The Idol season 1 episode 1: The saddest series premiere ever?
First, we understand why the network picked up the show in the first place. It’s a show from a noteworthy executive producer in Sam Levinson and it has a huge pop star front and center in The Weeknd. Of course, we anticipated the controversy. Nothing with that is all that much of a surprise.
With that being said, there is one thing that we did not expect: The real lack of soul. We understand that the show is meant to present the artificial nature of show business, but there is also something so hollow about most of the characters. Tedros is a character who is so hard to get invested in, or really even believe that pop star Jocelyn would necessarily want to be around. Maybe this speaks to her own flaws as a human and some of her struggles. Or, maybe it just speaks to the show trying to figure out exactly what it wants to be … and it doesn’t have a clear sense of that.
The biggest issue with the show, beyond the unsettling content, is trying to figure out what the incentive is to keep watching. With Levinson’s other show in Euphoria, there was this understanding that the characters were so young and there was the hope that you could turn it around. Also, Rue had so many layers as the lead of that story; nothing is close to that here.
Can the story turn this around?
There is always a chance, but it’s going to be hard when this is a show with so much working against it right now. The reviews for season 1 have not been strong, and the entire tone is at its core so depressing. That is a hard thing to get around.
Related – Be sure to get more news on The Idol, including other updates on what lies ahead
What did you think about the series premiere of The Idol?
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(Photo: HBO.)