Welcome to a busy Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at new shows The Sympathizer, Franklin and Fallout as well as more of Ripley and my Emmys Preview for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Plus I have a few thoughts on the latest episodes of The Girls on the Bus and Sugar. Enjoy!
HBO's newest Sunday night entry is The Sympathizer, which premiered last night. Based on the 2015 debut, Pulitzer Price-winning novel by Viet Thanh Nguyen, the series is centered on a man named The Captain who is a spy for the Viet Cong of North Vietnam while being part of the South Vietnam army. The series is notable for featuring recent Oscar winner Robert Downey Jr. in a wide variety of roles, all mostly white antagonists.
I wasn't quite sure what to make of the first episode but there was definitely enough I liked to make me keep going. I often rail against shows for hopping time periods too much but in this show, it seems to be a feature not a bug. The show has a frenetic pacing and seems to enjoy aggressively jumping back and forth in time. I'm also not quite sure what to make of the Robert Downey Jr. factor of it all. In the first episode, he only played one character of the many he is supposedly playing so it felt a little more like a regular supporting performance than something unique but I'll reserve judgment until I see him in other roles. But Downey is, of course, a rock solid actor.
This show isn't an instant win for me like Ripley but what I like about it is it's obviously trying to do something. It has its own aesthetic and vibe to it and I can appreciate that even if I'm not fully on board yet. It's a contrast to the show below, which is much more in my wheelhouse, but feels factory-made with no heart or vision. This show has both those things, even if it's a little harder for me to access. But I'd rather go on a journey with a show like The Sympathizer.
I was looking forward to Franklin, Apple TV+'s new limited series about Benjamin Franklin's time in Paris but after watching two episodes (of the three Apple released on Friday), I'm not even sure I'm going to stick with the show. This has all the trappings of a limited series that falls victim to a couple recognizable trends. First of all, the story is not big enough for an eight episode series. Or at least not the story the way they are telling it. When that happens, there are extraneous characters added and an unfocused vision. It would have been better as a two hour movie. Second, it has the same distant and soulless vibe that too many Apple TV+ shows have had, most recently The New Look. Since it came on the scene in 2019, Apple has had some wonderful shows (Ted Lasso, For All Mankind, Little America, Severance to name a few). They've also had a few big swings like Pachinko. But they've had sooo many shows that seem like they could be great and then they just... aren't. There's no creativity behind them. They feel made by a faceless tech company even though there are often big stars attached.
Speaking of big stars, Michael Douglas is a big disappointment in this. He's doing nothing to give his portrayal of Benjamin Franklin a personality. The voice is so distinctively Michael Douglas and so is the personality. Aside from some decent costuming and hair & makeup work, there's very little effort put forward in really transforming Douglas into Franklin and Douglas should get a fair amount of the blame for that. The show also takes place in Paris but it's not all that pretty to look at. It feels as bland as the dialogue. I may give this show another shot but when I saw the third episode was a full hour, I just couldn't bring myself to do it.
As I mentioned in my review of 3 Body Problem, the fact that I surprisingly enjoyed The Last of Us made me a bit more willing to try genre shows than I have in the past. But every genre show I've tried since HBO's zombie drama proved that was an outlier and I haven't suddenly become a fan of science fiction or fantasy.
I was initially intrigued that Fallout might be the second show to break the trend. Another video game adaptation, Prime Video's highly anticipated series dropped all eight episodes on Wednesday. There were parts of the 75 minute first episode that I really liked. The opening scene reminded me a whole lot of the first episode of The Last of Us and I thought the world was very well realized with some interesting performances from Walton Goggins and Ella Purnell. There was definitely a video game feel with bad guys showing up and having to defeat them with an insanely long and violent sequence (as "Some Enchanted Evening" played).
Ultimately though, I decided it wasn't going to be for me. I lost interest in the second half of the episode and I just know I'm not going to stick with eight episodes or subsequent seasons of this show so I decided to jump ship now instead of investing more time and then ultimately giving up. I recognize the merits of this show and if TV reviews and criticism was a career of mine and not a hobby, I would be happy to invest the time. But as it stands, it's just not for me, I understand why others like it though and I think it's better than 3 Body Problem, at least from the limited parts I have seen of each.
I finished Ripley this week and it is easily one of my favorite shows of 2024 so far. It's also one of the best things Netflix has ever put on (of course it was originally developed for Showtime). The second half of the series was even more satisfying than the first half as Tom Ripley's crimes started to catch up with him without ever really catching him. The show actually had some very humorous moments wrapped up in a sociopathic character. The fifth episode, which saw a great deal of Tom Ripley trying to move a dead body, was funnier than some parodies of the genre. I'm sure there was some intentional comedy but it didn't play as intentional comedy and that was impressive work from Director/Writer Steven Zaillian and star Andrew Scott. The addition of Maurizio Lombardi in the sixth episode as Inspector Ravini also really helped propel the narrative in the final couple episodes.
More than anything though, this was a visual masterpiece. I'm not sure there's ever been a more gorgeous show. Every single frame was dazzling and the choice to do it all in black and white was a masterstroke. I don't know that I've ever really paid attention much to the sound design of a TV show but I noticed it here. Every door opening or closing, every footstep, every drawer being pulled open. There was no sound too small to use in the show and it aided the story so much. Especially because there were so many scenes where Andrew Scott was alone. Speaking of Scott, he really nailed this performance despite being a little too old for the role. He was fascinating from beginning to end. I know there was an original plan back in the Showtime days for more Mr. Ripley books to be adapted. Netflix has billed this as a limited series, but I'd love to see more.
As mentioned last week, the Supporting Races in Comedy are going to heavily rely on The Bear, Abbott Elementary and Hacks. However, last year's winner in this category - Ayo Edebiri for The Bear - is moving into the Lead category. That could open up space for her co-stars Abby Elliott and Liza Colon-Zayas with Elliott the more likely of the two to get in. Molly Gordon is a possibility too for that show but much more of a longshot. While last year's winner will not repeat in this category, we are likely to see 2022 winner Sheryl Lee Ralph as well as her co-star Janelle James earn their third nominations for Abbott Elementary. Will this be the year that Lisa Ann Walter joins the list as well? She's been one of the few Abbott regulars to not break through at the Emmys yet. As for Hacks, Hannah Einbinder has been nominated twice before and seems a sure bet even though she's very clearly category frauded here and should be in Lead. Her co-star Meg Stalter could get in as well but that feels like a tougher climb. Outside of the big three shows, the best bet is Meryl Streep for Only Murders in the Building. You don't add Meryl Streep to your cast and not get a nomination. She even got a nomination for the maligned second season of Big Little Lies. Speaking of legends, Carol Burnett could get in for her well-received turn in Palm Royale and become one of the oldest nominees ever. It's hard to know how well Palm Royale will do in general but if it overperforms, look for Allison Janney, Laura Dern and Leslie Bibb to all be in the mix too with Janney probably the most likely (maybe even more likely than Burnett). There's always Saturday Night Live to consider too and the actresses seem less possible than the actors but if any get in, it could be Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner or Chloe Fineman. Looking for a dark horse? Then perhaps it could be Paulina Alexis for Reservation Dogs if the Academy actually pays attention to that show this time around. Other dark horses include Linda Emond for Only Murders in the Building, Danielle Pinnock for Ghosts, Paula Pell for Girls5Eva and Michaela Jae Rodriguez for Loot.
Current Projected Nominees (ranked in order of confidence):
1. Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary
2. Hannah Einbinder, Hacks
3. Meryl Streep, Only Murders in the Building
4. Janelle James, Abbott Elementary
5. Abby Elliott, The Bear
6. Liza Colon-Zayas, The Bear
7. Allison Janney, Palm Royale
Possible Spoilers:
8. Carol Burnett, Palm Royale
9. Lisa Ann Walter, Abbott Elementary
10. Laura Dern, Palm Royale
SCRIPTED PREMIERES THIS WEEK
It's a fairly quiet week for premieres. Wednesday has the premiere of Hulu's limited series crime drama Under the Bridge, which features recent Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone but hasn't gotten a ton of buzz. On Thursday, Netflix drops the latest batch of The Upshaws while Freevee has Dinner with the Parents, a new comedy on a platform that may not be long for this world. On Friday, Roku has the premiere of The Spiderwick Chronicles, which was originally slated for Disney+.
ODDS & ENDS
- The most recent episode of The Girls on the Bus was easily its most nauseating. The episode was centered on the titular bus breaking down on the night of a Democratic Primary Debate leaving all the journalists stranded. But if you thought there wasn't going to be a debate, don't worry. The episode was filled with "debates" among the journalists about all sorts of topics from gender being a construct to journalistic integrity. And each statement, no matter what side the character fell on, was a chance for the writers to preach to the audience. It was exhausting to sit through. There's things I really like about this show but then there's episodes like this where it seems like its trying way, way too hard.
- I sort of wish I didn't know there was a big twist coming in Sugar because I feel like I'm not watching the show in the same way I would have otherwise. But it was hard to escape that information since basically every review vaguely or directly referred to the twist (while of course not being allowed to reveal much). I really really like Colin Farrell's performance and just sort of wish I could enjoy the ride more with the show instead of spending each scene wondering if I am going to catch what the twist is. Again, I have my theories and I've heard others too. We'll see if it was worth it.
- I didn't end up sticking with We Were the Lucky Ones. I thought the show was well-meaning and I liked a few of the performances, but it felt more like a chore to watch and when I start dreading a weekly episode, it's time to give it up.
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