Penny Dreadful: City of Angels

I didn't doubt Nathan Lane was a good actor, and I can't say I remember seeing him in a dramatic role before this, however, he was EXCELLENT in Penny Dreadful: City of Angels. A true standout performance, IMHO, made all the more noticeable by the generally uninspiring and muddled overall story. Too many characters that would be the primary or secondary focus of an episode then largely forgotten other than popping up periodically w/o further development. It's set at an interesting time and place in history, but character motivation(s) and clarity of the stakes at hand were generally fuzzy and underdeveloped. Not sure that I'd bother w/ a second season.

I've seen the original and loved it. I agree with those who say don't compare it to the original because it's nothing like it except for one quick scene that appears supernatural. Do not expect the drama and horror of the original, at least two episodes in, because it's nothing like it. If you want to see a drama based on the history of Los Angeles watch Jack Nicholson in Chinatown for a great drama, this isn't living up to it as of yet.

How could that even happen? Isn't that the same showrunner who created the original series? The first five minutes already look strangely cheap, CGI fire from 20 years ago, artificial acting. Then this constant bloom / glare filter in almost every shot. The intense horror show atmosphere with emotional trauma, this time it is just gone.

I had to rewatch the first few minutes of the original to make sure I'm not betrayed by my memory. I wasn't. This just feels cheap and artificial, truly strange it is written by the same guy.

Forget the Penny Dreadful title. This has nothing to do with Gothic Horror, London, or the bleak literary melancholia associated with the Penny Dreadful original 19th century publications.

This shows primary flaw is the naming. Consider it as "City of Angels" as a stand alone show by the same producers as Penny Dreadful, and it holds up.

An extensive list of interconnected characters makes for intricate plot lines and a palpable build of tension.

The casting is solid. Strong performances by Dormer, Bishe, Kinnear, and Lane cover the plot holes and occasionally disingenuous writing.

Take it as a an American period thriller and it holds up. As a Penny Dreadful title; it fails

If you came here looking for the grim, supernatural awesomeness of the original Penny Dreadful, then keep on moving. I don't know why this wasn't just sold as some 1950s gangster series. The cast is amazing, great visuals and acting, but there is almost nothing supernatural about this! Which was kind of the entire point of Penny Dreadful. Aside from some dramatic walk-ons in a gorgeous leather gown from Dormer, and some odd side characters she somehow also needs to play, the supernatural aspect is completely missing. There is SO much that could have been done with the story. Disappointed because I was a huge fan of the original PD!