Outrageous Fortune

So, just watched the series finale. As an American it was experience. Not much in the ways of culture shock, there was a bit, but the ride itself, with the characters and their lives and loves, was amazing.

There are highs and lows, both emotionally and regards to quality, but all said and done, it was worth it. You love these characters. You love these actors. You feel what they go through. It was something I have looked forward to every week for all these years, and looking beyond what it can do to you personally, it really is a good show.

It is a worthy show.

Best hours of television for me in such a long time. I'm glad I saw it, it gave back to its audience. The show was choice, and let me leave it at that.

We are lucky in the Solomon Islands to have Outrageous Fortune broadcast here on Australia Network on Monday evenings. This has become one of my favourite shows. This is the type of show that one either loves or loathes. It reminds me of what the late American/International film reviewer Pauline Kael would have fallen in love with. It is fresh and ultimately realistic comedy/drama. Realistic not in the moronic sense of a "reality show", not even in the not-lifelike continual effing. It is realistic in that the characters are deeply flawed human beings. Each one of the them bears deep scars from society, from family, from themselves. Everyone from Granpa to Loretta. This is so unlike most programes where the Good practically wear white hats and the Bad black. The director lets this paradox of the good in the bad show forth by centreing the show around the criminal Wolf and his wife Cheryl, their twin sons, one smart and one stupid--viewer has to decide who is the smart son and who the stupid (played by a look-a-like of a young David Cassidy), and two very lovely daughters, one acutely intelligent and one acutely sexually earthy. Again, the view has to decide who is who. In Outrageous Fortune, hasty character judgements are bound to leave the judge with egg on the face.

The Wests are a family of criminals, adulterers, whoremongers, safe-crackers, deceivers--just like you and me. They are the least judgmental TV family I have seen portrayed, and in my time I have seen many. They indeed are a model for every family. Again, first judgements can be deceiving.

This show borders on the theatre of the absurd, borders on isn't. I don't think they've come up with a name for this genre. It is bound to radically disappoint viewers who think TV should stay at the level of All Saints or Friends.

And not the least best parts of the show is that they producers and actors are outstanding in that they make middle aged people absolutely sexy! The characters of Cheryl, Wolf, Judd are brimming with sexuality, a rarity on television for motherly and fatherly characters. Most directors assume interest in sex stops around around age 30. Outrageous Fortune shows it doesn't. Happy viewing!

There are about... 6 TV shows I value very, very highly. Of those, Outrageous Fortune is the only one I started watching again, from scratch, as soon as the last episode of season 5 was over. I've done that about 3 times now, and I'm not planning to stop at 4. It amazes me I don't get tired or bored of it. Nor do I ever start feeling like my initial "wow" reaction was misplaced. It really is as brilliantly written as I thought the moment I first laid eyes on it, which was 2 years ago.

I translate TV series and movies for a living, and as such, a lot of crap has gone through my hands. Outragous Fortune is solid gold. It comes once in a few decades, if that. It follows the lives, tribulations and evolving personalities of a family of career criminals, a handful of their friends, and a cop who falls in love with the strong, stubborn, ever caring matriarch, Sheryl West. I'd say the show falls into the comedy-drama (dramedy?) genre, and even though it's deliberately over the top at times, it feels amazingly true to life.

The writing is very brave, not only in its bluntness and razor-sharp wit, but in its treatment of social norms we've been struggling to alter for years. For example, I've yet to see another show where people in their late 40s and 60s are represented not just as somebody's parents /grandparents, but as human beings with sex lives of their own (which are going splendidly well, too).

The male characters are beautifully multifaceted, each and every one of them (which men in television and real life are rarely allowed to be). The female characters also break taboos about how women "are supposed and expected to be" by being independent and tough as nails, each in her very own way. (Check out the magnificent Ngaire Munroe who's plain fierce.)

The acting is superb, and it's a pity that because of US's hegemony in every cultural sphere, audiences worldwide (minus Nz and Oz) aren't already familiar with these actors. We should have all known who some of them are long before the show aired. Many are no spring chickens, and are certainly brilliant enough to deserve the international recognition American stars get so easily, including those that are objectively mediocre.

With that said, it's the writers' work and specifically the character development that's the spark of genius making the show one of a kind. There's no flatness, no predictability, personalities grow and change, revealing sides the viewer was previously unaware of - some good, some terrible. Same as in real life, which is exactly where many writes fail (in books, too). To date, all story lines have been worth following and every single episode has been memorable, some to the point they shook me and stayed with me for days. I pray that Outrageous Fortune won't stop at 6 seasons. If it does, I'll try to move to New Zealand in hopes of living to see the day Kiwi television produces another gem like that.

This is undoubtedly one of the greatest Kiwi drama's ever created.

The acting is brilliant with a "who's who" of Kiwi actors (Robyn Malcolm, Frank Whitten) and also some great newcomers (Siobhan Marshall, Antony Starr) This show lets Kiwi's laugh at themselves, it's something that we can all relate to. An old 70's style house. A funeral party with a BBQ and heavy drinking.

Although it's hard to determine whether some parts of the show are comedy or drama, it's fairly easy and enjoyable to watch.

Thankfully it's been commissioned for a second season, a rare thing that happens with New Zealand TV. TV3 has finally seen that people enjoy homegrown shows, lets hope TVNZ does the same and would STOP CANCELLING ALL HOMEGROWN SHOWS! Overall - 9.5/10

It's hard to believe there are people out there who don't appreciate this avant garde show. I doubt they got past a few episodes - if they had they would know that it is just about the best series I have seen in a LONG time. Maybe it's the accent, the copious amount of sex and profanity that puts people off - I don't know. I do know I avoided it for a while myself as the previews and clips absolutely do not do it any justice, but I recently borrowed the series from a friend after much nagging, and have been watching it almost 24/7 since.

Highlights for me are: The character development is sensational. Anthony Starr's acting is beyond reproach, and Robyn Malcolm, Antonia Prebble and Frank Whitten are almost as excellent. The other thing that amazes me is how you can be crying real tears one moment then laughing to the point of crying moments later.

The whole show is just a roller-coaster of entertainment. Plot lines are on the whole plausible and engaging. Sometimes you have to suspend belief, of course, with some of the characters like Falani and Sparky being even more over the top than the others, but they absolutely add to the show.

There's no real way to describe this show because it IS unique. About the only similar show we have in Australia is Packed to the Rafters, which I enjoy, but it's really not a patch on OF. I can't think of a single US show that comes remotely close - but then anyone who has read any of my reviews would know that I am no fan of US television on the whole. Trying to think of a UK series that compares, but can't off the top of my head - I have a feeling some of the ones on my "to watch" list will be great, though.

Just do yourself a favour and get this series even if you have to beg for borrow or steal it!