Everything Wrong with Big Love Season 2

EPISODE 1
-the lady yelling outside the meeting about Roman Grant seems unusual.
-I have never heard of South American sites being called the "Holy Lands". The Holy Land is in Israel/Mid-East. We'd call the South American sites "possible Book of Mormon sites", as there is no consensus on where it actually took place.
-that's a pretty big Baptist church for Sandy, although there are a couple bigger ones in the area so I won't say is necessarily wrong.
-at the prayer meeting, "celestial heaven" would more likely be celestial kingdom. And testimonies are not done prayer style on the knees.
-the LDS grows most or all of its own wheat and alfalfa for the welfare program and bishop storehouses, I guess they might have bought it from private farmers at one point though.
EPISODE 2
-Bill and Ben were driving north away from Downtown, about 45 mins from where their home would be, south of downtown (20th east in Sandy) when they saw the supposed downtown, state street sign. They would've been in Bountiful, on the other side of a mountain from downtown.
-Nikki and Margene were driving westbound out of Lehi toward Eagle Mountain, and Nikki says they saw the graffiti billboard on their way out of town... Except they never would have passed downtown.
EPISODE 3
-there is no way any modern LDS Mormon would believe that it would be better to die than to give up your chastity. That is ridiculous.
EPISODE 4
-There's no Meeker county or town in Utah.
-there is a Jefferson County in Missouri, but I think they meant Jackson County, which has significance in Mormon culture.
-We just joke about Democrats being heathens, mostly.
-how could Adaleen possibly have gotten back to the compound to get Bills call? Other episodes imply its hours away.
EPISODE 5
-the yelling to pray or repent or something was weird to me, I don't know of any Mormon groups that do something like that.
EPISODE 6
-tons of people in Sandy own boats, but they'd likely never consider taking them to the Great Salt Lake. When people say they're taking the boat to the lake I assume Jordanelle or Deer Creek, which are about an hour east near Park City. Sometimes Utah Lake, about an hour south.
-Bill finally reveals Juniper Creek is a few hours south, which really destroys some previous scenes and references to the compound.
-there is no newspaper in Utah called the Sun-Times.
-not wrong, just worth noting, it would've taken Ben awhile to drive to this church, its at 700 south 2500 west in Syracuse, at least an hours drive from his home near 2000 east in Sandy.
-that is definitely not the bishop's office in an LDS church. There would not be a kitchen next to it, a glass door, or a display of books and pamphlets. The large table would likely be in a different meeting room.
-a Bishop doesn't have a parsonage and should not be counseling with parishioners in his home office.
-also those aren't LDS books and pamphlets.
-and if this guy were the Henrickson's bishop when they were still on the church, he is not likely to still be a bishop. Most serve for only 5 years and the Henricksons left the Church 7-8 years ago when Bill married Nikki.
-which brings up the point that Ben was only 8 years old when they left, half a lifetime for him. Not many 8 year olds have met with their bishop more than once so the "I feel more comfortable talking to you" is weird.
-Bishops are unpaid so they usually have regular career jobs during the day and would not be able to meet with Ben in the middle of a weekday, especially if he dropped in with no notice.
-the bishop's little speech isn't quite doctrinally accurate. Yes sexual morality is important when it comes to creating an eternal marriage but honestly probably half the Mormons I know had sex before marriage, and are now in sealed "eternal" marriages like it never happened. We all make mistakes, repent, and move on. I wouldn't say that temple marriage is the only moral way to start a family, only that it is the best way. And the bishop shouldn't be focused on converting the girlfriend, just on helping Ben.
-"Reverence and Morality" and "Satan's Thrust" are actually titles of talks given by LDS leaders in the 70s and 80 addressing sexual immorality, but they are from Gordon B. Hinckley and Ezra Taft Benson, respectively. Not Rommel Resonoble, Jeoffery Dingcong, or someone named Pamela as the pamphlets say. (if you go through the effort to find 30 year old talks, why don't you go through the effort to be accurate with other things?)  The talks are pretty outdated and old-fashioned, I can't imagine a bishop in 2007 referring to them when there are so many more modern resources.
EPISODE 7
-Not much here, but I've noticed that Nikki keeps saying "the" before she says the name of a highway. (i.e."the 215")  They say that in California, but in Utah we just say the number. ("There was an accident on 215")
EPISODE 8
-I'm not positive on this, but I don't think a bishop can go to the parents like that. Maybe they can, but in my experience if he thinks the teen should talk to the parents he encourages the teen to tell them and if the teen wants support might have them all in to meet with him together.  It's an interesting situation with him not being their bishop. He has no authority over Ben or the Henrickson family so I'm not sure there are any protocols in this situation.
-I don't think activity/inactivity is listed on membership records? Maybe it is. He could probably see that neither of them held a calling or had a current temple recommend, which might tip him off. But I don't know if even that information is accessible to leaders outside your current boundaries.
-the stake president comment is bordering on wrong. This comment seems to imply that people wanted him to lobby for stake president but he decided against it. You can't lobby or apply for that position, you can only say yes or no if it is offered to you.
-When the Bishop tells Barb that they are always welcome in his ward... its true, but you do need special permission from both bishops involved (and often the stake presidents as well) in order to have your records and "home ward" be other than the one to which you are geographically assigned. And what it had to do with Bill not being able to "righteously lead the family" is beyond me. This bishop is weird and pushy.
-There is/was no Meineke at the 5300 South exit.
EPISODE 9
-Ben says there is a Murray store, but previous episodes have said there are two stores, one in Sandy and one in West Jordan.
-Bill says he is going "up" to the compound, previous episodes have said it was 2 hours south, which would be going "down" to the compound.
EPISODE 10
-a good Mormon girl wouldn't take the name of God in vain
-there are no palm trees in Wendover
EPISODE 11
-Joseph Smith was never a pioneer and thus is rarely featured on Pioneer Day floats.
-the neighbor would probably know that Barb wasn't LDS because LDS congregations are assigned geographically, so they would likely be assigned to go to the same ward.
-not going to say that no LDS guy would be such a jerk like Howard, but in my experience that wouldn't happen.
EPISODE 12
-"if I don't have a family for him we'll have no family in heaven" just isn't LDS doctrine. I've never heard of a man divorcing his wife because she couldn't have kids, but I guess it could happen. He'd probably be hated by everyone though.
-"lost boys" are really only those who have left very closed off groups like the FLDS. Leaving a polygamist family who are living out in the world like the Henricksons wouldn't put you in the lost boys.
-on the news report: the pioneer parade is actually called the "Days of '47" parade, and there is no channel 6 in Salt Lake (ironically, that was always HBO). Also, did we still watch VHS tapes in 2007?
-there is no "pioneer week grand marshals parade"
-Utah Bell is not a phone company

Everything wrong with Big Love Season 1

I discovered Big Love is on Amazon Prime, and in honor of the it's 10th anniversary decided to give it a watch.  I was interested in the show when it first came out, but only saw a few episodes - I had just graduated high school, was dating, working full time, and it was super awkward to watch it with my parents.  I grew up in a Mormon family in Sandy, Utah. I went to school with kids of polygamists. I thought it might be fun to compare my reality of being a Mormon in Sandy in 2006 to what was portrayed on the show.  So, here it is! Everything wrong with Big Love.
(I will add, I fast forwarded through any sex scenes, so anything that might have been discussed there has been missed. And some things that I point out as mistakes are clarified in future episodes, I may or may not have gone back to fix my comments.)

EPISODE 1
-When Bill is driving home from work, he drives north to downtown Salt Lake, drives past the temple on the busiest street downtown, then turns around and drives back south to his house, this would be at least an extra hour detour. (Hey maybe he's avoiding the family, who knows?)
-Most fundamentalist Mormons wouldn't wear a sleeveless top like Margene does.
-A Bishop wouldn't move in across the street, as you don't take your church calling with you when you move. He might be a former Bishop, or be called as the new bishop of the ward
 in his new neighborhood, but he wouldn't be a bishop when he moved and would be unlikely to be the bishop for a while.
-I don't get the girls in matching black outfits at the diner... Are they supposed to be Mormons? We don't dress like nuns. And we'd never call our ward a congregation unless explaining it to someone.
-I don't know many Mormon families with "white bread and jello" in their pantry, most are into healthy eating. Whole wheat and bottled peaches are more likely.
-"Are you in young women's?" Is a silly question, as every teenage Mormon girl is in young women's, even if they don't go. Its just the name of the girls youth group. A Mormon girl would just ask if a girl was a Mia-maid (14-15) or a Laurel (16-18).
-When you ask a Mormon what their parents "do", you'll almost never hear their church calling mentioned.
-There is no possible way you could get away with giving a public school a Mormon name like Cumorah.
-Its unusual for a Mormon or fundamentalist Mormon family to have a cross decorating their wall.

EPISODE 2
-I know those aren't Salt Lake mountains but I'll forgive that.
-again with the sleeveless tops
-still confused about this bishop thing. What's going to happen if a bishop finds out? Even if he called the authorities, the state wouldn't prosecute unless there was evidence of abuse.
-pretty sure most Mormon high school girls know what transgender is, especially today. I know I did and that was before the show was made.

EPISODE 3
-Bill mentions "prairie garb and sunbonnets" and it brings up a good point... There are a lot more bonnets and headcoverings on the compound than I'd expect to see. But this is a fictional group, carry on.
-"lay a blessing on you" sounds silly. More likely "give you a blessing", although I don't see why you would give your wife a blessing in the middle of a fight.
-Bill has what looks like iced tea in his hand, some fundamentalist Mormons drink coffee and tea some don't. LDS do not.

EPISODE 4
-the talk between Bill and Don about revelation at the store is a bit more "religious nut" than I'm accustomed to, but might be normal among fundamentalists.
-"receive testimony" also seems like an awkward phrase, I think "feel the Spirit" would be more likely.

EPISODE 5
-Mormons do sometimes check for "garment lines", because it can be awkward in some situations if you are unsure of their religion. However, I have several Mormon friends who don't wear garments so it's not necessarily a good indicator. (and in this specific situation, many descendants of pioneers live in Utah but aren't active Mormons, so I didn't think garment lines were relevant.)
-the employee suspicious that Don is polygamist seems extra prudish. Sure ladies like that exist, but most of us wouldn't say anything, and we wouldn't button the top button of that shirt either.
-I've never heard of after school seminary. Its usually before school or in Utah many schools offer "released time" religion classes during the school day (not just for Mormons, other churches can offer classes as well)
-Mormons don't think that going to seminary will somehow solve your problems or cleanse you of sins, but I can see how a teen boy might think it would help.
-I would hope that Mormon kids aren't judgmental and thinking their bodies are dirty, but I get the girlfriend's point
-seminary teacher is dressed more casually than what I'm used to, they are usually required to wear a suit. And the classroom looks an awful lot like a school room, usually its in a church.
-"a member of our holy family"? We do believe that families are sacred but we don't go around calling our families holy like that.

EPISODE 6
-its usually "bear testimony" not "give testimony", although I admit that give makes more sense.
-I've never seen a polygamist funeral, but LDS funerals are not like that. No creepy talking to the person in the casket, and of course no walking out wedding style with another wife. And I'm surprised they didn't pick a hymn for the music.

EPISODE 7
-the garment line thing... I thought the other lady was the one wearing garments. The apparent garment line one seemed low cut. And the lady totally looked "prairie/compound".
-I sure hope missionaries don't seem that creepy weird. And why do they have photo ID cards on their shirts rather than black name tags? and they don't give out coloring books, and they aren't supposed to wear backpacks...
- I've talked to missionaries who tract into polygamists (they live up the road from me) and they don't use a 'polygamy is wrong' approach, they discuss prophets and line of authority.
-the sign at the church had directions to a "fellowship hall", "sanctuary", and "counseling center" which are all terms Mormons don't use. It would be "cultural hall", "chapel" and the counseling center would just be the Bishops' office.
-this ward seems huge and way involved. Most Utah wards are pretty minimal on activities... They wouldn't have enough singles for a salsa night, Sundays are usually spent with family...

EPISODE 8
-the attorney makes it sound like the compound is on the Utah Arizona border, 6 hours south of Salt Lake. But they say they're going "up" to the compound and of Salt Lake being "down here". Someone must be geographically challenged.
-Mormons don't really recognize Holy Saturday
-another geography issue... To get to the Arizona border by 8 pm they need to leave at 2 pm... A Jazz game isn't long enough to be a decent cover up

EPISODE 9
-This Chad guy is super goofy and creepy. I'm not saying there aren't Mormons like that, but most of us are normal people and I'm kinda sick of being portrayed like that. Who says weird crap like "I had a burning in my bosom when I met you"? That's the stuff you see in Mormon-made satire movies.

EPISODE 10
-"it's two hours to get home"... So the compound is not on the Arizona border? Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada are all about two hours from Salt Lake. Or it could be in central Utah. Just explain why the AG talks about AZ!
-General Conference has always been twice a year, in April and October, since the 1830s.
-most Mormon kids would receive a Bible/Book of Mormon set rather than just a Bible for a baptism gift. I imagine it's the same in most Fundamentalist families.
-Barbs sister... Mormons aren't racist like that, although we do tend to adopt minority kids, don't know where that trend came from.
-and as far as baptisms are concerned, its tradition for Mormon kids to be baptized by their dad if he's also a Mormon, and the baptism can be anywhere. (although most churches do have a baptismal font) Our neighbor was baptized by her dad in our backyard hot tub! I don't get why the sister is so disgusted by the idea.
-babies are usually blessed when they are a few months old, not immediately after birth, maybe its different in fundamentalist groups.

EPISODE 11
-nothing wrong here! I loved the little accurate details - the Postum, the extras in the locker room, there were probably more that I didn't notice because it's normal for me. Very nice.

EPISODE 12
-this whole season I've felt the women dress pretty formal. Nicki is obviously going to, but Barb and Margene and the supporting cast are always wearing skirts, dress pants, or khakis. Utah women are very much jeans and t-shirt type people.
-I don't know that a woman could be disqualified for mother of the year just for being polygamist... Maybe? Either way, it's a fake award.