The Riches on FX

[Marlena_M]

I have to admit, my interest is waning.

I'm tired of Dahlia always freaking out.
I'm tired of Wayne always trying to keep everyone's act together.
I'm tired of Wayne's boss Hugh just being a major-league jerk.
I'm tired of anything related to the family of travelers. After all these weeks I'm still not sure if they're sinister or silly... and by now that shouldn't be something I'm still trying to figure out.

I'm just honestly tired of the whole premise and that's disappointing because the show started out with a lot of promise.

With the exception of when Dahlia was singing to DiDi in the jail cell, in this week's episode I found my self very bored. Previously I was pretty consistently entertained... Wayne dealing with Doug's ex-wife JoLene... Dahlia interacting with her nutty-neighbor... Dahlia being a bored house-wife... Wayne trying to figure out all the legal-ese in the office... Wayne & Dahlia impersonating the lawyers and messing with the other lawyer over the Alpaca... etc. I think I was hanging in there and enjoying things until last week when Didi's "fiancee" showed up. After that it became ridiculous.

I'll continue to watch but not with the same enthusiasm. Even the previews for next week's episode don't look interesting to me... and the best stuff is in the previews!

A couple of questions from last night. Why did Dahlia go to see Hugh about a job in the first place? Why did Hugh give Dahlia all that money?

[Google]

 

[cricketeen]

This could be all wrong, but I thought she went there to keep an eye on the husband and nephew - make sure nobody screwed up and cover if they did.
I thought he gave her the money to soothe his own conscience for thinking she was there to get drugs. When she begged him to show her how to get clean, he felt bad? (Sorry, it's been three days. My memory ain't that great )

[Maveno]

Originally Posted by cricketeen

I thought he gave her the money to soothe his own conscience for thinking she was there to get drugs. When she begged him to show her how to get clean, he felt bad? (Sorry, it's been three days. My memory ain't that great )

I'm not totally sure either, but I thought Hugh was giving her money because she was so brazen & mouthy. She was draping herself all over him, he's getting all excited, and then BAM, she's twisting his package like a bread-tie!
Then it was like....that was that...she was walking around the office and receiving an envelope of money. {confusing}
They did the same thing last week when they were up in the bathroom, no explanation or understanding of exactly why he's allowing her to steal.

The whole plotline between those two is awkward, IMO. Can't really figure out if he's allowing her all of these freedoms because she's simply leading him on.....or because he likes her abrasive demeanor.

I'm just honestly tired of the whole premise and that's disappointing because the show started out with a lot of promise.

That's exactly how I feel.
When the cousin came to live with them, that's when I was REALLY rolling my eyes. It probably wouldn't have been so bad if it remained believable...but when he stapled his pants at the law office, I had to say outloud, "I'm not so sure about this one anymore". The fact that he was even IN the law office, wandering around..was hard enough to "accept".

[cricketeen]

Originally Posted by Maveno

I'm not totally sure either, but I thought Hugh was giving her money because she was so brazen & mouthy. She was draping herself all over him, he's getting all excited, and then BAM, she's twisting his package like a bread-tie!

Ooh, that image makes me cringe and I don't even have a package!

Maybe he just likes the challenge she poses and wants to keep her around.

There are a lot of elements that don't fit and I never know quite what to make of it, but each week I always: laugh out loud, say 'WTH?' and see something in Dahlia that touches me.

[catwoman1955]

Originally Posted by cricketeen

...
There are a lot of elements that don't fit and I never know quite what to make of it, but each week I always: laugh out loud, say 'WTH?' and see something in Dahlia that touches me.

That basically sums up how I feel about the show, at this point. I still like "The Riches", but there are (now) more and more moments in the storylines that either make me scratch my head or roll my eyes.

I've decided to keep up with the show, mainly to see how long Wayne/Doug, Dahlia/Cherien and their family can continue to live that lie. What's fascinating to me is how (apparently) so many of the folks that live in their new community are so busy living their own lies, that maybe they don't have time to see through the "Riches", and their charade. And, perhaps, those other town folks have as much to lose as (or more than) the "Riches", if they are found out.

So, that said, I've looked over a lot of "red flags" (e.g., Wayne/Doug, going in and out of his "name" at work), because, so far, the show is still compelling. And, Minnie Driver and Eddie Izzard are making it worth while. Plus, Minnie has a beautiful singing voice, and does the accent well. The weakest links on this show, though, are the main characters from the camp, e.g., Dale, Ken, Ken's sister, and that couple with whom Wayne & Dahlia had a run-in before becoming the "Riches." Too many stereotypes, overplaying, etc. for me...

Cat

[Chorita KaBoom]

I really like this show, but I have to agree that there is some uneveness in the story quality. Minnie's and Eddie's performances are really what keep me coming back. There is potential for greatness here, but there may just be too much going on to get there. Maybe this should have been a 4-6 episode mini-series instead of a 12 episode series.

[Marlena_M]

This week's episode was so completely uneven it was unnerving.

DeeDee "getting married" to that "Ken" guy and neither her mother nor her father was there? Come on. They were there but too busy doing other things to actually be present at the wedding. DeeDee looking to Wayne to get her out of it? Why not look to Dahlia since it's "her family" that's behind it? Ken is completely useless throughout the entire storyline going so far as to have no clue that DeeDee doesn't love him and doesn't want to marry him. Could that be because not DeeDee not Wayne and not Dahlia ever said NO? It gets all the way to the part of the wedding where the preacher asks DeeDee "do you take Ken" and she finally says NO? GMAB. If it was that easy, why didn't anyone "just say no" long before?!?!?! And back to useless Ken... at the end he grows a sack and tells his sister if she hurts any of them she's no longer his sister... and he'll choke her in her sleep? Either he's a useless dolt or he's a protector... he's not both!!!

And now let me go back to Dahlia.... yet another episode where Dahlia has a freak-out session. If it's an episode of "The Riches" there's gotta be the requisite "Dahlia-freak-out-session". It's growing old. Really. It is. Going around the house and grabbing stuff to put in the bag to pawn? She's a CON ARTIST for goodness sake. If she wanted to get the money to repay the family, you know she knows of a million-and-one Get Rich Quick schemes. And then later on there were a million-and-one ways to depict how upset she was... letting her get completely drunk and have one of her son's friend's walk in on her while she was in bed in a skimpy nighty was gratuitous. Trust me, I'm no prude, but there was no need for that scene whatsoever.

DeeDee is so much more mature than her mother Dahlia. Granted Dahlia's been in jail and on drugs but the woman just ain't right in the head.

Dale is probably the most unevenly written character of the show... and that's saying a lot. NO ONE BUT DAHLIA questioned how Dale's daddy got THAT FAR out in the woods? NO ONE noticed there were no "tracks" from his bed out the door into the woods to where he was found? "Those marks on his face were from his crawling out there"??? OMG GMAB. Either Dale is in control or he's capable of being in control or he's a snivelling idiot... but not all three in the same episode.

And if Jennifer wants to drop a dime then I wish she'd go on and do it already and let's watch the chips fall where they may.

After all this time, even after the episode where Doug was talking to Shereen on the phone pretenting he was Doug's attorney talking to Doug, even after that tender scene where it seemed like Wayne and Dahlia got a lot of stuff out in the open... I still don't get their relationship, what attracted them to each other and what keeps them together.

I really want to love this show... it's just getting harder and harder.

[Maveno]

Marlena M, my feelings exacctly!!
There are so many other points in the show that are so absolutely unbelievable.
What was the point of the dentist job? WHAT dental assistant would be able to "get by" by sucking the male patients manboobs?!?! THEN, the destist commits suicide. Stuh-range writing.

What happened to the "nosey" coffee clatch women who came to the house and informed Dahlia that she's actually Jewish? Where did that lil plot go?
The wedding night..how many gunshots have to happen before ANYone even bats an eye?
I really keep trying to like it too, but it just keeps getting goofier and goofier.

[Lotuslander]

I saw the first episode on Showcase in Canada tonight, and thought it was well done, especially Minnie Driver's acting. I hope the series lives up to it's promise, but judging from some of your comments it may not. Still, it's more original than most of the dramas on t.v. right now.

[myrosiedog]

This weeks episode was MUCH better I thought. I think they are finally getting it together storywise.

I like how Wayne/Doug seems to finally be getting somewhat of a conscience and Dahlia seems to be growing some too.

Because I find the 2 oldest kids to be more mature than the parents.

But definetly a HUGE improvement this week.

The entire dinner party was so funny that I was just

I'm going to stick with it as it does seem to be getting better. It was very uneven up until this point. I think they need to leave the camp and the travelers in teh camp at the camp and no more about them at all.

I think the acting is great. The writing needed to improve and it seems it has.