Patriot: American Dimes

November 11, 2018 6:05 PM - Season 2, Episode 1

John must make a choice at the train platform - be free from his obligations and adversaries by letting Agathe take the money or pursue her in an effort to protect his brother, father, and country.
posted by Catblack (12 comments total)

Taking place immediately after season one, I couldn't believe how effortlessly they continued the story.
posted by Catblack at 6:07 PM on November 11, 2018 [1 favorite]

Is the second season is visually breathtaking or is it just me? I love the cold gray palette of a european winter, and the episodes look like Hollywood movies in this season. It's really remarkable.
posted by mathowie at 6:14 PM on November 11, 2018 [3 favorites]

This show is so dark and so amazing. So goofy, so good-looking, so well-written, so funny. So fucking dark.
posted by zeek321 at 10:39 PM on November 11, 2018 [2 favorites]

I'm a little disappointed they used the Beastie's Sabotage rather than Vashti Bunyan's Train Song as the theme music this time around - made me wonder if this one might refocus on the brother as the new protagonist. Watched the first 5-10 minutes of s.2 ep.1, made me excited to binge via date night in the near future. I love the way all of the interactions are edited to feel like an ellipsis.
posted by SoundInhabitant at 12:54 PM on November 12, 2018

Yesss, I am so excited Patriot is back! It is so good. Trying not to burn through them too quickly, but I can already tell a rewatch will be in order by the end.

One of my very favorite things about this show is that you can never guess which encounters are going to escalate John's problems (Alice arrives... in time for a kidnapping), and which ones are going to fizzle out to nothing (Birdbath... knocks himself out).

SoundInhabitant, I also miss the old theme song, but the new one is Sure Shot, not Sabotage. That was the nickname Lawrence gave John after the duck hunt, so I think it fits.
posted by Sibrax at 1:32 PM on November 12, 2018 [2 favorites]

Is this where I admit to already having watched the whole thing? I think I have a Patriot addiction. At first, I was sad about the new opening as well, but by the end, I was into it. It is cool. (Although the video for the opening definitely doesn't approach the amazing two boys footage from season 1...)

This is the only show I can think of that I feel approaches the level of a good novel in terms of imbuing meaning all over the place in really creative ways that I don't expect.
posted by nosila at 11:53 AM on November 14, 2018 [3 favorites]

Holy shit, this show was great.

I don't know what I did wrong*, but I watched S1 last year and thought 'meh' at best. When I started S2 I realized I remembered exactly nothing from S1, so re-watched it. And was blown away by how great it was.

S2 was somehow even better.

*I must've been giving it like less than 20% of my attention while watching S1 the first time. Gotta stop doing that, it means I'm not fully engaged in anything I'm doing.
posted by bigjoec at 12:59 PM on November 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

I watched Season 1 three times. Once by myself. Then I convinced my wife she'd like and and we watched it together. I picked up on so much that I missed. Little bread crumbs dropped and then revisited a few episodes later. So great. Then I watched it a third time when my parents visited and we binged it in two days.

I finished Season 2 and am now watching it with my wife again for the "first" time (she doesn't know I've already watched it). I'll probably watch it a third time when my parents visit after Christmas.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 10:21 AM on November 21, 2018

I like how Michael Dorman's credit comes up just when the song plays "Mike D, come and rock the sure shot."

I just finished watching Season 2. Did they get a new actress to play Agathe? She seemed very different. Not just her hair, but everything about her seemed different from season 1.

I loved this show so much, considering I hadn't even heard about it a month ago. I've been telling everyone I know to watch it though I'm worried that some people just won't get it.

I love the use of music to drive the plot along, which was done even more in season 2.

I think I'll be rewatching the whole thing pretty soon.
posted by bondcliff at 7:33 AM on November 27, 2018

(Although the video for the opening definitely doesn't approach the amazing two boys footage from season 1...)


100%. That and the song choice (and I like that song) are good examples of the show's inexplicable misfires. I like the show's heart, but it can be frustrating as hell. The Wes Anderson imitation is often distracting (and I like Anderson)... but ultimately there's enough great moments mixed in to keep me watching.
posted by erikgrande at 8:31 PM on December 10, 2018

I took the video for the opening to be a home-made music video put together by Edward and Dennis.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 10:40 AM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]

I have started watching this show! Hello and sorry for spamming your RA as I hop through all the past episodes.
posted by jessamyn at 3:58 PM on August 28, 2019 [2 favorites]