Matador

If you have recently suffered some form of significant head trauma or you are blind drunk this may be vaguely entertaining. If on the other hand you are not brain damaged or drunk and you watch this you will probably wish you were.

Dim witted, hackneyed plot lines clash with a confusion of genres. This series is not sure if it wants to be an action orientated drama or a comedy and as a result fails miserably at both. Combine this with ugly, often gruesome violence and unnecessary crudity and there you have it.

The characters are predictably of the cardboard cut out variety and the acting whilst not utterly dreadful like the rest of this travesty is nothing special either.

In my estimation this is so awful it should come with a mental health warning or failing that a couple of dozen beers.

The star forward who played for the English national team... Ouch... Terrible English accent... Nobody who has ever played for England has ever spoken like that!

I can see why it wasn't renewed for a second series as a result of poor international ratings / viewing figures..... Football just isn't like that in Europe, for a European audience, it's just wrong in so many ways, something just doesn't ring true about it. So, watching the football part is just a bit annoying, which is a shame as it detracts from what is actually a decent format... Perhaps if it was American football themed it may have worked and appealed to a European audience. 'Soccer' in America is seen as a bit of a joke to Europeans.

The acting is good, the format is okay, the comedic tongue in cheek script is fun and engaging... It's just let down by what America thinks 'soccer' is all about.

I'm coming back to this show after many years because something reminded me of it. And this review will seem ridiculous to anyone who comes across it, but at least give me a chance.

Everyone who acts tries their best. The characters are at pains to be multi-dimensional and the meddling of tension and genres has potential. BUT

this show has a sex scene in a locker room early on which is completely out of kilter. I'm not some wokey, but when you see a degrading scene where people are treated like objects to shock and gratify you feel gross. It's like a show trying to abuse and shockyou, where human beings are objects played for laughs and gratification even though it had nothing to do with the plot. I never could enjoy the show because of that, even though I watched further than 99% of the population. When a show tries to mix likeable characters and humour with some violence you just get well, a real pile of excrement. Shame on everyone who was involved in this show and shame on whoever thought that scene was a good idea. Maybe by leaving this review in the internet ether it'll get back to someone who will rethink this. Or maybe I just want to say my piece.

It's a brand new and fun concept. A light and fun based series. The other European comment said this series was awful, sorry to say but even America can play soccer, and they did very well at the World Cup (sorry to say I'm Belgian and we kicked the US out), besides of the soccer this is a TV-show, if you want to see football, go watch Barcelona or Man City. So please do not put out such idiotic comments about a pretty good series. Back to the show itself. It has a good concept, new and a bit refreshing compared to other Covert Op TV-shows. I can say you have a fun based spy-series who led me to think i'm watching "Chuck" in a new coat, with new sort of characters. Safe to say Chuck was one of the best series ever played.

A correction to my closing comments, I see the rating has stabilized now at a realistic 7 with more voters. However, I still stand by my closing comments regarding IMDb voting!

Just watched the Pilot episode. Very Burn Notice meets Covert Affairs meets Miami Vice, with a Latino DEA Homeboy as the protagonist. In true Hollywood watered down ethnic ambiguity. Our hero is far more Santa Monica or Manhattan Beach than Boyle Heights or City Terrace.

Despite his cover is an auto mechanic in East Los Angeles. Hollywood has Anglicized our hero to make him more palpable to the masses. Despite that El Rey Network targets Hispanic viewers.

Let's call this show "East LA Vice." Very fun and hip, a little too hip. Fast paced and very light fare. This is not a gritty cop drama, it is just entertainment.

This is not a thinking man or woman's show. Predictable and no spoilers here, What You See Is What You Get. Not many surprises will be popping up.

Decent writing, acting and production values, but there ain't gonna be any Emmy Awards. Not for this "Matador." I liked it, it was fun, a little silly and humorous, and the show doesn't take itself seriously at all. They look like they're having fun making the show and it projects through the screen I'll keep watching. I gave it a 6 for quality and an 8 for just making me laugh at some of the silly remarks for an average of 7, which are good marks from a harsh critic.

Now here is what pisses me off on IMDb. As I write this review and the sole reason I did was at this time Matador has a score of 9.4 which is ridiculous. That is Shawshank and Godfather (Highest films on IMDb at 9.2) territory. This is no Game of Thrones (9.5), House M.D. (8.9)or even as good as Burn Notice which has the insanely hot Gabrielle Anwar and totally insane and lovable Bruce Campbell (8.0)

The Wire earned a 9.4, deservedly. Matador is a 7 at best. Good viewing, it does not need to be any better than it is. It is just fun escapist entertainment!

This is nothing more than shill voting by cast and crew to pump up the numbers. Which is BS and just wrong. No sane person would rate this show above an 8 and I think the average viewer would rate it a 5 or maybe 6. I gave it a 7 simply because I love this kind of silly cop stuff.

Movies like Beverly Hills Cop, Freebie and the Bean, Bad Boys, Turner and Hooch, Real Men, etc. are right up my alley.

This is a fun show and worth a look, but never believe the reviews or numbers here, people cheat the system.