I recently binge watched the entire series. Is it weird about that I feel really sad for the fictional family?
What did you think of the series and how it ended?
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I was bummed it was over and didn't feel that the ending fully did the series justice.
I watched it just before I moved to SLC and I'm always on the look-out for "average-seeming" FLDS families like the Henricksens (common name here, btw).
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@Mrs. Jacks: interesting about the last name...could be any neighbor next door!
Watching the fictional family really shed light on the reality show Sister Wives. These families really live underground. I feel horrible for the children who are legally illegitimate, but really do have loving fathers at home.
I get there are grave abuses, but if all parties consent why not plural marriage?
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: Societies with legal polygamy often struggle with some troubling dynamics... I think Big Love touches on the subject of "lost boys"? (I haven't seen the show, so I'm just going off what I've read.)
I just read this heartbreaking snippet from the lost boys Wikipedia page... so sad!
<< FLDS men are each expected to marry at least three wives. Since birth rates for boys and girls are roughly equal, and women do not enter the community in large numbers, there are not enough women for all men to do this.
While some boys leave by their own choice, many are ostensibly banished for conduct such as watching a movie, watching television, playing football, or talking to a girl. Some boys are told not to return unless they can return with a wife. One estimate is that between 400 and 1,000 boys and young men have been pressured to leave for such reasons. There are also young women who have left or been pressured to leave because they did not want to be part of polygamous marriages.
Boys in these sects are commonly raised not to trust the outside world, and may be taught that leaving their communities is a sin worse than murder. These boys are usually left with little education or skills applicable to life outside of their community of birth, and must learn to live in a society about which they know little, while dealing with the consequences of being shunned by their families, and believing they are beyond spiritual redemption. The families of banished boys are told that the boys are now dead to them. >>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_boys_(Mormon_fundamentalism)
I agree that consenting adults should be able to follow their hearts... but it gets tough when kids (like the lost boys) suffer terribly as a result! Until polygamous cultures can find a way to mitigate these problems, I think it will be tough for polygamy to go mainstream.
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@mrbee: I read about the Lost Boys on wiki too when the series had a Lost Boys storyline. To think a father would be so jealous of hus own son to render him homeless is disgusting. The elder make up offenses to justify casting out these young teens.
A friend worked in the L&D section of an Utah hospital and shared the horrific deformities many babies are born with due to the very small gene pool within some of the compounds. The nurses would tell the mothers the babies were stillborn even if they lived for just a few hours. She also witnessed pregnancy after pregnancy take a physical toll on these women in polygamous marriages.
When you hear the very bad side how some people are practicing polygamy the good (personal happiness) just doesn't make up for it.
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: Wow, had no idea about deformities! Scary stuff...
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I find these lifestyles so fascinating! I loved Big Love and Sister Wives
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I binge watched Big Love too, and it was and is still one of my favorite series ever. I was crushed when it was over!! I actually still have the series finale on my DVR (over 2 years later) because that last episode tore me up!!
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The series has a lot of Utah specific references and jokes that I didn't get until I moved here.
The lost boys are definitely a presence in my city and there is a lot of charity outreach to them. I'll sign on a different device to provide a link.
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I really liked the series, but was disappointed in the last season and I believe the finale made me want to throw the remote at the tv.
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Ok, if you haven't seen this film to understand the lost boys, I highly recommend it. It's called Sons of Perdition. Here is a link to the discussion between a local radio host and the filmmakers.
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i stopped watching the last season of the show because it got too soapy and ridiculous.
i actually just reread "under the banner of heaven" and recognized many of the real life stories of the compound warren jeffs ran from big love, the show pulled a lot from real life.
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Gahhh! We just finished last week. DH said we couldn't start another show because he's still too "connected" lol. By the end, I hated Bill and was ready for it to be over. While I don't doubt he loved his wives very much, his selfish pride drove their family to the ground and it looked like they were all getting along better without him.
I did really enjoy the show though
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The other major theme in the series that I found disturbing was the idea you can "pray the gay away."
The dynamic of the wives was so interesting. Each wife struggked in her marriage as she was figuring out what she wanted in her own life. Nicki proved hurt people hurt others. Barb found strength through humiliation. Margie, my fav, grew up.
@luckypenny: I agree, Bill was selfish. Even when he was trying to live his truth he didn't take into account everyone else's feelings.
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: Margie was my favorite too. And OMG she was 16!!!!
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@Mrs. Lemon-Lime: I was bummed with how things ended for Marg. It just didn't work for me.
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