Penny Dreadful: City of Angels – Season One (DVD)

Is you watched the first Penny Dredful- this is nothing like it- it is however very exciting and intriguing! Couldn’t stop watching- and when over I definitely wanted more!

I am a Penny Dreadful fan & found this story to be very good. Its a shame that season 2 was cancelled by Showtime.

This is very good. The acting was excellent from the main cast to the supporting cast. It had good cultural analysis, but did not get preachy. The horror story is about a malignant supernatural entity determined to provoke the worse qualities of human nature to make things worse in Los Angeles, CA, in the late 1930s. The good guys try to prevent it from being successful, but mostly fail. It ends aimed at a second season that evidently will not happen (bummer!), but since the "future" of the story is well-known (WW2, the wars after it, and all the cultural strife in the U.S.), the final episode's ending works as a final ending, which means the viewer isn't left hanging, just regretting the decision to cancel the series. G. Richard Bozarth

Warning: SpoilersThe series takes place in 1938 Los Angeles. It runs with several subplots, Nazis, freeway, Latino community, and a new cult church. Like a good story there are many intersections. As a child Tiago Vega (Daniel Zovatto) watched his father burned alive. He attempted to save him, but was supernaturally pushed away by Santa Muerte (Lorenza Izzo) marking him for destiny. The story is also reflective of modern times. Tiago grows up to become a detective. He is not wanted by the white community and is viewed as a traitor by his own people. He does not know where he belongs and has a luke warm character and only asserts who he is in one scene near the end.Natalie Dormer plays multiple characters who promote evil. She has a perfect doll face. As the sister of Santa Muerte she collects souls also reminiscent of the ancient story of Ishtar and Ereshkigal. This reflects the duo nature of women, which we see in the conflict of Sister Molly (Kerry Bishé ). Michael Gladis is a gay xenophobic councilman who sides with the Nazis and takes donations from them. Together they work with the evangelical cult similar to modern alliances of politicians and white supremacist. He wants to put America first. The freeway which destroys neighborhoods is described as the "building walls."Nathan Lane played a Jewish detective, the partner of Tiago. he was an interesting character but not as complex as Peter Craft (Rory Kinnear) a Kupp heir who is against war. He is torn as he is seduced by Elsa again played by Natalie Dormer whose German accent gave me a flashback to Teri Garr in "Young Frankenstein." It was something to look past.The fate of the whole world was centered in LA at this time, the Butterfly Effect.I loved the characters. I loved the plot and the nuances to modern times and the BLM movement reflected in Latinos. Townsend as being similar to Trump. What I didn't like was the ending which seemed abrupt and pointless.Guide: F-word. Sex. Brief distant corpse nudity.

I really liked it. I did not view the series as a “historical” mandate but rather took it for what it was-an excellent mystery, with supernatural overtones that played in front of a unique cultural backdrop. Some reviewers drew a parallel with the current political scenario and quit viewing in protest. Too bad for them.The acing was fantastic at all levels. One reviewer had disdain for Nathan Lane. I could not imagine anyone else playing the part. The whole cast was excellent.I m not into the social justice movement but as a 73 year old who saw drastic changes, in this country, I know first hand that racial disparity that once existed. LA was Notorious for distinctive racial and police viewpoints.

Received in excellent condition sooner than later....thanks.

Not as supernatural as the original series, but still quite amazing. I wish they had done a second season.

Very good addition to the series. I enjoyed both a great deal. Excellent acting and set design.

As always the Penny Dreadfull series are among the best stories ever.

A magnificent series equal to Penny Dreadful and at times, as scary! When you can't wait till the second season, you know you're on a winner!!

All was good but a bit slow. Understandable due to more than one circumstance, Holidays and pandmic.