Riviera Season 1 (2017) Review

Riviera's third season has just hit the Uk and I have not watched any of it so I thought I would start the show and I finished the first season and here is my review for it. The premise of the season sees a woman find out her family's fame and fortune has been built up by Blood and Criminal Activity which has put her in the crosshairs. 

Main Character

Julia Stiles is a great actress and she plays the lead role here and does a really good job. She is a very strong character and seeing her finding out about all these shocking things makes you care about her and it makes her a relatable character. She isn't one dimensional though and has plenty of depth making her an interesting character and one that develops over the season in a natural and compelling way. 

Supporting Characters

Lena Olin is really good in this show, her and Stiles rivalry is an interesting part of the show and their dynamic is really interesting and she is one of the more interesting characters on the show. Igal Naor plays a gangster here and I thought he was very good in the role, he played the role well and he just has a presence on screen, his particular part of the show isn't as interesting but he delivered in his role. Iwan Rheon who plays Ramsey Bolton on Game Of Throne is here and once again he does a really good job here, surprisingly he is a character you actually feel sympathy for and it goes someway in moving him away from his iconic role. But there was also some weaker characters, Dimitri Leonidas and Roxane Duran play the other children and they do their best but the writing for their characters is poor and it just gives them very little to do to make them standout. Same with the whole police angle, there is this cop going after the family and one leading the investigation and they end up not really mattering and you wonder why the show bothered with it. 

Story

The story is interesting, this woman played by Stiles is our window into this just crazy world and it just gets more crazy as the show goes on. The show's plot is pretty convoluted, but it is interesting and keeps you on your toes throughout. This show has family drama and it mostly works, it is just the individual arcs that don't really work, It is like there is this great idea here but they have to pad it out over 10 episodes so they have to add these dull plot lines. 

Script 

The script is fine, it has some good dialogue, mainly with Stiles bringing her A game and rising it up, also some of the other characters have good moments. But as I mentioned above, some of the other characters are poorly written and what doesn't help is that the plot focuses on too many different things and some of it just doesn't get enough interest. 

Style

The show looks great, The Riviera is beautiful and is a great backdrop for this show which adds a bit of uniqueness to it. There are also some exciting scenes involved, I know I said some of the story arcs didn't work but the show flowed nicely and the 10 episodes didn't feel too long even though I just wish certain things had been improved. 

Overall

Overall, this is a good first season of this show. It has intrigue and style to it, I mean it does nothing to rise it above good but if you like dramatic shows then this could be worth a watch. 

Rating - 7/10