# Under The Dome: New Summer Mini-Series **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 8, 2013, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483 "2013-06-08T18:24:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![FrancisCastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b4bc9f/32.png) [@FrancisCastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FrancisCastle)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/61 "2013-06-25T16:49:27Z")
I didn’t like a lot of the casting choices. When I read the book, I pictured Barbie and Shumway both more middle aged. And yes, Junior was really creepy. Dean Norris is a good choice for big Jim and I liked the kid playing Joe. He hasn’t really gotten much screen time yet, but he matches how I pictured him in the book. ---
**Author:** ![AngelSoft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelsoft/32/440_2.png) [@AngelSoft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelSoft)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/62 "2013-06-25T16:57:44Z")
> [@Fair\_Rarity](#): > > Spoilers for UTD and other King works > > [spoiler]Most of his novels have at least a bittersweet ending. Some even are on the happy side considering the carnage of the rest of the novel. > > This one had nearly everyone die. Only a handful of people survived, right? A couple kids suffocated to death in such a casual way. Earlier, a child was crushed to death. Sure, some kids died in IT and The Dark Tower series, but the tone in this was just extra brutal and extra senseless. Needful Things had a dark sense of humor about it. UTD felt like two books in tone. The end just felt like “Ah fuck it. I don’t how to write myself out of this one. Maybe I’ll just kill 'em all.” > > [/spoiler] I haven’t read the books so maybe it’s explained but… How would people suffocate? I assume it’s because the dome ran out of oxygen. But I’m sure there’s plenty of plants in there right? The previews seem to be in a rural area so technically, they’d be able to self sustain as far as oxygen is concerned. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/63 "2013-06-25T17:00:38Z")
Wait, you’re telling me the girl who plays the waitress/candy striper isn’t Hayden Panettiere? ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/64 "2013-06-25T18:00:09Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > Also, the cow was weird. It was like it was entirely made of muscle. Where were the guts? Not that I particularly wanted to see cow guts strewing around, mind you, but that cow had some _strange_ interior anatomy. Yeah, it’s like the cow was all muscle, no guts or bones. Were those two guys at the bridge party walking in a dry riverbed? Presumably the dome would stop a river’s flow, and there’d be some flooding on the other side. I’d like to see that, but it’s probably not in the budget. I don’t like the casting for Junior either. He’s too pretty to be Big Jim’s son. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/65 "2013-06-25T18:34:49Z")
> [@FrancisCastle](#): > > I didn’t like a lot of the casting choices. When I read the book, I pictured Barbie and Shumway both more middle aged. And yes, Junior was really creepy. Dean Norris is a good choice for big Jim and I liked the kid playing Joe. He hasn’t really gotten much screen time yet, but he matches how I pictured him in the book. Julia was definitely more middle-aged, but Barbie was specifically said to be in his mid-20s. But he’s a Stephen King protagonist, so of course he seems like he should be 50. But count in with everyone who is confused as to why they changed practically every little thing about the book. My brain keeps stopping and thinking “that’s wrong and that’s wrong and that’s wrong” and it’s hard for me to concentrate on the show as is. Although, a part of me definitely chuckled when “Big Jim” turned out to be shorter than everyone, including his own son. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/66 "2013-06-25T18:42:43Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > I gave up on this show back when it was called “Jericho”. I recently watched that on Netflix and loved it! > [@randwill](#): > > \ > Not only did it seem like every development was coming at us at light speed, but the character types were really efficiently incorporated. In that family that was just passing through town we had an inter-racial lesbian couple with a troubled teen daughter. All those potential plot points in one car. My comment on that was, “I’m going to hate these three.” I do already. 🙂 > [@](#): > > The need for speed made the residents of the town seem like pretty adaptable folk. Nobody seemed too overwhelmed by the incredibly impossible situation. I can write that off to shock - one day in, you’d be in shock and/or denial, and definitely not understanding the long-term ramifications yet (and still hoping that it just goes away as quickly as it came!). > [@Infovore](#): > > I enjoyed the book but wasn’t really thrilled with the first episode of the series. I’ll probably keep watching it because it’ll become a habit, but if it doesn’t get better I might fall asleep. I particularly didn’t like Junior–I guess they did a good job of making him creepy, but he was _too_ creepy. Somebody that messed up would have stood out a long time ago in a town that small. In the book he had a brain tumour, so he got weird in a relatively short time. > [@](#): > > It’s been a while since I read the book–I thought Barbie started out as a drifter working as a short-order cook at the diner, not > > as some kind of killer burying Shumway’s husband in the forest. > > Didn’t quite get what was supposed to be up with him.\ I’m going to hold off on my opinion about the new, improved Barbie, but if they turn him into A Bad Guy, I’m not going to be happy. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/67 "2013-06-25T19:21:50Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I’m going to hold off on my opinion about the new, improved Barbie, but if they turn him into A Bad Guy, I’m not going to be happy. In the show Barbie made a phone call to his employer where he said that a collection had gone wrong and the guy had become inexplicably crazy and had attacked him. So I think we’re supposed to believe that Barbie killed him in self-defense. My guess is that Barbie was employed as a collector for some loan shark or business partner of the dead husband, thinking that he was just making a routine collection. But the guy was probably involved with Big Jim’s enterprise or perhaps was opposing Big Jim and thought Barbie was coming to kill him and fought for his life. I guess we’ll find out exactly what he was up to, but I don’t think any of this was in the book, so it’ll be a surprise to all of us. I can understand why they made the change for TV. A pilot episode needs ‘hooks’ to keep the viewers coming back, so the mysterious burial of a dead guy by one of the protagonists works well in that regard. Showing Barbie quit a diner and head out of town only to be stopped by the dome doesn’t set him apart from any of the other characters and does nothing to build dramatic tension in the first hour. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/68 "2013-06-25T19:28:04Z")
people should read books or watch tv/movies by an author but not both. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/69 "2013-06-25T20:23:43Z")
> [@AngelSoft](#): > > I haven’t read the books so maybe it’s explained but… > > How would people suffocate? I assume it’s because the dome ran out of oxygen. But I’m sure there’s plenty of plants in there right? The previews seem to be in a rural area so technically, they’d be able to self sustain as far as oxygen is concerned. The dome lets air and water thru, but restricts it greatly. The real problem is everyone running generators after the outside power is cut, polluting their air supply in the dome. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/70 "2013-06-25T20:56:08Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > The dome lets air and water thru, but restricts it greatly. The real problem is everyone running generators after the outside power is cut, polluting their air supply in the dome. As long as we’re spoiling it, yes, that is one issue, but as I recall: the biggest problem at the end was that there was a huge meth lab explosion, releasing mountains of toxic fumes into the air and suffocating practically everyone who didn’t die in the initial explosion. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/71 "2013-06-25T21:32:17Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Maybe we can have a thread about this where nobody mentions the book, just to avoid potential future spoilers and to not be very annoying for those of us who haven’t read it.\ Sorry, I missed this sentence. You’re probably right - we should probably keep the book and tv show separate. From what I saw in the first episode, they’re going in completely different directions, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/72 "2013-06-25T22:51:25Z")
Erm, spoilers in this post for this episode we’re actually discussing. Kind of weird that I feel I need to say this, but whatever. The special effects in the first episode seemed super cheesy to me, like on the level of Species 2. But that’s okay, I don’t expect many more special effects. The writing, acting and cinematography (if that’s the right word) felt very “tv movie,” but I suppose I’ll adjust. Was glad to see Jeff Fahey die. Some actors, like say Kevin Sorbo, immediately torpedo credibility into a B-grade production. Fahey isn’t quite there but close. While he’s done some solid work (loved him in Lost) he was giving off some serious B-Movie stink in this. I think I just can’t accept him as a lead character. One thing that confused me was the reaction of the girl in the bunker to her boyfriend opening the door. Clearly he just knocked her out and dragged her into the bunker, so she’s in trouble and she knows it. No problem there. But this is essentially her boyfriend she was just banging that morning. Yeah, she dumped him, but I would think the more natural reaction for her would have been to try and sweet talk him a little before immediately jumping to scream for your life. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/73 "2013-06-26T01:51:14Z")
I watched the first episode tonight and liked it pretty well. The pacing was good, I thought they did a good job of putting plenty of content into ~40 minutes. I like that the characters have a little edge to them, and there are several sub-plots that hold my interest; crazy college dude, shady councilman, ex-military guy who has earned the wrath of crazy college dude and killed another character’s spouse. I wonder why in the world no one is communicating with the outside world, sure they don’t seem to have reliable radio and can’t hear through the dome, but they have vision. Why can’t they write notes to each other? ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/74 "2013-06-26T02:02:48Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > Wait, you’re telling me the girl who plays the waitress/candy striper isn’t Hayden Panettiere? Didn’t really look anything like her… at all? ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/75 "2013-06-26T02:04:13Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > Wait, you’re telling me the girl who plays the waitress/candy striper isn’t Hayden Panettiere? See I was thinking Emily VanCamp lol. ---
**Author:** ![Fair\_Rarity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fair_rarity/32/153_2.png) [@Fair\_Rarity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fair_Rarity)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/76 "2013-06-26T02:10:27Z")
I don’t remember a lot of the book, so I’m not all hung up on “And this was what should have happened,” but I still didn’t like it much. I too thought the effects at times were amateurish and conspicuous, like the POV of the bird. Not-Jo was way too distracting. I’m sure people who didn’t watch Eureka didn’t think anything was off, but for me, I kept looking for Sheriff Carter. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/77 "2013-06-26T02:11:36Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > I wonder why in the world no one is communicating with the outside world, sure they don’t seem to have reliable radio and can’t hear through the dome, but they have vision. Why can’t they write notes to each other? Barbie already did – he wrote to the fire department guy to notify the FAA. They’ll probably do a lot more of that as time passes. Blocking the roads is fine, but if people are gonna keep bumping into the dome, they need to mark it somehow. Save some broken noses. People don’t just travel on streets and sidewalks. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/78 "2013-06-26T02:42:19Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > One thing that confused me was the reaction of the girl in the bunker to her boyfriend opening the door. Clearly he just knocked her out and dragged her into the bunker, so she’s in trouble and she knows it. No problem there. But this is essentially her boyfriend she was just banging that morning. Yeah, she dumped him, but I would think the more natural reaction for her would have been to try and sweet talk him a little before immediately jumping to scream for your life. Did you catch their post-bang conversation? She is very aware that something is not right about Junior. So waking up in a 6x6 cell lead her straight to “Panic!” as supposed to “I can talk my way out of this.” ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/79 "2013-06-26T03:48:38Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > \ > Blocking the roads is fine, but if people are gonna keep bumping into the dome, they need to mark it somehow. Save some broken noses. People don’t just travel on streets and sidewalks. I liked the demonstration of showing the gap between the trees where the dome had come down - you wouldn’t have a problem telling where the dome was in the woods, anyway. > [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Did you catch their post-bang conversation? She is very aware that something is not right about Junior. So waking up in a 6x6 cell lead her straight to “Panic!” as supposed to “I can talk my way out of this.” Yeah, they had a tense discussion (with her talking about how she never intended anything permanent with him), he grabbed her hard, she slapped him - I don’t know if that qualified as broken up, but he was definitely not her favourite person right then. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483/80 "2013-06-26T03:56:30Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Blocking the roads is fine, but if people are gonna keep bumping into the dome, they need to mark it somehow. Save some broken noses. People don’t just travel on streets and sidewalks. Good idea. Since the bloody handprint stayed on the dome, I bet they could just get some spray paint and make a line at a suitable height. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/under-the-dome-new-summer-mini-series/660483.md?page=5)