The Big Door Prize

Only three episodes have been released so it's too early to give a whole-hearted rating or review but here is what I can tell you right now. The townspeople are.mostly quirky and seemingly carefree for the most part which makes what starts to happen to them even more interesting. But I'm surprised this is called a comedy (even though there are some humorous moments) because there's something really weird going on in Deerfield.

The writing is good and the cliffhanger endings are great, making this a very bingeable show. The viewer will quickly become really curious to find out where the story is going. Since it's categorized as a "comedy", it can't get too dark- but it sure feels like it will go there. I'm a fan so far and intrigued almost as much as I was with Severance.

As others have mentioned, if you're looking for an obvious "realist" explanation for anything here you'll probably not enjoy the ride. That's kinda the point. It's not totally surreal mind you, but there is a great deal of "suspension of disbelief", which will turn people off. For instance, It starts plot driven, but actually ends up being mostly character studies. And of course, not all characters are equally interesting...

However, some of the card reveals are quite intriguing, and there are enough chuckles along the way to make this a fun watch. Some ideas are well executed and remind me of the Oracle talking with Neo from The Matrix. Other times, the motivations or ideas are just a mess. (You'll know which episode I mean.)

I am usually let down by these multi-season puzzle shows, but knowing the pitfalls I still think it has potential.

I think most comments are missing the bigger point, are you missing out on your potential or life's dream? I find the show very interesting and plan to read the book. The machine is causing a midlife crisis, something we all will hit at some point in our lives. I love the cast and I'm on episode 6 and so far have found it funny and thought provoking.

The cards are giving the characters to opportunity to tap into parts of themselves they've suppressed. I have seen many couples who have been together for years and they mold themselves to be in the relationship sometimes ignoring their own desires. And it also shows that we choose to convince ourselves we don't want a certain path but indeed we do. Good show!

Not sure why they promoted/labeled this as a comedy.

I guess the marketing people saw Chris O'Dowd and they assumed it was a comedy (and not in the Greek sense)?

You will not laugh with this. You might smile a bit during some sweet and tender moments, but no funny moments.

Expect comedy-seekers to be very dissapointed and give real bad scores.

Sci-fi people will give a fair score (as mine).

A machine shows up in a town, which uncovers people's "potential".

You'll have many theories about how it determines the "potential", but it definitely shakes these people's small-town lifes.

It's well paced, keeps you watching without boring you, throwing a bone now and then, being smart (not "really smart", but smart enough), it doesn't feel gimmicky, all flows fine,...

It's not rivetting, and it's very definitely not a comedy.

It's not brilliant, but it does feel sincere and is well done.

Clearly better sci-fi than most of the stuff out there.

Will watch future episodes.

Thanks to the guys making it.

We watched Season 1 and quite enjoyed it mostly because of the excellent character work by a strong ensemble. Yes, you had to suspend belief, but that seemed obvious from the premise before watching a single episode. We are loving Season 2. If you enjoyed the characters in Season 1, you will really love how they are developed in Season 2. You see so much more of the hearts of each character and the connections between the characters in really lovely ways. No, it's not a comedy like Schitt's Creek, but if you loved the small town sense of community and connectedness from Schitt's creek, you will really love Season 2 of The Big Door Prize.