Season 1

Advertised as one of the best TV shows ever, my expectations were high. That's dangerous. It can result in disappointment. And partly I'm disappointed. Overall, the praise is justified. Even 25 years later this is a great first season, despite what I'm about to criticize later in this comment.

Let's start with the positive: the slow pace, the focus on details, histrionic performances, camera work, that's all top notch. I like the focus on (Freudian) psychology and multi-faceted anti heroes. All criminals are disturbingly weak. They have family problems, they have illnesses, they make mistakes, they are depressed, they have relatives that are old, feeble or have Alzheimer's. I profoundly enjoy the story that unfolds and it just has even started. I can't even binge watch this show. The show wasn't designed to be binge-watched. I feel that I must respect the snail's pace. And I appreciate this. Best episode: College.

What didn't I like? Basically everything I didn't like about The Godfather. Sometimes, the Italian stereotypes are one-dimensional and borderline racist. Some figures seem to be motivated to do what they do only because they are Italo-American. Seriously, some of them talk like they watched The Godfather too many times. Seriously who talks like that? Mafia capi in Lilyhammer? But Lilyhammer was a comedy right? Like in The Godfather, you immediately realize that they are evil and that their business is huge but you never understand what they really do. What do they actually do? How does that work? How many "employees" does he have? That's not just his five henchmen right and a few exotic dancers, right? Is there a legitimate business side and an illegitimate business side? What's with that waste management part? Is that actually his main business? Or is that just a cover-up? Or was there never a waste management branch at all? What else does he do? Money extortion? Protection money schemes? How do logistics work? How does money laundering work? Who are their competitors? How rich are they really? Is that the lifestyle they can afford or are they really much more affluent? How does the wider criminal organization work? How do they share profits? How do they collaborate? Who is who's boss? How significant is Tony's stake? That's all questions that are basically unanswered. Like in The Godfather you learn next to nothing about this and you get the impression that their main job is to preserve personal mental health and keep the family intact and happy. But that's certainly not all it takes to make money.

That's however only the premiere season and there's so much potential. I'm looking forward to it.

Not a perfect season, this has some startup issues. The first couple of episodes are a mess, so much so that the third episode feels like a soft reboot where each episode takes its time to build up the characters instead. Moreover, the first half of the season occasionally struggles to find a cinematic look, some scenes look like your average 90s cable tv show. However, most issues smooth themselves out over the course of the season. Visually the show finds its footing, the acting improves and the storytelling gets a lot stronger. It’s hard not to fall in love with these characters, they’re very well realized and don’t feel like Scorsese archetypes because of the contemporary setting. Gandolfini’s performance is one for the books, he does a great job at humanizing a flawed, modern gangster. The other actors are also very good despite some overacting during the earlier parts of the show (again, it took a little while to break out of the confinements of 90s television). The music is fantastic, very of its time (lots of psychedelic, alternative dance and electronic music) but it’s all stuff that’s aged well. The overarching narrative remains a little in the background during this season, but the overall story they came up with makes a lot of sense for these characters and plants the seeds for upcoming seasons. I quite like the commentary regarding the taboo of mental healthcare that’s woven throughout, can’t wait to see where it goes.

7/10