Over the last week many diehard Preacher fans have expressed their opinion on the pilot episode. While IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic all report stellar ratings, there are a number of fans that feel as if the pilot was terrible. Some YouTube videos even claimed that it “completely sucked”. So, why are fans so upset about the pilot?
It is very important to understand that the pilot was not in the source material. It was more of a prequel to the comic books than an adaptation. This has infuriated some. Fans of the graphic novel want to see the series start with Jesse, Tulip and Cassidy sitting in the diner discussing how they got to where they are. It will likely be the case that we do not get to see this scene for quite some time, if ever.
Ok, so the TV show is not an exact panel by panel adaptation of the comic books. What else?
Well, there are some that are completely against Dominic Cooper being cast as Jesse Custer. He does not have long hair. He is not a true southern (he is from England). And, he isn’t taller than 5’10”, dammit! I’m not even kidding, these are the three biggest frustrations for Preacher fans. Personally, I think he did a pretty good job in the pilot.
Tulip. Oh boy. The subject of Tulip O’Hare has a number of people enraged. We won’t even go into the racial decision. Fans of Preacher know Tulip as Jesse’s voice of reason and someone that does not seem aggressive at all. In fact, in the comics, she is more of a bystander that happens to get Jesse’s attention when he is not in search of God. We all remember when Jesse left her the second time. Personally, I absolutely loved the TV version of Tulip. I think it is awesome that she is a badass and in my opinion she stole the show.
Arseface and Sheriff Root. First of all, we haven’t even learned of the name Arseface, which has already pissed off some. And how the hell is Sheriff Root in all 10 episodes of the first season? He was only in the first few comic books! Ok, ok. Remember when I said the pilot was a prequel? While I don’t think we will get to see Sheriff Root fuck himself, we will likely see Jesse end his reign as sheriff in one way or another.
There are a few other issues people had with the pilot episode but they were so ridiculous I won’t even mention them. Personally, I liked the pilot episode and cannot wait to see the second episode. What did you think about the pilot? Was it that bad? Please discuss in the comments below.
June 1, 2016 at 2:48 pm
I thought it was quite entertaining. Die hard fans are hating it because it isn’t very much like the comic yet, I think.
June 7, 2016 at 4:22 am
Never read the comics and know nothing about the storyline. This show SUCKS! Two episodes in and I’m still confused, only entertaining part is the Irish vampire (still not enough to make us watch another episode). Did I say that this show SUCKS!?!
June 21, 2016 at 3:46 pm
IT Truly SUCK !…
June 28, 2016 at 6:49 pm
Heeh sometimes the only entertaining part in the comic is the Irish vampire too.
June 7, 2016 at 10:05 am
I loved it – I have not read the comics yet but come on – if they made it exactly as comic then you know everything (I.e. Walking dead-no Daryl Dixon – can you imagine??) I think I’ve fallen in love with Jesse Custers eyes – I think he’s perfect!!!
June 12, 2016 at 7:27 am
Also two episodes in and I really couldn’t care less about the show. I never read the comics, but I am familiar with the premise. But just speaking about the show itself, it just left me completely indifferent. I am not at all invested in the characters, the environment or setting of the show. I will likely stick around for a few more episodes, but if it continues to be as underwhelming at it has up to now, I’m done!
PS “Outcast” on Cinemax, now there is a show, also two episodes in, that I was really taken with. Everything I expected and wanted from “Preacher”, I got instead from “Outcast”!
June 13, 2016 at 3:36 pm
I can abide genesis blowing up various preachers even though it never happened in the comics. I can deal with Jesse being a short limey and sheriff root being a pussy and even quincannon meats being there. But genesis merging with Jesse should have killed the congregation. Quincannon meats is part of a much much later story arc and in a different state. And I don’t mind tulip not being a blonde, but her personality and the fact she still talks to jesse? I just want to say to Seth rogan, thanks for fist fucking my favorite comic into being a jar jar bins of itself. Eat a giant bag of shit and chase it with a shit shake and then brush your teeth with shit paste and shit floss.
June 13, 2016 at 10:05 pm
It was worse. I hated it so much, and I stress the words SO MUCH, that it even made me lose respect for Garth Ennis. Period. How come he supported this utter and complete nonsense??? I dunno nor want to. Simply put, I couldn’t find anything “likeable” about the pilot, at all. It was dull, slow, uninspired and boring as hell (pun intended)… I tell ya’, I’m the biggest PREACHER fan there is south of the U.S. border and had been waiting for an adaptation since the very first story arc, but they lost me IN THE VERY PILOT fer cryin’ loud!!! The only reason I visit this site is to check the market prices for my Preacher copies ’cause I fear this damn show will devalue them to less than the cover price! Not recommending it to anyone and already calling it ‘the worst comic-to-TV adaptation ever’. ‘Nuff said.
June 16, 2016 at 5:45 pm
totally agree with you Vicc
July 4, 2016 at 8:58 pm
Boo-hoo, Vicc. Usually when I hate something I ignore it and certainly don’t plaster by ramblings over the interwebs about how much I hate it.
August 14, 2016 at 5:53 am
No, ToxicScott doesn’t “plaster his ramblings over the interwebs” about how much he hates something. Unless someone plasters their ramblings over the interwebs about how much they hate something, then he plasters his ramblings over the interwebs about how much he hates it when people plaster their ramblings over the interwebs about how much they hate something.
June 15, 2016 at 3:58 am
I’ve grown weary of all the “Southern” films and TV shows whose casts are composed almost entirely of British and Australian actors doing poor imitations of characters from THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES.
And it isn’t just the poorly done accents that bother me; it’s the all-around lack of an authentic Southern essence. “Soul,” let’s call it.
There are plenty of excellent Southern thespians who could deftly fill the roles in question, if only Hollywood were smart enough to hire them.
June 16, 2016 at 5:43 pm
I don’t know anything about the comic book so I see it with an unbiased eye and the pilot was utterly boring. I had to force myself to keep watching since I saw high ratings on few critic sites but this episode was pure awfulness with bad actors, bad effects and bad dialogs. Nearly everything said are meaningless banalities with no help in unfolding a story towards a certain goal. How anyone can like such crap is out of my understanding.
June 19, 2016 at 12:23 am
I had an emotional investment in the pilot, as I admittedly loved the comics. The comics were a blast. I get that the cultural references of the early 90s would seem a little dated; kids these days probably just know Kurt Cobain as that guy on t-shirts. I also recognize that some elements of the comics–the profuse profanity, the graphic violence and sexual content, the blasphemous premise–would need to be watered down for AMC.
That said, a lot of what had changed, it seems like Seth Rogen and his buddies got really, really baked and said “You know what would be so badass? You know how Tulip is a hitman, er, hitgirl (cough, cough), sort of? What if they’re all, Jesse, Tulip, and Cassidy like, assassins? How cool would that be? Then they can all do crazy assassin stuff together! (fist bump)”
Tulip’s charm was that she didn’t start out as a badass, but blossomed into one. Jesse was cool because he wasn’t some special forces contract killer, but just a tough guy who could throw a good punch if needed. And Cassidy was just a drunk, funny punk rocker (with a great backstory) who ripped open baddies’ throats.
They made Sheriff Root harmless. They made Arseface into Jesse Custer’s buddy. I don’t see any way Jesse is going to end up on the plantation, which was the most intense and memorable story arc of the series. And what about the Saint of Killers, the Meat Man, and Si Coltrane? Or maybe just Bob Glover and Freddy Allen, Sexual Investigators? If the pilot’s tone and trajectory are any indication, if we do get to see these characters, they’ll be some bowdlerized (or bad Tarantino imitation) shadows of their comic selves.
I guess the problem is that, although the Preacher comics *were* over the top and extremely coarse, they were also smart and funny. The beautiful character interaction and development shined through all of the layers of blood and guts and sodomy and sacrilege. And the TV series just seems to have latched onto the most superficial elements of the comics, made them more Zach Snyder than Garth Ennis, and left out the great storytelling. Maybe I’m just getting old in hipster years, but there you have it. Hopefully AMC doesn’t try its hand at Stray Bullets or Transmetropolitan next.
June 21, 2016 at 3:58 pm
I will try any show once, but I just don’t get it, maybe if he can’t be a preacher, try something new like ,,,, maybe a thugg/ killer….lol
June 28, 2016 at 6:55 pm
I liked it. I’d go so far as to say the character introductions were more interesting and fun than the first issues of the comic. And the actors are pretty good, so that always helps.
August 2, 2016 at 7:35 am
I have never read the comics, so I don’t have a problem with deviating for the sake of the show. But to be completely honest, the this show sucks on many levels. Some say that they didn’t have a big enough budget, however, the pilot episode was so action packed that I don’t think that’s the case. It truly lacks character development through the writing and good actors to bring the chemistry together. It would have been better to introduce characters as the show progressed through the season. Instead we get this Irish vampire coming out of nowhere who then just chills in Jesse’s church doing nothing for the whole season. His character is just too cool to be hanging out in such a lame ass boring town. The characters don’t mesh well on screen, and some characters bring nothing interesting to the show, like the woman who is Jesse’s church assistant. Tulip keeps wanting Jesse to do a job with throughout the whole season, which gets repetitive and old. They could’ve sped things up a bit. Other parts of the season were so boring and again repetitive with those angels attempting to get “Genesis” out of the preacher. As the season went on, I thought I was watching the same episode over and over. The worst part of the show is how confusing the interactions between characters are. One minute Jesse is fighting this guy who he thinks is beating his wife, and their animosity continues throughout the season, but in the final show, they’re suddenly friends all of a sudden? Way to confuse your audience. Not to mention the flashbacks from the first couple episodes were pointless, because they never go anywhere within that episode. They think that I’m going to remember one little flashback from the 3rd episode, that pertains to the 10th episode? They should try to help their audience make sense of that flashback within a reasonable time frame within that hour long episode. I guess that would be the editors fault. The whole show is just so random that it does not connect the audience to feel anything for the characters. So yeah, this show has crappy writers who can’t develop characters or plot, editors suck with their flashbacks, and the actors suck at chemistry. All and all, I have been left feeling nothing for this show. I only went along for the ride, because my husband wanted to give the show a chance. Ultimately he agrees that it has been a waste of time. But who knows, maybe Season 2 will really take off.
August 14, 2016 at 5:48 am
The show was god-awful, and Tulip was the worst of the worst, just beating out Jesse. It’s like they were trying to make a character that literally every sane person would hate unconditionally. Everything is offensive to her and everyone who annoys her slightly deserves to die. That’s what the writing has conveyed to me. Fuck her, fuck Seth Rogen, fuck anyone who didn’t think this show was hot garbage. The two positive things I’ll say are Cassidy was cool and the show wasn’t as bad as Jessica Jones.