Reprisal: Season One
January 18, 2020 12:59 PM - Season 1 (Full Season) - Subscribe

Katherine Harlow, aka Doris Quinn, (Abigail Spencer) is a relentless femme fatale who, after being left for dead, sets out to take revenge against her brother, his bombastic gang of gearheads, and the biggest gangster in Detroit (Ron Perlman). The series is set in an ivented era that mixes modern, rockabilly, roaring 20's, and various opther aesthetics. This bloody, complex neo-noir also features Mena Massoud (the title character from the live action Aladdin.
posted by DirtyOldTown (22 comments total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
This is a Hulu original that is sort of a hybrid of Sin City, Sons of Anarchy, and Banshee.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:59 PM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]


I was into it, but I kept getting confused about how all the different characters connected to each other. And all the anachronistic fashion, media, technology started to drive me crazy. But I’m very curious about the second season and how they explain the existence of the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
posted by loriginedumonde at 6:37 PM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]


I liked this quite a bit. But I'm a huge fan of Abigail Spencer. The final episode put "25 or 6 to 4" into my head as an earworm for weeks.

Ron Perlman keeps playing this type of character; but he's so good at it. If it's renewed, I assume that's what the second season will be about.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 7:41 PM on January 18, 2020


"...over the years I've come to understand that being underestimated is the greatest advantage you have over other people."
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:37 PM on January 18, 2020 [1 favorite]


Whatever issues a viewer may have with the writing... it would be hard to see this and not agree that the cinematographer and director are destined for great things. However you score the writing, acting, premise, and show overall... the direction and visuals are A+++.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:13 AM on January 19, 2020 [2 favorites]


I'm enjoying the show, but I have to admit, it really kicked in for me when Molly did....whatever she did to the lawyer. For some reason, that just made my whole damn day.
posted by miss-lapin at 9:17 AM on January 19, 2020


miss-lapin, that’s also when I saw that this show was going to make unexpected turns that I could get behind.

One other thing that struck me, though, was that all the dancers are kind of bad? I could hung with the premise a bit more if they had gotten them a choreographer or something.
posted by loriginedumonde at 11:58 AM on January 19, 2020 [1 favorite]


Binged it over three days and really liked it a lot. I enjoyed the obviously bizarro-universe they put together, but I was frequently unsure about some aspects of the plot and characterizations, specifically if certain choices were purposeful and world-building (and will hopefully be elaborated on later), or... something less clever and deliberate than that and will simply remain unaddressed. I hope to not be disappointed! This is a fun show with a lot of promise.

(also I wish to know more about the orange miasma at the north pole and perhaps in Donuts and Duvets Room 112)
posted by Ornate Rocksnail at 2:53 PM on January 19, 2020 [1 favorite]


One thing I loved was the whole mythology of the War for the Archipelago. It instantly felt to me like there could be a "War for the Archipelago Cinematic Universe" of stories.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 6:34 PM on January 19, 2020 [2 favorites]


Oh, and yeah: everything about Molly was great. What really made the lawyer stuff work for me was her quiet explanation later: his malign arrogance after she hit him was simply not acceptable. In response, she obliterated it, and him.

Everyone who really likes this show should check out Jett, starring Carla Gugino.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 6:48 PM on January 19, 2020 [1 favorite]


Jett, Warrior and the other Cinemax originals are all in jeopardy now, as Warner Media announced that Cinemax will no longer produce original content. They also specifically said none of the shows will move over to the new HBO Max platform.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:12 AM on January 20, 2020 [1 favorite]


In terms of Donuts and Duvets Room 112, there seems to be an awful lot of afterlife imagery in the show. The most overt of these is Burt. He has a silverheaded ram cane and a limp-both of which hint at being the Devil. He rules over the bang-a-rang, which is a chaotic place filled with temptations. You could make the argument that Katherine/Doris is a Lilith character pissed that she's been robbed of her rightful place in the hierarchy of Hell.

The thing at the North Pole is far more curious and considering it's the ending image of s1, I'm sure there will be more in the future.
posted by miss-lapin at 10:23 PM on January 20, 2020 [3 favorites]


Re: the Archipelago... I'm assuming this is all a reference to the Battle of Nanpeng Archipelago, with the implication being that the US fought (and somehow won) a Korea/Vietnam type war to prevent China going to communism.

I wonder if they're saying that what happened to China (and maybe swaths of East Asia in general) explains the weird lags in technology in this world.

There is some heavy ass backstory going on for a revenge yarn about hot rod gangs.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:03 AM on January 21, 2020 [1 favorite]


Also... I haven't noticed it said out loud, but the sign seems to imply the second hotel they go to is called Pillows and Pilseners.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:05 AM on January 21, 2020


Pillows and Pints
posted by valkane at 8:15 AM on January 21, 2020 [2 favorites]


Originally, I had been reading the era as current day with weird lags in technology... but now I'm wondering if it's maybe late 70s/early 80s plus cell phones.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:31 AM on January 22, 2020


I have 25 minutes left in the entire season and can barely being myself to watch it because--whether you think this is good or not you have to admit--this is not the kind of show where anyone is safe or the hero is entitled to any kind of success.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 4:30 PM on January 22, 2020 [1 favorite]


I'm not sure which character could even be seen as a hero at this point. Joel's daughter, whose stories seem to be quite insightful, seems curiously untouched by the violence of the world around her. Ultimately she may be the hero.
posted by miss-lapin at 2:12 AM on January 23, 2020


Very true. Protagonist/main character would be a better way to put it.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 3:41 AM on January 23, 2020 [1 favorite]


The reason I point to Joel's daughter,Lyla, is we have 2 other female characters who were raised in the world of the bang a rang-Katherine/Doris and Meredith. Now both of them are "Harlows" (whether by birth or nature), and they seem to have taken to the world of the bang a rang. Lyla, however, seems curiously untouched by it even after being kidnapped by the Ghouls.

So it makes me wonder if she might be, in upcoming seasons, a more central character than she is right now.
posted by miss-lapin at 4:02 AM on January 23, 2020


This does seem like the kind of show that would kill off Katherine/Doris and hand over primary focus to another character without hesitation if it suited them.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 4:28 AM on January 23, 2020 [1 favorite]


Canceled.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:33 AM on May 24, 2020


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