Should You Judge A Show By Its Pilot? Recap Of The First Episode Of ‘The Leftovers’

Contains spoilers.

Last night, The Leftovers, a new drama series based on the novel of the same name, premiered on HBO. In case you missed it, everything you saw in the trailer leading up to last night’s episode was practically the entirety of the pilot. Unfortunately, the kickoff of the series was less thrilling than it was made out to be—and far more bleak.

However, the tone set by writers Damon Lindelof (Lost) and Tom Perrotta, who penned the novel, and director Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights) gave us an inkling that the series has the potential to be a slow-rolling character piece before delving deep into what society might look like after the mysterious disappearance of 2% of the world’s population, or about 140 million souls.

The series is Melancholia-like, a fishbowl focusing on the tiny microcosm of suburban Mapleton, three years after the world-wide vanishings took place. Our protagonist, police chief Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux) is trying his best to keep his broken family together along with an entire town of mourning individuals. His story is supported by five intertwining character subplots that offer bits and pieces of information as to how the world is dealing with the loss of “the departed,” as they’re referred.

In case you missed it or want more of a breakdown before next Sunday’s episode, here’s what you need to know about the main players of Mapleton.

The pilot opens up with a stressed-out new mother strapping her wailing newborn son, Sam, into his carseat. She turns around to check on him and poof—he’s gone. Mayhem briefly ensues before the screen cuts to black. Panicked 911 calls are heard in the background and then voilá, it’s three years later. Right out of the gate, what seemed like the most exhilarating introduction into a series—what would the world look, feel, and sound like if 140 million people suddenly vanished—was all but skipped over in less than 20 seconds.

What to expect in future episodes: Sam’s mom shows up at the same bar as Kevin Garvey. They end up sharing where they were on that infamous day. She’s dolled up, and her keen interest in him hints at a potential love interest.

Before jumping in to his character, let it be known that Don Draper better watch his back because there’s some new, fine looking swag on Sunday night primetime. All scruff and flattering police uniform aside, Garvey has an air about him similar to The Wire’s Detective Jimmy McNulty: he drinks too much, barely says anything, and when he does it’s, “F-this, f-that, f-you.” In all fairness, he’s attempting to raise two teens who want nothing to do with him after his wife, Laurie, skedaddled post-vanishings and joined the Guilty Remnant cult.

What to expect in future episodes: Toward the end of the pilot, Garvey drunkenly drives to a house occupied by the Guilty Remnant, where his wife now lives and begs her to come home. Laurie, near tears, looked like she wanted to run into his arms. Even though she didn’t, it makes us think she’s not 100% invested in the cult lifestyle.

All weird, cultishness aside, the Guilty Remnant is pretty darn cool in a really unsettling way. To be a member of the GR, you need to leave the comforts of your home to hole up with a bunch of strangers who you’re not allowed to speak to while chain smoking cigarettes and sporting all white clothing. Your objective is to recruit potential GR members by following them around at all hours of the day and night until they break down and join.

The M.O. of the Guilty Remnant is still a mystery, although it seems like they spawned out of the belief that the vanishings were not the result of a rapture, but rather a purely unfortunate chance. At a town parade marking the three-year anniversary of the events, the grieving townsfolk are challenged by the GR who hold up signs spelling, “Stop Wasting Your Breath.” Obviously pissing off a lot of (already) upset people, a mini-riot ensues, causing Justin Theroux to dole out a can of whoop-ass.

What to expect in future episodes: The pilot left us with Laurie, looking like she’s on her way to becoming a more prominent member of the group and helping new recruit, Meg (Liv Tyler), get comfortable at the GR headquarters.

Angsty Jill is the youngest of the Garvey clan, an upperclassman at her local high school, where she’s nearly kicked off the field hockey team for breaking her teammate’s nose. Hanging out with the wrong crowd, doing sexual favors for wannabe skater boys, and hanging out with the Carver twins from Teen Wolf—Jill is one giant cry for help.

Jill’s older brother Tom works for what seems to be a different cult located in the rural outskirts of Mapleton. When we first meet him, he’s driving a Congressman to be cleansed of his “burdens” by a mysterious man named Wayne, who’s at the head of the organization. Apparently Tom is an emotional wreck like his sister because in the last five minutes of the episode he strips completely naked, dives into the pool, and proceeds to scream and cry under water. In this moment, we’re probably supposed to be empathetic, but props to HBO for the full-frontal male nudity right off the bat.

What to expect in future episodes: Jill and Tom both seem completely broken by their mother’s absence and their dad’s hard exterior, so things may get worse the siblings before they get better. More full-frontals are TBD.

Meg (Tyler) is absent-mindedly planning a wedding with her fiancé who she doesn’t seem to be in love with in the slightest. We don’t know anything about her background or why she’s targeted by the GR as a potential recruit. She lashes out at first, but in a moment of weakness, caves, and shows up at their headquarters asking to stay for a couple of nights.

What to expect in future episodes: Meg’s vulnerability might be her perfect asset to becoming a model member of the GR.

*******

The show has an odd, incredibly dark tone for a summer drama series. However, if you’re in dire straights for something new to latch onto in the absence Game of Thrones and because your True Blood days are far behind you, The Leftovers isn’t a bad Sunday night pick. The pilot wasn’t groundbreaking by any means, but with a killer cast and primetime veterans behind the camera, the series looks like it has potential to reel us in, given the chance.

Catch The Leftovers on Sunday nights at 10pm on HBO and HBO Go.