osterj-47244 I didn't really know what to expect going in to this show. I was interested to see how my Catholic wife felt about this show as well. She didn't have any issues with it from a religious stand point but one thing we did agree upon is how boring this show is. Full transparency we only got halfway through the season before quitting because we just didn't care. Nothing happens except people talking. They walk and talk, sit and talk, stare awkwardly at one another before talking, talk about what to talk about later, and have visions just to talk to them. Don't get me wrong the acting is great and the setting is fantastic but there was little substance to keep my attention. I was hoping for a look at the inner workings of the Vatican with a little excitement but found myself just browsing Reddit while people conversed in the background. For a show set within such an old instition that has been involved in so much world history it sure came off as exciting as watching people walk through a garden talking.

jc1999 'The Great Beauty' and 'Youth' already proof Sorrentino's potential and natural-born talent for directing, but, once again, he's surprised us with a wonderful series, following the story of such a complex character (Lenny Belardo) masterly portrayed by the wonderful Jude Law. I'd say this is his best work ever! Diane Keaton is also amazing, as always. The cinematography is delightful and the music suits perfectly this work of art. Each and every episode touches your soul. I can't believe 'The Young Pope' didn't get more Golden Globe and Emmy nominations. This is one of the best shows in history, by far. I can't wait for 'The New Pope'!

Maryanne Smart I love Jude Law, and I was so up for a gripping HBO series addiction, but after the first episode, I was distracted and un-engaged. It might just be me, but every dramatic moment, every bit of profound dialogue followed by thoughtful violin music, landed flat. The new pope is American for some reason - cool. He's vindictive, petty and contrary - got it. He may or may not actually be an atheist sociopath - okay.So? So that's it I guess. Watch a mean pope stomp around the Vatican ordering cherry coke zeros and being rude to people who are forced to be reverent to him. If you like it, if it blows your mind, power to you. I might check out what else is on.

calvinnme ...Just as the people of Gotham wondered who Batman was, what made him what he was, I wonder who IS Pope Pius XIII. He is Machiavellian, he has no problems humiliating people such as the Italian prime minister, and boasting about it to a journalist, telling her the secret to humiliating someone is to not let them know they've been humiliated. Hardly Christ-like. After a young woman who had been barren spends time with the Pope and then becomes pregnant and gives birth, Pius visits the hospital where mother, father, and baby are. The parents have chosen the name "Pius" for the child and Lenny finds a way to insult the husband not once but twice, the last time calling the child "Pius XIV" to perhaps cast doubt on the child's paternity. Nope, there was no papal canoodling that produced this child ... but the husband acts unsure and Lenny/Pius picks up on it and needlessly exploits it. He gives his address to the cardinals and starts it with a knock knock joke but segues into a speech where he claims what was once open shall be hidden. He wants no compromise with the world, just fanatics for God, he wants being a Catholic to be hard work. He doesn't care if that means less followers. But Pius XIII is also Lenny Belardo, an orphan raised in a Catholic orphanage with Sister Mary (Diane Keaton) as a stand-in mother, although she warns him not to think of her that way. Actually Lenny was abandoned, and where his mother is and why she found him so disposable is never far from his mind nor far from his acts as pope. How did this happen? The conclave was split between choosing a conservative and liberal pope and picked Lenny as a compromise who they thought could be easily controlled. Ironically Lenny, as pope, has the word "compromise" banned from the cardinals' vocabulary. Besides this there is the cinematography, the acting, the way the delightful dialogue flowed in unexpected ways, and just how Lenny (and Jude Law) made it worth it all. We have the pope chain smoking, in shades, praying underwater for what seems an unnatural amount of time, raising the near dead as a teen and as pope striking down the exploitative while surrounded by 18 wheel trucks, both times with a silent prayer. What he said to God is all of ours to guess. We'll see about season two, but as long as they have Law on board it could be done. Bottom line is that it was a most enjoyably exacting and unique experience. I would be surprised if it does not get an Emmy nod, even if it is unlikely to win due to the views of the young pope. Try it. It will have you thinking about it each week and hoping for a Region One DVD release. I do, and I was raised a Baptist.