I have and nope

I loathed the original book with the burning intensity of a thousand suns, so I'm not sure I'm the audience for this.

Yeah. I'm less interested in Sonia's review, and more interested in what the fine folks of the AV Club commentariat have to say. "Feminist," really? I guess I'll have to see…

I'm sorry you won't be covering the show more. I haven't watched anything more than the pilot, but I agreed with your review. Adam Rayner was so blah, his wife was infuriating, the rapeyness was over-the-top, and Abuddin seemed like it was a fake middle eastern country out of an '80s movie. But yeah… how many ways can…

Thanks for reminding me this song is actually buried on my iTunes! I think it would make a great opening theme. Complete with Joseph Fiennes dancing the robot.

This would be a way more interesting show if they actually engaged in some world-building, as you describe; instead you get this very reductive and cliched Fake Middle Eastern country out of a 1980s Goldie Hawn comedy (or the immortal "Carbombya" from the Transformers cartoon).

I'm from Bend, Oregon, and I've never seen my hometown feature in any pop cultural thing, ever— with the possible exception of Gypsy Rose Lee's memoir (the inspiration for the musical Gypsy) where she discusses being "stranded" in Bend for a few pages.

IMO, I don't really feel Penny Dreadful is actually Good… I'd put it more in the "Mediocre with Occasional Flashes of Quality" box.

Eva Green is wonderful, but she seriously needs to find better material. PD is better than Camelot at least, but Game of Thrones it ain't.

*cries softly*

An anthology TV series based on various Stephen King novels would be THE BEST THING EVER, and I will cry into my pillow knowing this will probably never happen.

Yeah, I'm hearing you. I loved the pilot, but I had a feeling I was watching a sinking ship by episode 4… so I bailed. However, I have faithfully read every one of @Kumagoro's scene by scene recaps, so I honestly feel I'm not missing much.

OMG, you're the best. Congratulations, Kumagoro: your pedantic scene-by-scene recaps have brought me out of lurkerdom to become a full-fledged AV Club commenter!