Ratched

Ratched has certainly had the hype recently, hardly surprising when you think of Murphy's work, the big question, is it up to the hype?

The first thing that will strike you, the visuals, it is a fabulous looking show, bright, stylish, it has a very cinematic feel.

The acting is terrific, Sarah Paulson, Sharon Stone, and just wait til you see Sophie Okonedo, she is incredible.

It definitely has an AHS vibe, but it's more subtle, by expect some violence and gore, although the real horror comes from the medical practices that were indeed used for quite a few years.

You'll be kept guessing, you won't have a clue what comes next, it has the ability to surprise.

I really would recommend it, 8/10.

This origin story for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"'s Nurse Ratched looks great, as Ratched puts on a vintage dress and wreaks subtle havoc in an asylum. But the first episode was such a mess that I have zero interest in watching more.

Sarah Paulson is terrific as the chilly Ratched, and scenes like her bizarre foreplay with a random guy are pretty cool. But there are serious issues with the story and premise.

First off, her elaborate plan requires that nothing go wrong. Repeatedly in the first episode she sets something up in a way that could fail dismally but it never does. She needs no plan B, because even the stupidest plan A goes off like clockwork. It's so easy for her that she even takes risky, unnecessary steps to get herself exactly where she wants.

And if you've read the book or scene the movie then you have to question why this weird story is tied to that character. Ratched was a controlling psychopath, but ultimately she represented the cruel, cold nature of authority, which will crush anything creative or rebellious not out of mean-spiritedness as much as just because of an intolerance for chaos.

But this Ratched is actually a chaos agent, and a very different kind of psychopath. She is not a character who would become the character in Cuckoo's Nest. And this makes the tie-in nonsensical. It seems like a shoddy attempt to increase its visibility with a tie to a famous movie, but it has no respect for the character that movie created. And it's unnecessary, because there is zero reason for this tie-in. It could have been made with a nurse of any name.

In summary, Paulson is good but the series is not that interesting or believable and untrue to its presumed inspiration. Not recommended.

Settings are pretty with pop colors.

Acting is fine.

I've been waiting the whole season for tension to build up and explode in a great finame, but it stayed constant. So the ending was a little bit disappointing.

Ryan Murphy continues to expand his storytelling abilities and empire with his latest series. Murphy clearly loves a period piece and this is seen throughout all of the clothes, buildings and cars. Classic Murphians as I call them appear in the series, most notably Sarah Paulson and Finn Wittrock. There are other actors who appear such as Jon Jon Briones who was recently seen in AHS: Apocalypse. I loved that Murphy incorporated other actors he has not worked with: Vincent D'Onofrio, Sharon Stone, Corey Stoll, Judy Davis and Cynthia Nixon just to name a few.

The acting and style of the show is superb. Each scene is resplendent and an element I loved was that certain colors reflected the thoughts and feelings of Mildred Ratched in her individual scenes. For about six episodes, Murphy kept me entertained, but he failed to answer some key questions.

There is no indication that the Mildred Ratched portrayed in the show is even somewhat related to her counterpart in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. She does have acts of villainy and cruelty, but this seems to become undone by the conclusion of the first season. Ratched has friends, those who care about her and she feels fulfilled in her life at the end. There is no indication of how she becomes the person she is in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest despite her manipulative acts early in the series. Another key issue is the friendships she creates with others.

Murphy tends to do a strange theme where enemies become friends for no reason whatsoever. This has happened in AHS, The Politician and his recent miniseries Hollywood. As a viewer, I want to understand the thought process behind this, but it only ever confuses me. He seems to want everyone to get along and it muddles the story. My one last critique is of Amanda Plummer's character Louise.

Louise is the insanely annoying motel owner of where Ratched is staying, but her character seems to be in the show for no good reason. She does not add to the plot and Murphy seems to want to involve her character because of Amanda Plummer. It's almost as if he doesn't know what to do with her and her position in the story changed entirely within the finale. This was so confusing as a viewer and one of my main complaints of Murphy: he gives more attention to the actor rather than that of the story. He also does this with Sophie Okonedo, but her acting is incredible and she deserves recognition. Like Amanda Plummer, he gave preference to her acting abilities rather than the story.

Well, my critiques are done now. The acting is stellar, it was slightly melodramatic at times but I did not care. I loved every scene with Sarah Paulson and Finn Wittrock, they have amazing chemistry together. This was most likely because they have worked together on AHS. I do suggest the show, but as a viewer, it is important to realize its faults. I hope that you watch the show and even recognize other shortcomings or observations. Please watch the show, I found it to be very entertaining!

The visuals done in the show are incredible. That's about where the buck ends though. The rest of the show feels flat. We started watching not knowing what to expect and still felt a little bored and let down. Everything done is telegraphed so there's no real surprises. Its like all they cared about was how artsy it was, not caring at all if the story is good or not.