Under the Dome, a review

     The season finale of the CBS network program Under The Dome was....a theatrical let down, in my opinion.  I didn't feel I was hanging on a cliff.  I figure, if the program doesn't come back on, I have gotten all I needed from it.

   The program started out like gangbusters with a fight, hand to hand,  a gun shot, a dead guy, a hidden body, a lot of nice people up to suspicious and sneaky behavior, and then the dome came down and cut a cow in half.  Cool!  

   The program followed a Stephen King kind of story line for the most part, as it is based on a Stephen King story.  But, I watched it to see how Hollywood would handle the disaster aspect of the story.  Cut off from all outside interaction, no cell phones, radio, or internet, how would Hollywood portray the people of the MidWest?   

   Hollywood ignored preppers.  The story mentions little change in the mindset of the prepared American since 9/11, Katrina or the Boston Marathon bombing.  It's like 1970 something in their minds.  

   I wanted to see the issues of dwindling food, water and medical supplies and how the people would behave.  They used the issues to excuse the killing,  to further the dialogue with the main characters, and the faux rioting.  I say faux rioting as it was neatly done.  The food hoarders, the food stealers, the killers, hardly broke a sweat.  The town cleaned up nice before the next episode.  

   Still there were some very uncomfortable weeks getting to know the main characters and I cannot swallow the girl chained to the basement for a week while her psychofrenic boyfriend becomes a deputy sheriff.  I can understand keeping the secret for a short time, but, personally he would be dead three episodes ago, in my book.  I"m just saying!

   I suppose for network entertainment it was as hardcore as it could be, but I take issue with the issues.  If the issue of water rights comes up, how can you get away with shooting the farmer because he says something you don't like, then his neighbors just let you live?  There was a lot of knocking off the famous cast members, as I suppose they had somewhere better to be in a few weeks.  Still, new characters show up in the main circle, then they die, quickly.  The issues of food has yet to be explained.  Rarely, when a disaster occurs can the shelves be restocked or the home larders filled upon request.  Harvests happen seasonally, till then, you go hungry.  


   If Hollywood can address the issues of potential looters, why not food preppers?  There is no hot story in the people who are bugging in.  There is no entertainment value in people surviving well under extremely trying circumstances.  The people of Chester's Mills go to church after several weeks without their murdered pastor to pray at what they think is now the end.  And Americans won't pray together until then?  Okay, Hollywood, you think you know us.

   You think we will submit quietly to weapons surrender, house to house searches, suspension of all constitutional rights because one guy talks a good story.  Keep thinking that.  The story line of Under the Dome will play out according to Stephen King's' vision somewhere, I am sure.  But, not at my house.  The show may come back next year.  If you like the story, watch it.  There is nothing there for me.  I can read the book.  

  





UNDER THE DOME is produced by CBS Television Studios in association with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television. Neal Baer, Stephen King, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Stacey Snider, Jack Bender and Brian K. Vaughan, who wrote the television adaptation, will serve as executive producers.