Riviera

Started with great promise, but faltered early on. This show seemed to lose its way about half way through. Some of the casting was ridiculous and Lena Olin mumbled her way through some of the scenes where her dialogue was important. And the ending was a joke, it was like we've run out of time, let's end this now. Very disappointing overall.

I am enjoying this series 8 episodes in it is really good. The conspiracy and intrigue is very well served on the screen. The sets are more than magnificent and the actors are doing a great job. Watch it and you won't regret it, quality smart series. It reminds me of "The Night Manager" and I think the rating here should be a lot higher than it is now.

So after watching the first two seasons, I have now had a chance to watch the new Third season of Sky show Riviera and here is my review for it. The premise of the season sees a year after Season 2, Georgina has left the Riviera and her family to live her own life when she is dragged into an international conspiracy.

Main Character Julia Stiles plays Georgina and I think she is better this season, she is still a really interesting character and after dealing with all the family drama from last season she can go back to being on the hunt after people. She is just a strong protagonist and I feltthis season it was easier to get on board with her and want to see her succeed.

Supporting Characters Now if you liked the characters from the previous two seasons then too bad, because they aren't here to be found, well mostly, I will get onto the two characters who did make it in later. Rupert Graves plays Gabriel and I liked him, it continues the trend of Georgina having a male companion and though he wasn't as good as Will Arnett from the last season he is still a fun addition to the show. But then there is the rest of the cast, so onto the returning cast Jack Fox as Nico and Poppy Delevingne as Daphne and they are just as boring as last season and even worse they just feel really out of place here and like they are just here because they forgot to finish their arc from the last season. The new cast fair just as bad, they are so dull and boring with no depth at all, this is basically a fresh start for the show and they waste it on really forgettable characters.

Story This is easily the worst part of the season, it is just all over the place and makes no sense. I mean as I said before you don't really need to watch the previous seasons as it ignores them, did you want to know what happened to Christos, Adrianna and Negrescu well too bad the show completely forgets about them even when they should be included. This new story is so convoluted and ridiculous, Georgina doesn't even have any personal stake here, you wonder why she is even around as the show just went too far in making the show feel too different to the previous.

Script The script is okay, there are some decent dramatic dialogue here and Stiles manages to make you believe in what she is trying to achieve. But there is nothing that really stands out and the forced attempt at humour isn't great, but the worst is the over convoluted plot lines that doesn't do a good enough job in making the characters or their motivations interesting.

Style The style of the show is great, we don't see much of the Riviera but the show still manages to still look great and actually going to the new locations freshens things up a bit more. This season is also the most exciting of the show, there is more action scenes and it does make it an easier watch. Also the season has only 8 episodes compared to 10 and that makes it also an easier to watch and like the season is moving faster.

Overall Overall, this is a very mixed season of the show but veers slightly to the positive side. It misses the mark on most of its characters and plot but it has a great lead and exciting set pieces that make it an okay watch. I wouldn't say rush to watch it, but maybe sometime in the future when you are bored it might be worth a watch.

Rating - 6/10.

My Review - "Riviera " Season 2 and Season 3 on SBS Iview

Season 1. Rating 8/10 Season 2. My Rating 7/10. Season 3. Rating 6/10

This is just a short review as I think this Series is a text book case of a good beginning to a Series that shows promise but doesn't deliver the same impact or script standard that its subsequent series had with it's script writers going off in silly tangents .

It was so interesting to read that Neil Jordan the original writer and creator has disowned Riviera, due to his scripts being reworked by others. He says he has no idea who rewrote these episodes. "They were changed, to my huge surprise and considerable upset. There were various sexual scenes introduced into the story and a lot of very expository dialogue. I objected in the strongest terms possible."

After I gave Series 1 a very credible rating of 8/10 it was soon obvious in Series 2 that the melodrama and incredible plot line had derailed the quality of Series One .

However I ploughed on hoping for some improvement. We still had the beautiful setting of The lavish Clios Villa in the Côte d'Azur plus other glorious locations but the characters especially Georgina (Julia Stiles) and their self serving self indulgent motives really started to irritate.

I think it's because in Series 1 Georgina had some motive for her behaviour after all she'd innocently married into the Clios family and discoverd it a nest of vipers but in the following series she becomes just as calculating and nasty as the rest of them.

We're introduced to a new character Lady Cassandra Eltham (Juliet Stevenson who has a chalet down the road that houses secrets that will bring the Clios family and Georgina to their knees.

Sound melodramatic? It is ,she even has a prisoner locked in her tower and her son and daughter Daphne (Poppy Delevingne ) and Nico (Jack Fox) add to the drama and suspense.

If I thought the plot twists started to go to turn into bad melodrama in Series 2 they really became unfathomable in Series3.

Series 3 was just silly Georgina now Georgina Ryland ( her name before Clios) has left the vipers nest in The Riviera and all the mayhem behind.

She is now an Art Dealer in London and begins hunting for the stolen Art Treasures that were the spoils of War by the Third Reich.

She partners up with Gabriel Hirsch Rupert Graves and sets off to Venice another glorious location.

I like Rupert Graves work but in this role he didn't impress me at all and I think it's because his role was so undefined. He and Georgina are not romantically involved, Georgina's too driven and involved with herself for that. Gabriel Hirsch seems just an accessory along for the ride and gets into much strife and inconvenience along the way because of Georgina.

We also find Georgina forcibly committed to the most lavish resort style Asylum against her will by a wicked Pharmaceutical CSO.

This provided some very melodramatic moments that reminded me of Mel Brooke's "High Anxiety" Then the series turns to another glamour location Buenos Aires Argentina for a Political twist it all gets too much to consider why or how Georgina and Gabriel got to this newest adventure.

I'm glad I stayed with the 3 Series but I'll not watch a fourth if that happens "Riviera" looks fabulous but it's a shame as the original creator said his vision was "reworked" and not effectively in mu opinion by others .

As of now, Sky Atlantic hasn't confirmed that there's going to be a new season. However, the show hasn't been cancelled either, so there's hope for a 'Riviera' Season 4 release date to be announced soon. Additionally, Stiles has talked about the future of the show in an interview.

Many coincidences and unbelievable out of character changes .However I enjoyed season 1 of this drama Julia Stiles makes it worthwhile Pity about the ending though