The Deuce

On HBO. Anybody else tune in? Created by David Simon (the Wire), produced and starring James Franco..

I was excited about this show based on the trailers for it. NYC in 1971 - 42nd St/Times Square, all the cars, the clothes.. Pilot episode was pretty good. High hopes for this show to give me something to look forward to on Sunday night television.

Watched it. Found it a bit of a struggle to stay interested. Probably give it one more episode. Not looking like it will make my cut though.

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Originally Posted by Sluff

Watched it. Found it a bit of a struggle to stay interested. Probably give it one more episode. Not looking like it will make my cut though.

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This. Thought it was just plain boring.

Too many penis scenes, more penis than vagina in the first episode. Hard penis too. Not off to a good start but I'll give it a try. Gets good reviews

Didn't dig episode 1 too much, reminded me of Vinyl - kind of put on and over the top in a weird way.

I'll try another episode though.

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Originally Posted by AK47bp

Too many penis scenes, more penis than vagina in the first episode. Hard penis too.

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But Maggie Gyllenhaal's tits!!!

Hoping it's closer to The Wire than Treme. Hard to tell so far though. Thought Franco and Gyllenhaal were good. Fun to see Times Square before the Disneyfication.

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Originally Posted by PassTheDutchie

But Maggie Gyllenhaal's tits!!!

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Meh.

That hooker that got her armpit slashed by her pimp has good ones. And the curly haired student that banged her teacher has good ones.

Like JFC, Girls, etc. before it I'll hang tough for a season, but not looking promising. so far.

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Originally Posted by AK47bp

Too many penis scenes, more penis than vagina in the first episode.

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Hmmm yeah, that was my biggest problem too..

Franco is a great watch

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Originally Posted by Mike Pow

Franco is a great watch

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Double hit. Pretty cool how that tech has advanced, although both together has been minimal.

I like it. It's nostalgic in a way. Dialogue is well written. Some's over the top. No way there was a single coffee shop full of pimps and girls like that at one time.


The World Trade Center was not completed and open until 1973.

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Originally Posted by Benny Profane

Double hit. Pretty cool how that tech has advanced, although both together has been minimal.

I like it. It's nostalgic in a way. Dialogue is well written. Some's over the top. No way there was a single coffee shop full of pimps and girls like that at one time.


The World Trade Center was not completed and open until 1973.

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They got that right in the show, didn't they?

First episode was 1971. There they were, with lights on inside.

I can remember riding the bus in and watching them go up.

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Originally Posted by Benny Profane

First episode was 1971. There they were, with lights on inside.

I can remember riding the bus in and watching them go up.

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I thought that shot had missing windows on the upper floors and scaffolding.

Hmmmm. I'll get back on that.

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2nd episode showed a lot more bush errrr PROMISE

will give it another watch tomorrow.

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Originally Posted by Sirshredalot

I thought that shot had missing windows on the upper floors and scaffolding.

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Damn. You're right. Fuck me. Now, one wonders if they were that far there in 71. To the Wikiworld.

Edit: here's a picture from the wiki page labeled as taken in 1971.

Attachment 212623

So, they did a nice job. Shut my mouth. Now that I go back, the skyline shots are awfully good. Manhattan has changed a ton since then.

I'm struggling with the show at this point. The double Franco is just confusing and seems pointless. Maybe the identical twin thing will have a purpose later but for now it's fucking annoying. Too much smoking, it's overkill, every scene has every person smoking, finishing a smoke or lighting up a smoke. Never seen so much penis in a non porn movie either.

I'll keep watching for the gratuitous nudity.

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Originally Posted by Benny Profane

Damn. You're right. Fuck me. Now, one wonders if they were that far there in 71. To the Wikiworld.

Edit: here's a picture from the wiki page labeled as taken in 1971.

Attachment 212623

So, they did a nice job. Shut my mouth. Now that I go back, the skyline shots are awfully good. Manhattan has changed a ton since then.

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It stuck with me because I thought it was a cool touch.

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Originally Posted by AK47bp

I'm struggling with the show at this point. The double Franco is just confusing and seems pointless. Maybe the identical twin thing will have a purpose later but for now it's fucking annoying. Too much smoking, it's overkill, every scene has every person smoking, finishing a smoke or lighting up a smoke.

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That is an accurate depiction of the 70's. Maybe it seems excessive in a modern time where only 20% of Americans smoke but slightly over 50% of Americans smoked cigs in the early 70's. It seemed normal to me. I knew kids who were already swiping their parent's smokes as early as the 7th grade and who had older siblings openly smoking around their parents at 16. For the depicted lower class/working class characters with little education, who are up all night and around alcohol, I'd imagine the smoking rate would be up around 80-90%. There were still cig ads on TV up til 1971. A pack only cost 75 cents and it was easy for kids to buy smokes from vending machines.

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Originally Posted by neckdeep

That is accurate. Maybe it seems excessive in a modern time where only 20% of Americans smoke but slightly over 50% of Americans smoked cigs in the early 70's. I knew kids who were already swiping their parent's smokes as early as the 7th grade and who had older siblings openly smoking around their parents at 16.

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Yeah, as a former smoker and forever nicotine addict, it's awesome how we have eliminated this scourge from most of American life, but, even in 1971, it was everywhere. A whole lot more people smoked. You could smoke practically everywhere. Hell, just ten years before, you could smoke in a movie theatre watching people smoke a lot on the screen.

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Originally Posted by Benny Profane

. You could smoke practically everywhere. Hell, just ten years before, you could smoke in a movie theatre watching people smoke a lot on the screen.

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Even airplanes had smoking sections! Big tobacco fought like crazy to keep those planes smoky and they weren't phased out until the late 80's.

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Originally Posted by neckdeep

That is an accurate depiction of the 70's. Maybe it seems excessive in a modern time where only 20% of Americans smoke but slightly over 50% of Americans smoked cigs in the early 70's. It seemed normal to me. I knew kids who were already swiping their parent's smokes as early as the 7th grade and who had older siblings openly smoking around their parents at 16. For the depicted lower class/working class characters with little education, who are up all night and around alcohol, I'd imagine the smoking rate would be up around 80-90%. There were still cig ads on TV up til 1971.

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Shit, I was swiping smokes in 5th grade, 7th grade was when we'd swipe parent's weed.

Still just seems excessive and an acting crutch "what do I do with my hands?"

Bogart shifts a little in his grave.

Things need to get moving. First two episodes have been pretty bland, has not lived up to the hype the trailer induced. They need to knock some socks off tonight to keep me interested.

Oh, furcryoutloud. Calm down. The Sopranos took the first season to get some good buzz. The Wire didn't set the world on fire for some time. Breaking Bad didn't wow everybody right away, either. And that's good. Don't be all folded arms, "entertain me, bitches". Shit, 2001 was basically a flop first time around at the box office. It's all, gimmee, gimmee, gimmee, I want it now. Sheesh. Stop and swish it around a little.

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Backin' Benny here; all classically good things take time to develop. In fact, one should probably be at least a little suspicious of immediate smashes in the extended format i.e. TV - they tend to fade into ignominy rapidly.

Find myself agreeing with Benny here too

although I disagree about Breaking Bad, I was pretty blown away with that show right from the start..
and just to counter-point, GoT was pretty money right from the start, and Boardwalk was too

Oh, I was hooked on BB after the second episode, when that bathtub fell through the ceiling. But I didn't watch it until it was on Netflix. These things need word of mouth to get going.

I'm pissed that they had no patience for Vinyl, and horses had to die for Luck. I liked both of those.

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Originally Posted by AK47bp

Too much smoking,

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I went to boarding school from fall 79 to spring 82. At that time, a boarding student could smoke cigerettes in thier dorm room, with only thier roomate present, provided they had written parental permission given to the school.

I'm obviously pretty old, but to memory maybe 40% of the student body had permisssion. Cigs were sold at the school store. And that's 8-9 years later when we were much more enlightened. Personally, what I remember is you just accepted it without even noticing. Planes, offices, etc. Stephen king wrote about it, and I remember it clear as day, the waiting room in the hospital in my hometown had these big white freestanding ashtrays.

Think about it.

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Originally Posted by MARSHALL TUCKER

I went to boarding school from fall 79 to spring 82. At that time, a boarding student could smoke cigerettes in thier dorm room, with only thier roomate present, provided they had written parental permission given to the school.

I'm obviously pretty old, but to memory maybe 40% of the student body had permisssion. Cigs were sold at the school store. And that's 8-9 years later when we were much more enlightened. Personally, what I remember is you just accepted it without even noticing. Planes, offices, etc. Stephen king wrote about it, and I remember it clear as day, the waiting room in the hospital in my hometown had these big white freestanding ashtrays.

Think about it.

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100%. During my brief stint in the sex work industry, everyone smoked. And that was decades later, when tobacco use rates were already in serious decline.

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Originally Posted by Sirshredalot

During my brief stint in the sex work industry,

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Pics or it did't happen :tongue:

Seriously though. What??

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Originally Posted by Sirshredalot

100%. During my brief stint in the sex work industry, everyone smoked.

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Fluffer or stunt cock?

I'd like to know more about what the point of this show is....is it just a snapshot of that time and place? Is it a character story? Are we tracking the development of the culture? As it stands, from my point of view it's just an interesting snapshot of a time and place but not much else.

Few things....this really makes me reflect on what cell phones have done to us. You see how people navigated dangerous situations and dangerous people without the cell phone lifeline. You see how thugs had so much more time and space with nobody instantly on the phone to 911. It's crept up slowly enough that seeing an accurate slice of life from back then really puts our current state into perspective.

Also....what a mustache and V8 paradise. Sometimes I stache out, and sometimes I drive the F250 around....but it always feels just a little contrived. That was the real shit back then.

Show is supposed to be about the start of the porn industry

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Originally Posted by ill-advised strategy

I'd like to know more about what the point of this show is....is it just a snapshot of that time and place? Is it a character story? Are we tracking the development of the culture? As it stands, from my point of view it's just an interesting snapshot of a time and place but not much else.

Few things....this really makes me reflect on what cell phones have done to us. You see how people navigated dangerous situations and dangerous people without the cell phone lifeline. You see how thugs had so much more time and space with nobody instantly on the phone to 911. It's crept up slowly enough that seeing an accurate slice of life from back then really puts our current state into perspective.

Also....what a mustache and V8 paradise. Sometimes I stache out, and sometimes I drive the F250 around....but it always feels just a little contrived. That was the real shit back then.

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I think, so far, it's an attempt to humanize the sterotypical pimp/street walker culture.
If it's about the beginnings of the porn film industry, then it has to move to L.A. in a few seasons.

I'm amazed at how easy the pimps and goombahs have it parking their boat like cars. They just drive up to the door. I don't think so.

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So uh they've talked about it a couple times now, and maybe I'm just an idiot, but...

what actually is "The Deuce"?

I used to underage drink at a bar called 222. Triple Deuce.

Not sure what The Deuce is, maybe Franco's new bar?

The Deuce = The Forty-Deuce = 42nd street around 7th & 8th