The Book of Daniel: The Complete Series
With a family like this... God help him.
A provocative, edgy and compelling new drama, The Book of Daniel stars Emmy nominee Aidan Quinn (An Early Frost, Plainsong, Legends of the Fall) as the Rev. Daniel Webster, an unconventional Episcopalian priest. Webster is challenged on many levels as he struggles to be a good husband, father and minister, while navigating an often rocky relationship with church hierarchy, led by Bishop Beatrice Congreve (Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore).
Member Reviews
What a way to end with a cliffhanger - Sierra1411
I found it hard to believe when we came to the end of disk 2 and discovered there WAS no disk 3--truly gobstopping!
This series was funny and heartwarming and fostered great discussions. The lead character, Aidan Quinn, is a pill-popping Episcopalian priest who speaks frequently with Jesus who's trying to get him off the pills. His family includes a wonderful role-model of a mom, a gay son, an asian adopted son who can't keep his mouth shut, and a normally rebellious daughter who's an anime artist. The priest's two bishops are having an affair. This does not even mention a large cast of amusing/weird/law-breaking characters including the mob who keep the plots moving right along.
We loved it. So sorry it had to end when it did. It deserved at least a full season.Brilliant - Isis59
Get both dvds. The writing and acting are brilliant and way ahead of its' time. Not surprizing that this was pulled as the US are very conservative. If this had been launched on Canadian TV it would still be running. I loved it and wish it was on TV. Rumour has it that a network is considering putting this back on the air. Very bold content and no subject was left untold.Another Good Series Down the Drain - eoguy
I'm not a particularly religious man, but I really enjoyed the space and freedom this little diamond-in-the-rough gave the viewer. This TV series was one of the funniest, most touching programs around in early 2006. The flawed characters, headed by the Priest (Aidan Quinn)were each cinematic in their structure, yet still managed to maintain a sense of realism. Ultimately this show was cancelled due to complaints from Christian Americans to the network, putting pressure of getting the show off the air. Their complaint was that the priest was presented as a drug addict (he did pop pills) that had conversations with Jesus, and that his family (which included an adopted Asian teen and another son that was gay) was unrepresentative of real Christian families. Of course, any logical person knows the Christian viewers that complained were just kidding themselves, but they can take comfort in know that they'll be able to continue their quest to pluck reality from television -- as it worked with this show.
If you're not going to watch Book of Daniel for its quality casting and script, watch it for the controversy. Watch it to see exactly what pisses off Christian Americans enough to start a boycott campaign. After all, if you can't make them angry, what's the point in producing television programming?
Member Reviews
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What a way to end with a cliffhanger - Sierra1411
I found it hard to believe when we came to the end of disk 2 and discovered there WAS no disk 3--truly gobstopping!
This series was funny and heartwarming and fostered great discussions. The lead character, Aidan Quinn, is a pill-popping Episcopalian ...Brilliant - Isis59
Get both dvds. The writing and acting are brilliant and way ahead of its' time. Not surprizing that this was pulled as the US are very conservative. If this had been launched on Canadian TV it would still be running. I loved it and wish it was on TV. Rumour ...Another Good Series Down the Drain - eoguy
I'm not a particularly religious man, but I really enjoyed the space and freedom this little diamond-in-the-rough gave the viewer. This TV series was one of the funniest, most touching programs around in early 2006. The flawed characters, headed by the Priest ...