What Are BARKSKINS?

Article first published as TV Review: BARKSKINS on Seat42F.

Recently, National Geographic aired the scripted drama BARKSKINS, based on a small part of the Annie Proulx novel of the same name. Now available on Hulu, the eight-episode drama follows French (and a few English) colonizers in the so-called New World, or New France as it was known, in the late 1600s. What would become the United States and Canada is still a wilderness, and the people portrayed live far away from their familiar civilizations. Their best connections back to their homeland are the new arrivals, but those newcomers must adapt quickly to the harsh life of the forest or die. Native Americans fight for their land, while the Europeans bicker amongst one another. It’s a wonder our current society came out of it.

The title BARKSKINS refers to indentured servants who labored three years in return for freedom and a chance at prosperity. Two of the characters in the series, Rene Sel (Christian Cooke, Witches of East End) and Charles Duquet (James Bloor, Shoplifters of the World), are in the titular position. Though, Charles has no intention of serving out his time. They work for Monsieur Claude Trepagny (David Thewlis, the Harry Potter films), who has dreams of building an everlasting city. Will they help him?

It’s actually quite easy to miss that Rene and Charles are supposed to be the leads. Yes, there is a quite a bit of screentime with them, but there’s plenty without them, the show boasting a sweeping cast. Among the most recognizable are Marcia Gay Harden (Code Black), who plays innkeeper Mathilde Geffard, Matthew Lillard (Good Girls) as the sleazy Gus Lafarge, Zahn McClarnon (Longmire), Aneurin Barnard (The White Queen), and Thomas M. Wright (Outsiders). But there are plenty of others besides, representing a wide swath of people that make up the residents of the area.

BARKSKINS is trying to be a sweeping drama, but lacks the feel of one. Quite honestly, most of the characters blur together, and after watching the premiere, it’s hard to actually sit down and pick out each player and actor (sans beards in their IMBD photos). It’s not confusing, exactly, since the same players tend to stay in scenes together. But picking up names is difficult, and without the context and backstory as the show begins, harder still. Lots of these characters have pasts, but they are slow to reveal them to the audience.

The production looks fantastic, of course. This is clearly a show with a budget, or at least they spent it on look. Period costumes and miles of actual wilderness help BARKSKINS feel like it’s another time and place, nature only beginning to be spoiled by man. But it lacks the epic feel that compelling characters and a sweeping score could lend it to kick it up a few notches. There are a number of recent shows that have achieved a similar thing with a lot more filled out than BARKSKINS presents, leaving this more like a cable also-ran than an awards contender. It doesn’t feel like a show that’s going to amass a following and run for very long.

Also confusing, while it is a National Geographic series, and NatGeo’s website boasts that you can watch your favorite shows from them on Disney+, don’t look for this one among the offerings on the new streaming app. Surprisingly, it IS on Hulu, so you can find it if you want it and are up on your streaming subscriptions. It’s just not in the obvious place.

All in all, I can’t say BARKSKINS is disappointing because I’d heard almost nothing about it and no expectations had been built up. But it doesn’t feel like the type of series that will be a sleeper hit, either. It’s fine, no major complaints other than the size of the cast and lack of distinguishing characteristics and personalities (at least initially). Just nothing special.

As mentioned, you can watch BARKSKINS now on Hulu.

More OUTSIDERS

Article first published as OUTSIDERS Season 2 Premiere Review on Seat42F.

WGN America’s OUTSIDERS is back this week! The drama about the Farrell clan who live up on a mountain, apart from society, and those in the town below, including a businesswoman (Francie Swift) who wants the resources the Farrells are sitting on, begins its second season. The action picks up right where the freshman year left off, and I dare say, there are a few surprises in the first hour alone.

The premiere picks up on the mountain, where the police have come to confront the clansmen and women. It’s chaos and battle and everything you want, which I don’t feel like it’s much of a spoiler to say. What is interesting is that immediate aftermath of the fight, the scene we see right after it, and the result of it, which does change the course of season two. How far it shifts direction, that remains to be seen, though it seems like quality and style will be maintained.

Up on the mountain, G’Winveer (Gillian Alexy) is having trouble settling into her role as Brennan. This isn’t surprising if you remember the way she got the chief position, by poisoning Big Foster (David Morse) and then getting Asa (Joe Anderson) to shoot him. That Big Foster is a bad man in his own right, having murdered the previous Brennan, his own mother, is not known by any other characters, and so doesn’t help G’Win’s soul rest easy.

I like that OUTSIDERS has kept the murder a secret. Often on television shows, there’s a piece of information that only certain characters are privy to, and then it inevitably comes out at a dramatic moment. Since Big Foster was the only one in the room when he committed the act, while others may have suspicions about him, there is no way for anything to ‘come to light’ short of Big Foster confessing. That’s an interesting scenario, the Farrells having neither video cameras nor forensic science, and it sets the series apart.

G’Win, who is mainly a character to root for, did some nasty things in season one. While I like that she is a bit haunted by them, because it makes her more sympathetic, I also applaud OUTSIDERS for not totally excusing her actions. The Farrells may be willing to fall in line behind her, for the most part, but she is not a black-and-white hero, which makes her more fascinating.

By the same token, Sherriff Wade Houghton (Thomas M. Wright), who should be in the right, is not a likeable person. It’s not necessarily any specific action Wade takes that makes my opinion of him go down (though he does do something pretty cowardly in the premiere that doesn’t help). Yet, while he is a non-corrupt cop, viewers won’t necessarily want him to win, which is a cool element that most television shows don’t have.

The closest thing OUTSIDERS has to a truly good person is Li’l Foster (Ryan Hurst), and I can’t help but admire that man. As naïve as he can be at times, and while he has fallen for tricks and lies, he is still someone who seems noble. Part of the warm feelings toward him are not dissimilar from wanting to protect a little brother, yet I can’t help but hope he will come to be great in his own right, and I hope he doesn’t lose himself along the way. Who he is now is terrific, and he’s easily my favorite character.

I won’t spoil anything, but I will say there is a not wholly unexpected, but still very exciting, development in the Sally-Ann (Christina Jackson) / Hasil (Kyle Gallner) relationship. The premiere also ends with a shocking thing happening to one of our main players that I kind of hope sticks, not because I want ill to befall this particular person, but just because I find it interesting and a neat story twist.

Get ready for OUTSIDERS, which returns Tuesday, January 24^th at 9/8c.

OUTSIDERS Interviews!

Article first published on Seat42F.

I had the good fortune to be invited to New York City recently to sit down with the cast and producers of WGN America’s Outsiders, who were filming their second season. Set in rural America, the show tells the story of an isolated mountain clan and the near by townspeople, with political intrigue and clashing cultures. Season one was very exciting, and with season two premiering in January, I was very excited to interview some of those involved in the show. I hope you enjoy our conversations!

Click below to watch the interviews.

OUTSIDERS RETURNS TUESDAY, JANUARY 24 AT 9:00 PM ET/PT

David Morse and Ryan Hurst

Christina Jackson and Kyle Gallner

Gillian Alexy and Francie Swift

Rebecca Harris and Thomas M. Wright

Peter Mattei and Peter Tolan

Inside OUTSIDERS

Article originally published as OUTSIDERS Review on Seat42F.

Not quite a year after the excellent Justified left the air, a new drama takes us back into the hollers and wilds of Kentucky. OUTSIDERS, which premiered last night on WGN America, is the story of a small town and the feral Farrells who inhabit the mountain beside it. While civilization and tribal culture have existed peacefully beside one another for two centuries, modernity is moving in from the outside, which threatens to shake up everything.

The Farrells themselves have an interesting culture. Led by the current “Brennan,” Lady Ray (Phyllis Somerville, The Big C), they brew their own moonshine, abhor money, marry cousins, and yet seem to get along pretty well. Sure, they go into town and steal things occasionally, but the locals have learned to put up with it, partially out of fear, and partially because the clan knows the limits of what they can get away with. A few, like Hasil (Kyle Gallner, Veronica Mars), push boundaries from time to time, such as when he tries to take up with a non-Farrell, Sally Ann (Christina Jackson, Boardwalk Empire), but mostly, they know their place. So it has been for two hundred years, and so it shall continue, or so some hope.

But the status quo is shifting as Big Foster (David Morse, Treme) seeks to take the leadership mantle from his mother, even after Lady Ray is reluctant to give it to him. When one of their own, Asa (Joe Anderson, Hannibal), returns from the outside with new knowledge and skills, there becomes a choice as to who the Farrells should be listening to. Events conspire to shift loyalties of some one way and some the other, and suddenly there’s a decision to make instead of a guaranteed line of succession.

This is where OUTSIDERS begins, with a people on the precipice of change. It will take someone strong to usher then into a new era, someone who understands the parties involved, but can see beyond petty feuds and backward traditions. It could be Asa, who has shunned the rest of the world after living apart from his family for unknown reasons. But if it’s not him, it’s not certain who else it could be.

In Justified, there was a lawman who kept the hill people in line enough. OUTSIDERS has its own deputy, Wade Houghton (Thomas M. Wright, The Bridge), but he’s far from another Raylan Givens. Instead, Wade is beset by his own demons, and may just be the person in town most terrified of confronting the Farrells. Which is too bad because, pushed to do so by the coal companies, Wade’s boss assigns him the unenviable task of evacuating the mountain.

OUTSIDERS is fascinating because of the various personalities it portrays, some of which will seem rooted in folklore more than reality to potential viewers. Yet, even with the superstitions present, the series is pretty solidly grounded by terrific performances and an interesting, natural story (more reality-driven than the network’s Salem). Perhaps most of those displaced by industry aren’t as violently resistant as the Farrells are bound to be, but it’s certainly a scenario that has played out in some form or another in numerous areas of the country.

I find little to complain about this show. WGN America is getting a reputation of shining a spotlight into dark corners of American culture and doing it well, and OUTSIDERS is a part of that proud tradition. It won’t appeal to everyone, to be sure, but it makes for good, quality television that many will enjoy if they just know where to look for it, WGN America not being a channel the majority of viewers typically keep an eye on. I recommend making the effort to check this one out.

OUTSIDERS airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on WGN America. If you missed the first episode, it repeats numerous times throughout the week. Check your listings.

DVD Review: ‘Top of the Lake’

Article first published as DVD Review: ‘Top of the Lake’ on Blogcritics.

The BBC recently released on DVD its miniseries Top of the Lake. Airing last year in the U.S. over seven weeks on the Sundance Channel, the six-episode series follows Robin Griffin (Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men) as she investigates the case of a missing girl in the town where she grew up. This particular incident brings back memories of Robin’s teenage years, as secrets are spilled, and not everyone is who they appear to be.

Robin is a compelling character, even more so than the case she is working. She’s native to this part of New Zealand, but has horrible memories of a night after a dance, in which some boys treated her poorly. Unfortunately, those boys are still around, all grown up, and makes Robin tense and angry. Coming to terms with her feelings, for her rapists, for the guy she still likes, Johno (Thomas M. Wright, The Bridge), even though she’s engaged to someone else, and for her dying mother, make up Robin’s story.

Johno isn’t the only one interested in Robin. Her boss, Al (David Wenham, The Lord of the Rings), takes a shine, too, offering protection as well as love. Robin doesn’t return his feelings, however, and Johno does seem to let Robin be who she is more, so Al is never a true suitor for her affections, making for an interesting and atypical chemistry.

Johno’s family makes up much of the rest of the cast. His sister, Tui (Jacqueline Joe), is twelve years old and five months pregnant when Top of the Lake begins. When she disappears soon thereafter, she becomes the subject of Robin’s investigation. Who is the father? Where has Tui gone? How can such a young girl handle having a baby in her belly? And why does she wade into the cold lake?

One of the prime suspects for both being the father and for making Tui vanish is her father, Matt (Peter Mullan, Trainspotting). A cruel drug dealer, as shown right away in the first installment, Matt is prone to fits of anger and wants to control everybody and every thing in his life and in the town. He has a lot of kids, some he claims. He sees himself as an elder leader, but he’s really a scumbag, though how much of one is a question Top of the Lake answers little by little.

I really like how Top of the Lake develops its villains. Not just Matt, but others who are revealed as the tale plays out. Some are obvious, some are not, and it tends to be the less visible evildoers that are the worst. All seem authentically painted, more than just one thing defining their personality, and they have raw motivations that make sense, even as one does not agree with the characters’ actions.

Rounding out the cast is a group of women who live in shipping crates on the shore of a lake. Led by the cold GJ (Holly Hunter, Saving Grace), the place, dubbed Paradise, is a refuge for those who have been through tough times. They settle on land that Matt, while not owning, thinks he has a right to, and provide a haven for Tui and Robin at key times. Thus, they are central and important.

The settlement is an interesting one, with ever shifting rules and hierarchy. Just as one thinks they might have the dynamic figured out, it shifts and becomes something else in the next hour. This makes sense, given the loose leadership, and provides a glimpse at an uneasy anti-society, one that cannot possibly survive in stasis, and is doomed to ever be temporary. An important story point concerning this at the end seems inevitable in retrospect, but it’s hard to decide if it’s a good thing or a bad thing.

What’s cool about Top of the Lake is that it doesn’t concern itself with a fully cohesive, linear narrative. It presents a bunch of varied individuals who look and feel like real people, follows them through a transformative time of their lives, and then concludes with finality by coincidence and circumstance. It’s not at all formulaic, though there are a familiar archetype or two slipped in, and presents something original and interesting.

Unfortunately, there are no special features in this release to examine the fine acting, intriguing writing, shocking twists, or beautiful landscapes. It’s just two bare discs with no extras, and is not even in HD. A miniseries like this deserves so much better than such a meager release. However, I’m grateful it has seen the light of day on disc.

Top of the Lake is available now.