Lovecraft Country (Sky/Now) TV Show Review & Comments

I'm not even sure if I' allowed to say this, but i thought the first episode was a wallowing, confused, patronising mess.

Pains me to say it, but I think a lot of critics are giving this a pass because it's 'important'. What does it say about you if you DON'T like this series etc etc.

Long live the pandering. Sad times...

I'll stick to the Watchmen series if I need a dose of self loathing. Quality in a different league...
 
Certainly not made for the mainstream audience but i enjoyed it. It's a trip and a real joyride :D
 
This looks great, but once again I'm appalled it's only on Sky/Now TV, the latter of which I am happy to call 'unwatchable' quality on the big screen. Ah well. Like Watchmen, I will wait patiently, then buy it. Thanks for the review – really excellent read.
 
thanks Tom .i have enjoyed the first 2 episodes a lot
 
Thanks for the Review, Tom. This I guess will eventually turn up on Prime so I will check it out then (AND it might be in HD! 🤷‍♂️).

Regarding H.P. Lovecraft in General, in the present atmosphere should we read his Books for the engaging stories, & then burn them because of the actual man? Because I nowadays usually "read" with talking books, & listen to them via my phone and Computer, so this could become very expensive!
 
Thanks Tom, kicked off the recordings last night.

HBO made it and they don't support HDR yet (or 4K), so while not wanting to defend Sky, 'm assuming it's out of their hands.
Most of Skys newer productions are starting to appear in UHD.
I guess if watching on Now tv, it will be poor, not sure if the additional boost sub helps even to bring it into the (streamed) HD world ?

Ill check out the Sky Q pq tonight.
 
Yes I enjoyed the first 2 episodes as well - not usually a fan of horror but this more akin to the horror levels in buffy and Dracula rather than exorcist. So I am fine with that. Also interesting perspectives on how blacks were treated in the US in the 50s. All in all pretty good - quality on NOW TV Boost is ok would prefer 4K HDR but definitely watchable - george
 
Thanks for the Review, Tom. This I guess will eventually turn up on Prime so I will check it out then (AND it might be in HD! 🤷‍♂️).

Regarding H.P. Lovecraft in General, in the present atmosphere should we read his Books for the engaging stories, & then burn them because of the actual man? Because I nowadays usually "read" with talking books, & listen to them via my phone and Computer, so this could become very expensive!
Excellent synergy of place of residence and book burning comment.

Obviously the answer is to burn your device after the person has finished telling the story.

The real answer is different for different people but he's been dead a long time so by buying his books you're not financially benefitting him. The remainder of the decision comes down to what you're personally comfortable with. Much of his attitudes are implicit within the stories rather than explicit, if that makes a difference, and he didn't encourage an enduring and devoted readership by being a crap writer. YMMV, as they say.
 
I don't understand why newly released series in 2020 are not in UHD, makes no sense to me
 
Thank you for the review Tom good read, I suspect I will have to wait for the Blu.

This is a good watch for those that no nothing about H. P. Lovecraft's life.




Note : I have listened to the audible book "Lovecraft Country By: Matt Ruff" so it will be interesting to see how it transfers to the small screen.
 
Last edited:
I've watched the first two episodes and find the Lovecraftian horror mix with 50's racism confusing. It just doesn't work for me.
Has anyone made a movie or TV series from Moorcocks stories that Tom mentioned?
 
I'm not even sure if I' allowed to say this, but i thought the first episode was a wallowing, confused, patronising mess.

Pains me to say it, but I think a lot of critics are giving this a pass because it's 'important'. What does it say about you if you DON'T like this series etc etc.

Long live the pandering. Sad times...

I'll stick to the Watchmen series if I need a dose of self loathing. Quality in a different league...
Pandering, self loathing? The truth hurts doesn’t it.
 
I've watched the first two episodes and find the Lovecraftian horror mix with 50's racism confusing. It just doesn't work for me.
Has anyone made a movie or TV series from Moorcocks stories that Tom mentioned?
There is ONE Moorcock movie: The Final Programme.
It's fun enough, but it's one of his Jerry Cornelius stories though so it's more Bond-lite.
He also wrote the screenplay for the Doug McClure Land That Time Forgot.

An Elric TV series has been stuck in development hell for about 15 years now. And since Netflix adapted the rip-off- I MEAN totally unconnected story about a morally ambiguous magical albino, The Witcher, I feel like it's not worth holding out much hope.
 
Thanks for the review Tom, I'm keeping an eye on this one. Your review has certainly helped sway me, but I'm not convinced yet that I need this in my life.

I don't understand why newly released series in 2020 are not in UHD, makes no sense to me

Very soon I won't be getting out of bed unless it's 4K.

The worst thing now is watching something that is 4K (like The Expanse that I've just started), and then switching to something that isn't. As I find it increasingly difficult then to focus on the actual content of the new programme, as I'm too busy raging about the picture quality.

It is time now for at least 4K across the board.
 
There is ONE Moorcock movie: The Final Programme.
It's fun enough, but it's one of his Jerry Cornelius stories though so it's more Bond-lite.
He also wrote the screenplay for the Doug McClure Land That Time Forgot. I own this film on blu great fun not to mention I saw it when it came out at the cinema.

An Elric TV series has been stuck in development hell for about 15 years now. And since Netflix adapted the rip-off- I MEAN totally unconnected story about a morally ambiguous magical albino, The Witcher, I feel like it's not worth holding out much hope.
The Eternal Champion takes me back I loved all the incarnations & I still have some of the comics & books & a couple Black Sword albums by Hawkwind :smashin:
 
Last edited:
Is anybody else finding the sound mix terrible? - to the point of being un-listenable
 
Thanks for the review, I have quite enjoyed the 3 episodes I have seen to date. One that needs to be watched with no distractions in my view.
 
Hah the racism undertones and setting are very well done, even had the parents hooked until the end of the 1st episode. But definitely missing the 4k/UHD version and its quite average streaming via sky on the console sadly.

Very much worth following, reminded me to go back and watch 'In the Mouth of Madness'.
 
Fab show the racism is sickening , but no doubt accurate for the period, with echos of that time seemingly still relevant in the US, anyways accurate review and unmissable tv, sky sd is shite though, a bit like watching it on an old NTSC tape, cest la vie.
 
Not sure there's any logic in reviewing a TV show before it's even finished. Anything could happen.

I've seen the first couple of episodes so far and I would describe this as a somewhat interesting car crash. The Jordan Peele racism stuff dominates the first episode until all of a sudden it becomes a J.J. special effects spectacular. It's an incredibly jarring and bizarre change. From grim (if I imagine rather over-cooked) realism to comedy CG without so much as a pause for breath. I mean, I enjoyed it well enough, but it was so bizarre.

The second episode was a total mess of incoherent nonsense which felt like it was squarely aimed at the young adult Hunger Games/Twilight type crowd. It was terrible, and I nearly turned it off. It was also incredibly dull.

I've yet to watch the third episode but for me this show is very much on life support. If ep 3 isn't great, it's gone.
 
Is anybody else finding the sound mix terrible? - to the point of being un-listenable

I find the sound on literally everything on Now TV to be absolutely terrible. It's over compressed to within an inch of its life and has clearly undergone some sort of frame rate conversion to match the 25fps of the PAL broadcast. It warbles, skips, and sounds very broken. Kind of matches the shockingly bad video quality I guess, even with their "boost" pass, which increases it to about the same quality as a DVD.
 
Not sure there's any logic in reviewing a TV show before it's even finished. Anything could happen.

Yes, I tend to find it better to wait until it's over, then review it positively when it's no longer available for anybody else to watch.

It can be quite a smug experience.
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom