No, not really, it doesn't get any better than a show about a Poe-loving serial killer who starts up his own cult to do his "work" while he's in prison.  Especially when said serial killer is played by the ever-seductive James Purefoy (loved him as Marc Antony in HBO's Rome a few years back).

And it's got Kevin Bacon in it!!!  And Shawn Ashmore from the X-Men movies.  Great actors delivering great performances.



Basically, The Following centers on serial killer Joe Carroll (Purefoy), who was a college professor with an extreme love for Edgar Allan Poe.  So much that he killed people, trying to emulate Poe's work as the ultimate artistic endeavor.  The killings weren't pretty and the victims suffered much (as their eyes were ripped out).  Bacon plays the FBI investigator, Ryan Hardy, who tenaciously hunted Carroll and caught him, single-handedly, back in 2003.  Of course, Hardy has mental and emotional scars from the hunt and encounter, which could interfere with his current assignment.

Hardy was brought in again when Carroll escapes from prison in the first episode (set in present-day).  But, things aren't so easy anymore.  Carroll's not working alone.  He's got a "following".  He made good use of his time in prison, visiting with former students/admirers, charming people on the internet, people who have the inclination to hurt and to kill.  People who view Carroll as a mentor, an artist.  Yeah, there are some dangerous people out there.

So now, Hardy's got to discover just how far Carroll's web reaches.  Because even though Carroll's in prison, people are getting hurt out there, tortured and killed.  And Carroll's followers have just kidnapped Carroll's own son (whose mother, Carroll's ex-wife, had an affair with Hardy after her husband was sent to prison and she filed for divorce.  Uh-huh, complicated).

The plot is mostly unpredictable (I find that if you read enough/watch enough, whenever something "new" comes out, you're generally disappointed because you know what's going to happen next.  There's no suspense).  True, I did have my suspicions about certain people in the first episode, but I totally didn't see another one in on it, and now, I'm wondering just how many people Carroll has in his web.  Like, "good" guys, or people you think are supposed to be the good guys -- but is it all a facade, and are they just working for Carroll?

Who knows, but it's going to be a wild ride this season.

And Edgar Allan Poe's team, The Ravens, are playing in the Superbowl this Sunday!!  Go Poe!!!