Breaking Bad over the weekend. The level of quality between BB and The Bridge wasn’t even close - jeez, BB is really well done. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/30 "2013-07-18T01:51:18Z")
Courtesy bump since the new episode starts in ~10 minutes, in case some people might have missed it, and also so the thread will be easy to find. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/31 "2013-07-18T01:55:07Z")
Also, I guess I’ll ask a mod to change the thread title to: **The Bridge on FX (Wednesdays, 10pm EST)** Thanks mod! ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/32 "2013-07-18T04:45:50Z")
I’ll keep watching but wouldn’t be broken-hearted if it was cancelled. There’s too much going on. We have a shady Mexican police chief keeping a secret about a dead cartel (?) guy, the dead judge’s tunnel, someone killing illegals, someone killing prostitutes, a guy looking for one of the victims and making another body, Ruiz’s home life, Sonia trolling for sex in bars, Linder becoming interested in that blonde in the halfway house. Are we supposed to think Linder made the recording? Is someone pulling his strings? He doesn’t seem together enough to put the bomb in the reporter’s car. I liked seeing Lyle Lovett, but he’s a better singer than an actor. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2013, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/33 "2013-07-19T03:08:27Z")
Forgot to mention that I’m liking the dialogue. “What dialogue?”, you might say. It’s so realistic that it’s unnoticeable. They talk like real people talk. Not the witty back and forth of shows like **Justified** or **Gilmore Girls** , but just plain talk. I like it. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2013, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/34 "2013-07-21T23:03:23Z")
I’m still having a hard time believing that someone with almost zero social skills is in the position she’s in. It’s almost like she’s an alien or something. I wasn’t expecting to see Lyle Lovett. 🙂 Did anyone catch the Neil Young reference? ---
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/35 "2013-07-22T13:10:15Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > Did anyone catch the Neil Young reference? Nope. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/36 "2013-07-22T18:35:02Z")
> [@What\_the](#): > > Nope. When Linder was going into work (Halfway house? Group home?) he asked the woman that was getting off work what had been going on while she was there. One of her comments was, “Big John’s been talking about the river and Emmylou.” This is a reference to a line from “Powderfinger” by Neil Young and Crazy Horse. “Big John’s been drinking since the river took Emmylou.” Neil Young’s wife is one of the founders of The Bridge School for children with speech and physical impairments. Neil is very involved with a yearly benefit concert for the school and performs every year at the benefit. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2013, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/37 "2013-07-22T20:17:58Z")
Very cool! Makes me wonder about more musical connections with the show’s producers. Neil Young reference and Lyle Lovett in a role – I’ll be listening for more but I probably won’t recognize them. Lyrics after 1962 are lost on me. That’s almost as cool as Christopher Molisanti (The Sopranos), late for a meeting because “the highway was jammed with broken heroes on a last-chance power drive.” I wonder if The Sopranos ever used a Springsteen song. I can’t think of any. I don’t recognize most of the music on that show either, but I can usually tell what they’re watching on TV. They like the old stuff. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/38 "2013-07-25T04:54:19Z")
Maybe it’s just the similarities in the desert setting, but I think the cinematography in this is almost as good as Breaking Bad. I like the little bits of humor – not overdone. I like the realism of Frye’s co-worker’s house. I grew up with a girl who had five sisters and for a long time they lived in a one bedroom house – it looked a lot like that house. Sonia’s Asperger’s is toned down a bit. My husband asked what’s wrong with her, and I said she’s like Sheldon. So Linder is doing all this? He’s such an unlikely criminal mastermind. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/39 "2013-07-25T06:22:33Z")
Yeah, the “alien dropped on earth” stuff wasn’t as obvious in this episode. About the only thing was the “I can’t have sex at work” line which I thought was way over the top even for the behavior we’ve seen from her previously. I’m still enjoying the series so far and plan to keep watching. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2013, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188/40 "2013-07-25T06:44:11Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > When Linder was going into work (Halfway house? Group home?) he asked the woman that was getting off work what had been going on while she was there. One of her comments was, “Big John’s been talking about the river and Emmylou.” > This is a reference to a line from “Powderfinger” by Neil Young and Crazy Horse. > “Big John’s been drinking since the river took Emmylou.” > Neil Young’s wife is one of the founders of The Bridge School for children with speech and physical impairments. Neil is very involved with a yearly benefit concert for the school and performs every year at the benefit. Oh. That was my second guess about the Neil Young reference. My first was the sideburns. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bridge-on-fx-wednesdays-at-10-pm-eastern/663188.md?page=3)