SummaryThe Farrell Clan of Shay Mountain that includes Big Foster (David Morse), his son Lil Foster (Ryan Hurst) face a power struggle with Lady Ray (Phyllis Somerville) and a coal company who wants to mine the mountain.
SummaryThe Farrell Clan of Shay Mountain that includes Big Foster (David Morse), his son Lil Foster (Ryan Hurst) face a power struggle with Lady Ray (Phyllis Somerville) and a coal company who wants to mine the mountain.
These extended sojourns on the mountain, though beautifully shot, are self-serious to the point of spoof. That said, the performances--a supremely shaggy David Morse as Big Foster, a mercurial leader of the clan, Joe Anderson as Asa, who returned to the fold after a decade in the outside world, and Thomas M. Wright as troubled deputy Wade Houghton Jr., with a mysterious link to the Farrells--are strong throughout. And there's much in the material that resonates.
The pace and writing are meaningful and sometimes verge on elegant, as Outsiders patiently explores the power dynamics in the town and the strange world on the mountaintop above.
If this was Stark vs Lannister, you wouldn't blink an eye: but since it is hill people versus valley, its suddenly weird?!? This series touches my heart in a number of ways that most people may not connect with. Do NOT boil this show down to HiIllbillies vs Common folk! There are SO many ancient Irish heritage religious beliefs involved along with the classic 1 legion vs 1 legion with a few characters sprinkled on both sides. The previous was my actual response, the following is an actual critic's review:
On the surface, the Appalachian-set story is one part “Macbeth,” one part “Sons of Anarchy” and one part “Mad Max,” rounded out by a cast of notable actors including Ryan Hurst, David Morse and Joe Anderson. . . Dig a little deeper, and this is a unique tale of a pelt-wearing mountain folk who refuse to desert their posts when a big bad corporate mining company attempts to blow them out of house and **** the show’s core, it’s easy to quickly recognize that these “good guys” are not good, per se. They accept modern day conveniences when it suits their needs, and don’t seem to care who they hurt in order to maintain their way of living,
Sweeping and complex with a large cast of characters to delve into, “The Outsiders” isn’t necessarily new or gripping television, but it’s structured drama that delivers results
i love it...awesome hope it stays around **** the theme song is the best...morgan o'kane ..now im a huge fan of **** is awesome also... check him out as well
The world of the show feels lived in, especially once it discovers its sense of humor, evidenced by an escalatingly destructive drinking-and-bonding session between Foster and Asa. For all its essential artificiality, Outsiders’ cast resolutely keeps things natural.
If the half-baked subcultural anthropology doesn't grab you, Outsiders starts slow, but begins detonating little pockets of insanity in nearly every episode, proving that audacity without dramatic foundation can be amusing, if not necessarily good.
I didn't think I was gonna like this at first, but after the first 30 minutes I'm hooked. The actors are what really makes this show worth watching. The setting and mystery are just an added bonus.
Nothing is scarier than hillbillies. And that's what you get in "Outsiders," a clan of uncouth mountain men who are sitting on prime coal land. Of course the powers that be want to move them out, but most people are afraid of them. That's the set up for the series, which had a pilot that was interesting at times. Thomas M. Wright was great as the reluctant Sheriff's deputy, so I'm curious to see where it goes. But the pilot was also rough because it didn't explain much. I still don't have a feel for the characters or the world.
This show is strange--and not always in a good way. It depicts what's supposed to be a remote, insular community with its own customs and mysterious powers, but it doesn't really commit to this "outsider" culture. The Farrell clan are supposed to avoid mainstream civilization at all costs, yet they have an endless supply of gasoline for their ATVs. They use archaic language but screw up the grammar. They're supposed to relish a simpler, more natural life yet can't have a party without electronically amplified music (presumably requiring yet more gasoline to run the generators). Overall, it's the stylists on the show--hair, costumes, and set design--not the writers and actors, who are doing the cultural heavy lifting.
About the actors: David Morse is arguably overdue for a lead role in a TV series, and he tears into this one with sharpened teeth. But the role is so one-dimensional that I tired of him by the end of the second episode. He's a caricature, a manipulative brute who always, always does the wrong thing. If the Farrells and their mountain are supposed to possess mystical knowledge (as we are told), then how did they miss his petty tyranny for 60 years? Joe Anderson as Asa, the Farrell who left then returned to the mountain, has a slightly more complex role, though at times what looks like complexity turns out to be a plot device. Anderson pulls it off, though, because he knows how to play melodrama without chewing scenery, unlike Morse.
I'm still watching, though I think my interest lies about halfway between genuine curiosity and fascination with a car crash. And I do really like long hair on men, so there's that, too.
I wanted to like this show. A group of people who want to be "free" claim territory in the mountains & form a renaissance/tribal sort of society. I watched the first 7.5 episodes.. got halfway through the 8th episode when Foster announced "his choice" to marry a female already taken. This is a show where only the men are free. Females are used for domestic chores, sex, & procreation. No logical female would give up their rights to live on this mountain lol. What a freaking joke.
We only watched this because it's filmed in my backyard but I have no idea were they got the endless mountains from ? The show is very cheap a group of hillbilly biker wannabe hippies some how control all the mountains with a few bear traps and a little spy girl that's faster then the Flash ? The main cop is scared to death of them because they killed his dad and doesn't like to go up on the mountain so he lets them ride quads though town though the stores and still what they want . How did they get the bikes ? how did they get all the guns houses etc and whats up with the stupid catch phrase - GET GET YAH ? Well it's the stupidest thing you'll ever hear and one guy says it over and over and over x999,999,999 etc . Nothing in this show makes sense what it comes down to is - the hero left this crap hole and then comes back the big bad guy dose what it takes to become the big boss but then some rich people want the hill and they try and take it and so boring so boring so bad this is making me relive it . ahhhhh ! Just PASS ! Pass on this one ! O and Ryan Hurst Plays the same character he always plays so if your a fan of his your NOT missing anything !