Cooper F

I had high-ish hopes for this show when I heard about the whole out-of-order thing. Sadly, I realized around the 4th or 5th episode that the timeline/colors thing is a gimmick meant to distract you from rather uninspiring plot development. Kaleidoscope tries so hard to be tragic, heartfelt, and uplifting but in the end, I was left despising most, if not all of the characters for their choices at various moments throughout. Ironically, the only character who I don't dislike is the villain (who is made out to be this horrible guy but anyone with eyes and a brain can see that he isn't really). The protagonist suffers from increasingly crippling symptoms of Parkinson's, and yet the writers still cannot make me feel bad for him. The cast have zero chemistry and lack compelling performances. Poor Giancarlo Esposito could not even act his way out of his character's trite and predictable arc and was probably wishing he could be Gus Fring again. The writers attempt to add mystery to the female lead by incorporating an immigrant backstory and an Argentinian accent, but this attempt fails. The two FBI detectives are especially forgettable. The writers of Kaleidoscope failed to realize that flashbacks do not automatically give characters depth. All of the crew members besides RJ get some sort of flashback moment that does not help make them more likable. Without likable characters, it's hard for any viewer to invest in the plot. With explicitly DISlikable charcaters (Judy, in my opinion, is the absolute worst. Even worse than Bob the bully), viewers lose all investment the plot and instead hope for moments of comeuppance with the characters who they feel deserve it. What disappoints me most about Kaleidoscope, as a fan of heist movies, is the actual heist. The heist is only, and I mean only able to happen because there is a thunderstorm. And if you think I'm exaggerating, I'm not. Using unpredictable yet lucky weather to enable what is usually supposed to be a methodical, precise sequence of events is lazy writing. Heists should rely on the creativity and skills of the team, not Mother Nature. If you think the chronological (and Netflix-recommended) endings of Kaleidoscope will make up for the lack of satisfaction you experience throughout, you are mistaken. There is not one character whose fate strikes me as shocking, captivating, or even interesting.