I can’t tell if we watched a different episode but the finale was probably the worst episode of the show and it’s long runtime does not help it either. David E Kelley’s writing was imo borderline terrible and highly unrealistic. I’m just going to assume that no one involved had read all the scripts before agreeing to do this. Edgar Ramirez and Lily Rabe were completely wasted. Nicole Kidman was good initially but then it became more of the same every week. Susanne Bier is a capable director and tried to craft a decent thriller with the scripts she was given, but it fell short. Hugh Grant and Noma Dumezweni were the only good things about the finale. HBO money can’t really cover for shitty writing.
Episode Grade: C-
Show Grade: C+
At this point, I’m only rooting for Grant to be nominated from the show and maybe Sutherland if that category is too empty. But between The Queen’s Gambit, I May Destroy You, Mare of Easttown (unless that too is a dud), Inventing Anna, and even The Haunting of Bly Manor, I don’t really see it going far, especially airing so early in the race with the lackluster reception.
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