Blood & Oil

Don't know if today's evening TV viewing audience is ready for another "Dallas" or "Dynasty" type show, but here is comes with "Blood & Oil". Don Johnson (Miami Vice) returns to prime time as oil tycoon Hap Briggs, with a family (Amber Valletta, Scott Michael Foster and Miranda Rae Mayo) full of angst and ready for trouble. Johnson also executive producers with others, and luckily he managers to keep out of his own way while on screen. Playing the innocent card, and ripe for "oil creed picking," are the sexy Chase Crawford (Gossip Girl) and his innocence TV wife Rebecca Rittenhouse (Red Band Society). The writing is on the wall regarding the marriage of these families, so get ready for turmoil. As "Blood & Oil" is nighttime drama, the series writers are moving a mile a minute, tossing out and crossing story lines like there is no tomorrow. At this point, the series concept appears plausible. However, many of the sets are too perfect and sometime incorrect (i.e. the hotel Crawford initially stays in appears run down, yet inside the room is extremely large and the bathroom is spa like). For now I'm sticking around to see what happens next in North Dakota.

This is one of the best new shows ever. My husband and I watch it every Sunday and the way the episodes end with you hanging we can't wait for the next one. So glad to see Don Johnson back on TV and these characters very believable and interesting. Twists and turns all appreciated, keeps the story moving and captivating. Right from the start I was ready to compare it to Dallas, but I think this one is even better, more edgy and dark. I think this could be the one new show of 2015 that actually makes TV worthwhile again. I like these types of shows that grab you and you just can't wait for the next episode. There hasn't been one of these in a long time - welcome back Sunday night TV.

Interesting setting - check. Great chemistry between lead actors - check. Solid supporting cast - check. Story moving along briskly - check. Great cinematography - check.

This promises to be just the right kind of slickly done action-soap-opera, a world with modern-day-Wild-West intrigue. This show reminds me of Hell On Wheels, despite the obvious anachronism of being set in modern times.

It is filmed well, the couple who are the main protagonists have genuine chemistry. They don't seem like "actors", "acting to be a couple" - at all.

The characters have believable motivations, and the show has heart.

Heart is something that's been present in many shows of the 90s and earlier, regardless of their objective quality, but in the cynical age of today it has been lost. "Breaking Bad", for example, a great show otherwise, didn't have heart. Many shows of today find it safer to stick to cynicism and negative humor.

"Blood & Oil" is refreshingly earnest - it doesn't twist itself into a pretzel to manipulate the viewer. As result, its emotion is simple and therefore relatable. When you feel for someone in this show, you feel it with them.

Whoever's in charge of this show, has a clarity of vision. Let them never lose it.

Loved the first show.... I found it powerful. I could have easily watched another hour of this. Don Johnson continues to capture his audience with a bold and demanding character. I have enjoyed his work over the years and will in this series as well it appears. All of the actors supplied electrifying performances which kept my attention from the get go. The outdoor scenery supplies a freshness to the show however the brassiness of the writing gives it a superb twist. Never thought of South Dakota as a place of drilling for oil, one thinks of Texas, so this show could provide that area of the United States with a new look. The thrill of what would happen next kept my sense alert and attentive in the moment. I look forward to the next episode.

This prime time drama isn't a typical soap. People expecting a "Dallas" or "Revenge" glamour with high fashion and mansions won't find it here. It's set in rural oil fields. An ambitious young couple arrive in a town set to boom from oil discovery and tangle with local big wig couple. Quite a bit happens in the pilot with some things that seem a bit over the top to grab your attention like cars going off the road twice in 1 episode.

The main cast is watchable and attractive. Newcomer Rebecca Rittenhouse is pretty enough - not too glam to be unbelievable. Chace Crawford transitions well from Upper East Side to blue collar. Don Johnson has always been quite watchable and hasn't let himself go. Amber Valetta plays the ultimate second wife well. She was great in Revenge and looks to be a scene stealer here.

You want to see what happens hopefully it won't give into irritating clichés - the bad son seems a bit clichéd.