Rubicon

One of the best TV series I have seen. It is a mystery to me why AMC, after presenting breakthrough series after series, killed this smart one off after one season. It has much in common and perhaps the writers took inspiration from (and referenced) Three Days of the Condor, a great '70s spy movie. I guess AMC (and most network TV channels) think that a show has to start out with death, high action, or someone yelling "Stat!". This is a quiet, thoughtful show, which fits the characterizations and near docudrama script perfectly. I loved it and I miss not seeing more, after watching the one and only season. The main thing here is character development, in and out of the office, although the bulk of the story is all about the spying. It did start to take a slower turn in the middle episodes, perhaps a change in some key production area, and it broke the flow a bit. Even so, that is the very worst I can say about it, and that only lasted 2-3 episodes and I was so invested by then it didn't matter. Even though just one season, there are 13 45min episodes that are very worth watching and the story arc is as complete as it can be while leaving room for more in case it was renewed, so it is worth watching as a 13 episode mini-series.

After watching the 12th episode of this show, I found myself thinking just how good it is.

I have to admit that it started slowly, but what seem to have been random actions or scenes have been woven into a deeply intriguing plot.

I am a big fan of Breaking Bad and expected a lot from AMC on this one. I am not disappointed. This is one of my favorite shows and my favorite new show.

The acting is very good and the scenes are very believable. The interior shots of their workplace are a great backdrop.

There are a lot of characters, but each has its place in the plot. Each character is subtle but over time distinguishable from each other.

This series, short-lived as it was, holds up well. I'm watching it for the third time (thanks to Amazon Prime Video). With its pace, its characters, its dialog, even its cinematography, it all comes together nicely.

Actors Christopher Evan Welch, James Badge Dale, Arliss Howard, Annie Parisse, Dallas Roberts (especially) are all excellent. Jessica Collins is hot (watch and see if you don't agree).

The plot is outlandish, but so what? Edward Snowden has made such outlandishness seem all too possible.

Not many such series are watchable over and over. This one has proved itself an evergreen.

Put it on your Watchlist; it's worth it.

I have finished watching the first season of Rubicon, and I am in love with the show. I am in love with the atmosphere, the tension, the amazing subtle and effective writing. Let's start from the beginning...

The Pilot of Rubicon is a very good opening, although flawed. You can immediately tell that this is a show more worried about telling a good story than action, which is all to good, yet is also backtracks on itself. The Pilot is the one that opens a mystery, and for the first few episodes it might seem like the show has nowhere to go, but keep in mind that it is a very carefully paced show. By episode 5 I was hooked. From then on, the show gets better and better, leading up to amazing story lines, and not just having to do with the overall mystery. The last four episodes of the season are masterful, as perfect as television can get. There might be a problem in that many viewers after 2 or 3 episodes might decide to give up on it simply because of the slow pace, and if that is the case then what a shame.

Another thing that has to be noted about Rubicon is the great cast. James Badge Dale is very effective and a great lead, and Miranda Richardon does great in her limited screen time. Lauren Hodges as Tanya is the best of the females, carefully portraying a confused and misguided analyst who is not sure what her life should be. Arliss Howard and Michael Cristofer are the best in the series, for the fact that they are two of the most interesting and intriguing characters in TV in years. They masterfully play their characters to the highest order.

Along with the great writing and acting, we have the great cinematography, which is the quality of the best films out there. It is on par with AMC'S other great series, Mad Men. Ultimately, Rubicon stands as one of the strongest shows I have seen in years, but it's slow pace, while completely refreshing to me, will give it a harder time to find a larger audience, which will then be the reason for it's demise. If that's the case, then we have a great mini-series, and the last scene plays perfectly for that, leaving viewers in a state of desperation.

I'm evaluating the whole series here, not just the first episode.

It's a darn good show - really darn good. Well worth watching in 2018, and also worth rewatching, which I plan to do in a few months once the show isn't so fresh in my mind anymore.

There have been many TV shows about spies and subterfuge (Homeland, The Americans) and terrorism (The Looming Tower, The Unit, 24, etc.). But this show filters America's "war on terror" through an intel analysis firm, where brilliant and bookish individuals sift through raw intel to give recommendations for America's NatSec apparatus. And that's only part of the show; the other part involves a creepy, wide-ranging conspiracy that's ever bit as exciting and scarily omniscient as the ones you'd find in those classic 70s conspiracy flicks like "The Parallax View" and "All the President's Men."

The writing is thoughtful and the dialogue is rich; there's so much of substance here, and the show doesn't need big explosions or shootouts or anything like that to sustain an intricate, fascinating plot and rewarding character arcs. Everyone is interesting, from James Badge Dale as the paranoid, hyper-focused analyst Will Travers to Miranda Richardson as widow Katherine Rhumor, who is trying to figure out why her rich husband suddenly took his own life.

Special commendation, though, has got to go to Arliss Howard as Will's supervisor Kale Ingram: the coolest, most fascinating, chilly and badass middle-aged gay character I think I've ever seen on an American TV show (refreshingly, Ingram's homosexuality is simply presented as is, with no frills or B.S., something shows in 2018 still struggle to do). And Michael Cristofer as the cigarette-smoking weirdo and head of API Truxton Spangler is another winner: every scene he's in positively crackles, and his true motivations will keep you guessing.

From the cinematography (you'll think you're watching a Hollywood movie half the time, it's so good) to the writing to the performances, this is a show to treasure and savor. Budding screenwriters simply must study this show's scripts, and the show overall is is one of the most wickedly smart things I've ever seen on American TV. Shame there's only the one season; it could've done a lot better if it came out today on a streaming platform.

Do yourself a favor and watch Rubicon, if only to see just how good TV can be.