# Which of these fantasy shows should I keep watching past the pilot? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 30, 2015, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066 "2015-09-30T18:57:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/1 "2015-09-30T18:57:30Z")
I’ve watched these first episodes: Grimm (loved) Haven (liked) Once Upon a Time (meh) Warehouse 13 (meh) Arrow (meh) I haven’t yet watched Sleepy Hollow. I’ll probably give up on the “meh” ones unless there’s rough consensus that they are worth it. Thoughts about any of these? Similar recent shows I should check out? Skip anything older than 2008, please! ---
**Author:** ![sachertorte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sachertorte/32/3727_2.png) [@sachertorte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sachertorte)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/2 "2015-09-30T19:06:32Z")
I liked Season One of Once Upon a Time. I bailed on Season Two. But if you didn’t like the pilot, you may not like it at all. That is, I didn’t think the pilot was all that different in quality from the rest of the season. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/3 "2015-09-30T19:06:48Z")
I vote for Grimm. This show gets better as it progresses. It’s now on my “must watch” list, which is a rather short list, since I’d mostly rather read books than watch TV. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/4 "2015-09-30T19:06:54Z")
Personally I enjoy Once Upon A Time, at least the first few seasons. The fifth just started and I’m not feeling it yet this season. But then I wasnt a big fan of Grimm so our tastes seem to vary. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/5 "2015-09-30T19:10:19Z")
Regarding similar shows you might enjoy: have you seen _Fringe_? ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/6 "2015-09-30T19:27:21Z")
I really enjoyed Warehouse 13. And the sort of companion piece Eureka. Sleepy Hollow is bonkers fun. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/7 "2015-09-30T20:22:26Z")
I’ve seen the first episode of Fringe, back when it started. It didn’t click with me. I watched Eureka for a season but got incredibly sick of the whole “Henry is a physicist doctor mechanic baker sooper genius and the only one who can help us now!” plot lines. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/8 "2015-09-30T20:26:44Z")
**Grimm** definitely got batter, and **Once Upon a Time** ’s first season was even better, but it jumped the shark badly in season 2. I slogged to the end, but had no interest in Disney continually throwing their properties in the mix, and everyone saying, “Magic has a price” five times and episode. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/9 "2015-10-01T01:17:48Z")
Have you tried Hemlock Grove? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/10 "2015-10-01T01:45:05Z")
I think _Warehouse 13_ is great fun, it’s just my kind of light frothy SF/Fantasy. As are _Eureka_, _The Librarians_, and _The Flash_. But if _Grimm_ is your favourite of that list, then it may not be for you, and you’d best seek out something like _Person of Interest_ or _Fringe_ or _Orphan Black_ or _Penny Dreadful_. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/11 "2015-10-01T02:10:29Z")
I’ve never heard of Hemlock Grove until now. At first blush, it looks a little more gory than I like. My favorite fantasy show is Supernatural, which is also gory, but I know the patterns of the show well enough that I never see anything nasty. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Woodhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Miss\_Woodhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Woodhouse)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/12 "2015-10-01T02:10:49Z")
I like Grimm and the pilot is a good representation of the rest of the show. It does have a very different feel from Eureka and Warehouse 13. Those are more quirky fun Sci/fi rather than dark. I’d put Grimm and Sleepy Hollow in the same sub-genre SF/F shows. More dark with some graphic (tv level) violence. Husband liked Arrow, but I didn’t watch it. I can say he didn’t even stick it out a full season before he dropped it. From the bits I saw there was a lot of teen angsty drama mixed in with the comic book stuff. I didn’t really like Once Upon a Time. It was much too over the top for me. It’s like even the script writers are chewing the scenery. My girls love it, so I guess if you are a teen/pre-teen girl you might enjoy it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/13 "2015-10-01T02:58:53Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > Sleepy Hollow is bonkers fun. Yes, yes it is. The two main leads have excellent chemistry, and it’s the best fish-out-of-water time-traveler schtick I’ve ever seen. Ichabod’s actor is a hilarious straight man. The history in the show is completely idiotic, but the writers clearly know that and don’t take it at all seriously. They’re just having fun. ANd for the first season, the fun is infectious. We quit watching about two thirds of the way through season two, as a wet blanket of a shitty actress of a character continued to get way too much screen time, but I’ve heard hints that by season three that might not be such an issue. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/14 "2015-10-01T06:25:25Z")
I third, or whatever, _Grimm_. It just gets better and better (and more bonkers) the more the larger world is revealed.Just ignore that the show makes it seem half of Portland is Wessen… No-one else has, but I’m also going to say _Haven_, which also gets better over time as the larger backstory unfolds. _Orphan Black_ gets a lot of (very deserved) credit for the way Maslany plays multiple versions of herself, but I’ve never seen Emily Rose get given _any_ recognition for very convincingly doing something similar in Haven. It’s by far the better of the two current “based on a King story” shows. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/15 "2015-10-01T08:47:40Z")
Grimm is great. Orphan Black has a lot going on, but it’s a bit darker. The first season of Once Upon a Time wasn’t bad, but after the magic came back, it got tiresome. Warehouse 13 was kinda fun. I never watched Eureka. Arrow had some good comic book writing, but a ton of teen angst. I watched 3 seasons before bailing. I was debating trying The Flash, but instead quit Arrow. Haven I’ve been keeping up with. The plot twists the last season were a bit grinding. But only one season left (I keep thinking every season is the last, but they’ve announced it). Yes, Emily Rose deserves credit for her turns as different versions of herself. Sleepy Hollow was too awful for words. Watched first episode, dreck. ---
**Author:** ![Yodalicious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yodalicious/32/8195_2.png) [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/16 "2015-10-01T12:52:09Z")
Arrow gets better. Not great, but better. Put The Flash on your list. It’s the best comic book show on TV. It doesn’t hide it’s comic bookyness, but it still plays in a believable way. I’ll third Sleepy Hollow. Stupid, silly fun. A really enjoyable show. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/17 "2015-10-01T12:59:44Z")
More votes for Grimm and Sleepy Hollow. I wasn’t crazy about SH at first until I realized I didn’t have to take it so seriously. As others have said, it’s goofy fun. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/18 "2015-10-01T13:23:09Z")
Thanks for the input, everyone. I _knew_ this board could be counted on for this genre! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/19 "2015-10-01T13:32:25Z")
I love Once Upon A Time, I think Robert Carlyle is a MARVEL, playing two roles (Gold and Rumple). I love Sleepy Hollow, love the two main actors. I really don’t always follow the plots of these shows, but they are enjoyable anyway, even if to just look at. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066/20 "2015-10-01T13:33:21Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > I love Once Upon A Time, I think Robert Carlyle is a MARVEL If I remember right, he was the only thing I liked about the first episode. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-of-these-fantasy-shows-should-i-keep-watching-past-the-pilot/733066.md?page=2)