Homecoming

Overall, I was very impressed with the way all the elements of the production came together and very effectively created an ever-present, brooding tension. Good performances by a very capable cast with the scenes between Julia Roberts and Stephan James being of particular note. Also, I believe Bobby Cannavale is very underappreciated (as was his recent series Vinyl) and his work in this show is solid, as is Shea Whigham's. Sam Esmail, of Mr. Robot fame, does some great things behind the camera – framing, lens choices, and camera movement – and makes some stylistic choices which create additional visual interest without being completely over the top – something he did quite well in the episodes of Mr. Robot he directed. Damned interesting story presented well on all fronts. I highly recommend it, but be forewarned, this is not a show for short attention span viewers. The pace is often slow and deliberate, which for me, just added to the tension and anxiety. As a _psychological_ thriller, it’s supposed to be uncomfortable, and I felt it achieved this very effectively throughout.

The question is, "Is it worth the wait?" It doesn't become a thriller until episode 6, until it gets there it's just a puzzle, really slow and very confusing. The half hour format is annoying. If you are willing to slog through the first 5 episodes, it might be a worthwhile watch. (It has been nominated for 3 Golden Globes, one of which is Best Television Series - Drama.) The acting is consistently good, the premise resolves nicely, it just takes a long time to get where it's going and it isn't a mystery (we never have enough clues to foretell). I give this series, episodes 1-5 a 5/6 (meh/fair), but the last 5 episodes 7/8 (good with great moments), but for me, it settles in as an overall 7.5 (a lot of work to get to "good") out of 10. [Drama]