41/44
The exploits of various guests and employees at a luxury resort over the course of a week. HBO renewed the series for a second season despite the show being intended as a limited one-season miniseries. The show is said to be an anthology-style series featuring new characters for each season. HBO has done this before (to wide acclaim) with the series True Detective (2014). Jeremy Vine: Episode #4.175 (2021). While some of the first season was a bit scary, this second season is as masterful as anyone could hope for. It starts off a bit slow, the first episode, but quickly finds its feet and keeps me hooked, even as a novice. It feels like a review of every thought I had at a resort I’ve long forgotten. On that score alone it’s a delight, but don’t worry, given its setting in Sicily, it goes beyond flirting with the high drama and elegance of an opera. The acting is excellent and the visuals are spot on. I have to say that the story is effortless and Mike White, the series’ creator, is a kind of unflappable genius. The guy seems to be unaware of the boundaries involved, coupled with the sharpest eye for detail I’ve ever seen.