Need feedback on the show "Deadwood"

Jack Tabbs ^ | 5/26/06 | Jack Tabbs

[VadeRetro]

Never noticed it before, but is that a bad hairpiece or what?

[Michael.SF.]

A little rough on the language ????

You are being kind:

Al Swaringen

AL: Get in here. you know what I want ya F'n C.
whore: Yes, Al. (she drops to her knees)
AL: Ohhhh, F'n A. You S. like no one else
whore: mmmmpphhhh

( a few minutes of this banter goes by)

Al: Ahhhhhh, yes. F'n B, C. damn that was good. Go ahead and spit, you don't have to swallow............... this time.
Whore: (spits) Thank you Al.

We have not watched it since.

[ShandaLear]

Absolutely, but it's not for the faint of heart.

[PISANO]

Sharpen your 19 Century western variation of the queen's english.

One of only SIX shows I actually watch on TV.

Sopranos
CSI
Battlestar Gallactica
NCIS
The Unit

[stop_fascism]

And an incredible amount of profanity.

[socal_parrot]

Never noticed it before, but is that a bad hairpiece or what?

He definitely needs the "Shatner Turbo 2000" hairpiece.

[johncatl]

What is a it, a docudrama about Congress and the Senate?

[stop_fascism]

Do you have some evidence that people spoke like that?

[Huck]

ONLY 6? That's got to be several hours a week.

[Ichneumon]

We're not prudes, but the foul language was gratuitous and over-the-top.

I could not disagree more. There's nothing gratuitous about it (see my previous post). It would, in fact, be gratuitous to artificially make whores and thugs in a frontier town talk "nice" so as not to offend the sensibilities of the genteel townfolk...

[Cvengr]

I agree with you, although the Sopranos' gay voyage probably cost HBO a fair number of viewers.

One aspect of Deadwood, I find to be grossly revisionist is the volume of foul language. This doesn't mean the Wild West didn't have its fair share of ribald behavior, but the impressions left by John Wayne in True Grit, were probably closer to the norm throughout the settling period, than the saloon/whorehouse represented in Deadwood.

Chivalry, religion and the old country still had a marked influence upon social settings throughout the west.

[Armedanddangerous]

As for Deadwood, I must say this. In my younger years, when I used to drink a little beer on the weekends, I was an occasionally foul mouthed guy.

However, I have never seen so many creative uses of the F word in all my days.

As for the Shield, I love it, but seeing as this next one is the final season, it HAS to end badly for Vic Mackey and all involved...it just HAS to.

And I sort of like Vic Mackey.

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

Now my wife and I never swear and not because we are prudes but because we both have mastered the English language and we are able to express ourselves with intelligent words.

That's excellent! So, just out of curiosity, when you miss the nail-head and mash your thumb with the hammer, what *do* you say?

[Windsong]

What they said. Language is far worse than The Big Lebowski or Fargo (if youve seen those).

[Ichneumon]

Now my wife and I never swear and not because we are prudes but because we both have mastered the English language and we are able to express ourselves with intelligent words. That said, hearing profanity from others does not offend us nor does it disturb us. It does usually cause us to render a lower opinion of that person's intelligence and education however.

And again, not every character in "Deadwood" swears all the time. There are those who do, but the kids won't have trouble noticing that they're the characters who are either "low class", uncultured, or thugs. Some of the characters only use profanity in extreme situations. And some barely, if ever, use it at all, because they are able to express themselves, even forcefully when appropriate, by employing ordinary English like a fencer uses his sword. The kids are bound to understand the lesson.

Additionally, some of the characters in the show who swear habitually, like Trixie, find themselves embarassed when they swear around some of the characters who look down on such language or who are shocked by it, like Sol. Trixie has been trying to clean up her language as a result. Again, the kids will understand.

[manic4organic]

It's a show? I thought it was AlGore's nickname.

[The KG9 Kid]

I've seen testimonials written by miners of the time that exist in the annals of the Ancient and Honorable Order of E Clampus Vitus. The manner of speaking in our society is an accurate reflection of the language used at the time. We're the stewards of an almost unbroken historical timeline between then and now.

I'd show you these testimonials, but you're not a #@$%*&ing Clamper.

[billhilly]

"Even 12-year-old kids talk like drunken sailors when they get away from adult supervision."

This one did not. I enlisted in the Air Force at 18 and was shocked to hear such language as routine. That was in the mid fifties. Now we all get to hear it in any attempt to watch a movie, and on shows like Deadwood.

Having said that, and now pushing my seventies, I love Deadwood, if I can watch it alone. It is still embarassing to me to hear profanity in the presence of others.

[concentric circles]

Turn the sound down if you need to but it's worth checking out just to see the sweet talking costar, Melody Ranch.

[Ichneumon]

Chivalry, religion and the old country still had a marked influence upon social settings throughout the west.

...And it clearly does in "Deadwood" as well -- it just has more influence on some of the characters than others, same as today.