I'm through the first season and I like it so far. The cast is not as solid and watertight as other young adult dramas such as 13 Reasons or Riverdale, but it's still watchable. Some truly redeeming qualities are January Jones's exquisite beauty and her and Svetlana Efremova's impressive acting. Not sure if Kaya Scodelario is right for the role as she looks way too old for this role - she's like she's late 30's rather than 21. She certainly looks older than her mum and I'm not sure about her American accent, either. I'm
British and I can clearly hear British in her accent. Willow Shields is brilliant as Serena.
The show could be written with a more solid storyline and further depth into the characters. The first season is full of Tonya-esque clichés, wooden dialogue, shallow and almost comical characters, factual and logical errors. It's like the producers wanted an extended Tonya and they ended up with Young and Restless. Most characters are black and white, unrealistic and shallow. The storyline with Marcus and Alana is rather lame and pointless, whereas there could be more of Jenn's character. The one surprisingly refreshing show up is Gabe, played brilliantly by Johnny Weir, whose comical timing and flair is a breath of fresh air.
As for the factual/logical errors, there are far too many to claim artistic liberty for the writers. Which airport worker would earn enough money to afford such a perfect looking home, figure skating training for not one but two daughters and nice clothes? Which skating coach would put up one of her skaters at her own home, as skating coaches work with multiple athletes and have complex time schedules. Which psychiatric institution would discharge, or actually section in the first place, a patient without proper health insurance or financial collaterals? Who on earth would turn down Stanford Med School for skiing and almost blow that off too? How could skaters manage so much partying when it's an extremely demanding sport?
The show has good potential to develop into a great series if perhaps the writers address some of the glaring flaws for the second season.
The show could be written with a more solid storyline and further depth into the characters. The first season is full of Tonya-esque clichés, wooden dialogue, shallow and almost comical characters, factual and logical errors. It's like the producers wanted an extended Tonya and they ended up with Young and Restless. Most characters are black and white, unrealistic and shallow. The storyline with Marcus and Alana is rather lame and pointless, whereas there could be more of Jenn's character. The one surprisingly refreshing show up is Gabe, played brilliantly by Johnny Weir, whose comical timing and flair is a breath of fresh air.
As for the factual/logical errors, there are far too many to claim artistic liberty for the writers. Which airport worker would earn enough money to afford such a perfect looking home, figure skating training for not one but two daughters and nice clothes? Which skating coach would put up one of her skaters at her own home, as skating coaches work with multiple athletes and have complex time schedules. Which psychiatric institution would discharge, or actually section in the first place, a patient without proper health insurance or financial collaterals? Who on earth would turn down Stanford Med School for skiing and almost blow that off too? How could skaters manage so much partying when it's an extremely demanding sport?
The show has good potential to develop into a great series if perhaps the writers address some of the glaring flaws for the second season.