The Leftovers

I started this show because of the interesting premise (and partly because of Damon Lindelof). I love to watch movies and series with complicated storylines. The plot synopsis made me think it's a similar kind of show. A story about the sudden departure of 2% of the world's population; a mystery drama. But I soon realized that it's not about The Departed, it's about The Leftovers, as the name suggests. It isn't about getting answers to the "why"s or "how"s, it's about the lives of the people who have to survive without knowing what happened to the people they love, losing their loved ones, but not getting any closure.

And I'm so glad that this is what the show is about. I have never been so emotionally invested in a show and it's characters like this, ever before. It's the compelling storytelling, and the great acting, that makes it so good. Yes, we do not get satisfactory answers to all the questions raised, a lot of things don't seem logical; but it's not the kind of show to logically nitpicked. It's a show whose magic needs to be experienced to be fully appreciated.

This show has made me immensely sad. But I've never felt so happy to experience grief. This show is a genuine masterpiece. Not perfect, but it's the imperfection that makes it one of the best things ever put in television.

The Leftovers is one of my favorite shows of all-time. Everything about this show is great but the writing and acting is what really makes this show so special. All you have to do is read through the reviews to see how loved this show really is. Every review has one thing in common and that's they almost all mention how underrated this show is. It doesn't get mentioned when people name the best show ever but it absolutely belongs among them. It may be a little slow for some people but it does pick up. This isn't a show where you can just have it on in the background while you do other things. You need to sit and pay attention and if you do that then I promise you'll enjoy it.

I still want to find TV series that will impress me more than Leftovers, but nothing is closer to this show . I envy all of you who haven't watch it yet

I watched the first two seasons and liked it, but I didn't really get it. I was intrigued, but very confused. And then my 35 year old husband dropped dead suddenly when I was pregnant with our 2nd daughter. I saw the 3rd season after that massive loss and suddenly it all made so much sense.

Profound grief is what you need to understand and appreciate this show. Those of us on this side will get it, but if you don't know what we do, if you've never lost someone suddenly long before you expect them to go, it probably won't make much sense to you.

I rarely watch a show again, but now I plan to watch it all again.

I watched the first episode of The Leftovers when the series debuted and found it intriguing but not that engaging. So I gave up on it until, many years later, I read an article about how the series turned itself into one of the best series ever in season 2. After after finding this is the general consensus, I decided to check it out.

And yes, season 2 of this show about the aftereffects of a day where 2% of the population is riveting. It's this insane, intense, mysterious thing that keeps you off-balance. It was like a whole new series (be warned, you'll need to find a guide to the characters if you start on season 2; there's a lot you'll be wondering about).

Season 3 is also good, although in a different way. The series actually gets nuttier (telegraphed by the strange collection of opening-credits songs). It's a weird shift, since season 2 was pretty emotionally intense throughout, but it generally works.

Much of the power of the series is that it never lets you be sure of anything. There was one supernatural event years before that freaked people out, but the supernatural events in the series itself can be seen as fakes or hallucinations. Much of the series concerns what we believe and how we choose to believe.

There are some things I am not completely sold on. 2% of the population would mean a lot of people wouldn't have been directly effected, and people really do adapt pretty quickly to horrific disasters, but in the series everyone is traumatized for years and everyone's lives is centered around this single event. I don't find this entirely realistic. The third season centers on the belief that something big is coming that seems pretty random. And the ending ... well, it's consistent with the series, but it ultimately feels a little unsatisfying.

But overall well worth watching.