User reviews

I think this is one of the best show I ever watched.

After the final, I feel very nostalgic, and the pilot is even more powerfull if you see it again right now. Even the flashbacks, which may have been boring sometimes, make sense with the ending.

Very great writing, characters... the action scenes are sometimes not very realistic and a little easy but the story is so good and the actor playing so great that this is not relevant.

I really feels like watching another Point Break from 1991 but in a looong, very detailled version. And even darker but with the same adrenaline.

We really care about the Cody's family !

Joshua "J" Cody loses his mother to an overdose. He finds new shelter in his grandmother's pompous house, where he also meets his uncles. He quickly discovers that the Cody family finances their lifestyle through illegal activities - from this moment on, J's life changes suddenly.

For my part, I have to say "Animal Kingdom" is definitely a good and entertaining series that draws the viewer deep into the machinations of the Cody family, but the series also has its shortcomings.

The series starts relatively slowly - so slowly that at the beginning of the second season I actually considered whether I should drop the series because it had already been very long-winded up to that point, but I decided to finish at least the second season. I'm glad I did that because halfway through the second season the show finally picks up speed and as a viewer you become more tied to the series.

At the beginning the series also has an unusually large number of sex scenes, but this slowly decreases as the seasons progress.

I saw the series in German and unfortunately the dubbing isn't the best. Sometimes emotions are mostly lost in translation because something is not emphasized correctly according to the situation.

In my opinion, the series could have been significantly shorter, as there is a lot of unnecessary sub-plots or flashbacks, which makes the series relatively boring in some places.

The flashbacks are shown from season 4 onwards and give the viewer context to understand how the characters became the way they are. I learned to love the flashbacks towards the end, but when they were first shown at the beginning of season 4, I found them quite annoying because they took the momentum out of the story in the present.

But the flashbacks contribute a lot to my personal highlight of the series and those are its characters. I've rarely seen a series that wrote its characters as well as "Animal Kingdom." The characters actually all grow on you in some way and that's difficult to master when you consider that you have such a relatively large number of main characters here.

In summary, I say "Animal Kingdom" is far from a masterpiece, but a series that manages to perfectly combine crime and family drama and is clearly worth your time!

I absolutely loved Animal Kingdom as it has quickly become one of my all-time favorite shows! It's not only one of the best shows currently on tv but it's also just flat out one of the best shows ever created! I'm just so impressed with how each season continues to be just as good as the others! If you haven't seen this incredible show yet and are looking for a show that will keep you on the edge of your seat every episode then stop what you're doing right now, do yourself a favor and go watch it...I promise you that you won't be disappointed! If you don't believe me all you have to do is look at the ratings or read through the reviews to see how loved this show really is.

It's hard to put into words just how much I love Animal Kingdom. It's such an incredibly underrated show. It's about J Cody (who's mother died of a heroin overdose) and has to move to Southern California to live with his Uncles who are 3 troubled brothers and their crazy mother who make a living doing armed robbery's and other criminal activities. Jay doesn't really like them because they never talked to or helped his mom (their sister) and he blames the family of her overdose. He gains their respect over time and become one of the leaders of the family. This show will have your heart pounding from all the excitement throughout the entire series. Once you start watching you're going to want to binge it as fast as you can.

This show starts out as a trashy, glossy, action-packed and very, very watchable entertainment. Successful bank heists are celebrated with a sky-dive, for no other reason than to have a very cool skydiving sequence set to pumping music.

The genius of this show is that it very, very gradually starts to deepen, uncovering layers to the main characters and slowly revealing their depths and complexities. It does this so gradually that you don't even realise it until realise you're watching some of the most beautifully-drawn characters on TV for a long time.

It then becomes as much a character- study, and a character-driven drama - as it is an action-packed heist show. The issues, plotlines and brilliant twists and turns are consistently unpredictable and original.

Some of the heists stretch credulity - as action sequences often do, but the whole thing is so skillfully-woven that it doesn't matter - you happily buy into the lack of believability in the heist/action sequences, because they're so well integrated into the brilliant character studies and first-class storytelling.

The casting is perfect - everyone is bringing their A-game but Shawn Hatosy is astonishing and Ellen Barkin is hitting a career best.

It's a Breaking Bad-level achievement, possibly exceeding it at times. One that flew under the radar.

I am in only mid season 3 so far, but having seen this show thus far I felt it necessary to leave a review, especially after seeing the many inexplicable 10 ratings which mention Point Break and High Octane.

Animal Kingdom may be many things, but fast paces and high octane it is not. No, this is much more a rather slow burner of a drama with only tidbits of crime and action thrown in almost as if an afterthought. The show doesn't build around the crimes and jobs the Cody's commit and so far every single one of them has been pretty underwhelming. The viewer is show the highlights of the job, and there is very little victory or celebration to be felt even after the most successful heists because too much happens off screen. The action here is best filed under how to make robbery boring. The heists themselves are pretty ingenious, but the execution is just rather meh look we got more money. Give me the money. No we have to clean it first. Gets a little old.

Where Animal Kingdom gets it right, like other great crime-dramas of the past is that there are no heroes. Every character is shown, the good, bad, the ugly, warts and all. Character development and back story are pretty limited leaving the viewer at a loss most of the time. Even the family tree isn't fully painted to the point that there is no clear vision of who fits where or why. Even the relation between characters is not well defined. In a way, it adds more intrigue, but it can also make it hard to follow at first. The only real thing that can be said is that the Cody family are mostly made up of some pretty horrible people, all very deserving of whatever bad karma may be thrown at them next. It is difficult at times to find even a single person to root for here.

Still the show does have many positives. It is filmed in beautiful Oceanside, California and there are great scenes of the Strand, the Oceanside Pier and other locations throughout the city. As former resident, I loved how the characters talk about how real estate is ruining the beachfront because that is a war that has been raging since the mid 1980s. Some great surfing and other water sport scenes are peppered in as well, and the characters love traveling on a whim to Baja, either winding up in TJ or a bit further down south with mixed results.

At this point there have been some pretty good episodes, but also a lot of dull, slow episodes also. There is a hope that the show will reveal a little more each time, that I think is the main reason to keep watching here. Every time the Cody's do something dirty and you think you've seen their worst, you need to wait as they'll even do something more despicable later on. The reason to keep watching is the hope that this strange ride has a destination or a point somewhere.

As many times as I've been tempted to shut it off, I plan to soldier on through season 4 and hopefully 5 with the rest of you out there. Though often unlikable there is something about these Cody's that is down right addictive. If I had to compare this to anything it would not be anywhere close to Point Break. No, this has much more in common with Shameless.

If you're looking for an action packed show with dozens of ups and downs in one family, this is the show for you. Me and my partner loved each and every episode from season 1 all the way to season 6. It has a mix of crude humor, things no family should do (but this show gets away with), and each episode slowly leads up to a bizarre end that no one sees coming. This show truly is a 10/10, and you'll find yourself following each character through this crazy family mob story. Don't snooze, 10/10! You won't find yourself getting bored, only wondering how it will all end up and seeking Justice for even the smallest characters in this family mob drama.

This has always been the journey of revenge. Don't think otherwise. J might not be the most dynamic character but he wasn't supposed to be. While not a perfect show and ranked somewhere (depending on your proclivities) between a 6 and a 8 I would say it was a fascinating one about family disfunction. Smurf is the perfect picture of a horrible mother who uses her children for her own selfish needs and when they don't react the way she wants he has no problem destroying them. I know alot of people didn't like the flashback seasons but they were necessary because up until that point Julia had been a blank slate. You didn't really care about her because all you knew was that she od during the pilot and left J a virtual orphan. It was during the flashbacks that her personality, her dreams and her ultimate downfall happened and ultimately the reason for J's journey of revenge became more dynamic. You also saw the relationship between Pope and Julia and how close they really were which became Pope's original sin in failing to save Julia.

Of course the show lost something when Ellen Barkin's Smurf got killed off but ultimately it was fascinating to watch the boys try and fail to recover from the loss of a mother they both loved and hated. Because through the early seasons she was the source of comfort and destruction in their lives. She was the Ma Barker to a clan of criminals and when she died it left them lost.

I can talk about all their seperate stories. Most notable Deran and his coming out story which was spectacular. An Alpha male living in an alpha male world hiding his homosexuality from his brothers only to find out they knew all along. And Craig the drug addicted party boy who finds love with one of his drug dealers. Of course their is also Baz who I never liked anyway who is the adopted son of the clan but also the man with the plan. But ultimately this is J''s story. But also Pope's story. And to an extent Julia's story.

And the story of a familiy's downfall.

Best show yet! Wish there was a season 7 coming! Wonderful actor selection, wonderful plot! I love shoes with action, mystery, and something different from the rest! This show definitely has all of that! I stay on the edge of my seat. I love how it shows.flashbacks from how it all began and how it is now modern time! The directors and actors do a wonderful job portraying the roles and I've never seen a show so awesome and full of adventure! You never know what's going to happen next! I don't know why you have to leave such a long review now I feel like I'm doing an annotated media analysis for college lol! But yeah that sums it up! Awesome show all around please make more!

One of the best shows I've ever seen. I loved Ozark, Breaking Bad, Better call Saul, Nurse Jackie, Stranger Things, OiTNB but Animal Kingdom is Phenomenal!!!!! All 6 seasons- the show gets better and better as the seasons go on and the cast is fantastic!!!!!! I binged watched all 6 seasons and I am so sad that I can't watch anymore!!! It was THAT good. I mean you have to watch the whole series to feel it. If you haven't seen it- you don't know what you're missing. It is absolutely a masterpiece- it keeps you wanting to watch more and more and keeps you on the edge of your seat. 5 stars. No wonder it has 6 successful seasons!

This review is based on the first 3 seasons.

Very good and exciting series!!

I adapted very quickly to this family as a big fan of crime series.

All the actors are just reeealllyy greeeeat but i have to single out Smurf, the actress Ellen Barkin...she was just born for this character, absolutely fantastic! The photography also stands out...especially in the exciting moments of action they are just perfect, like for example the scenes in parachute, motorbikes, surfing... etc. Just awesome!

The music is also very good!!!

The story of this wonderful family... hahaha... well, I like them... :)... it's very well told and edited, each episode is exciting and unexpected, it doesn't let you breathe at times nor does it let you press the stop button . Of course, and like every long series with many seasons, there are moments that are less good and somewhat repetitive. The sex scenes could be less for example, as well as the continuous use of drugs, especially at the beginning of the series. I must also emphasize the homosexual sex, something that is not usually seen in American series, Thumbs up!👍

I recommend it simply for the quality, the music, the photography, the tension, .., the strong emotions ...but if you don't like crime and rockandrolllll..strong emotions, choose something else.

I saw a TikTok about this show a few months ago and I'm a huge Scott Speedman fan, so I thought I'd check it out. Well, I kind of didn't stop watching. I couldn't stop! The storylines are written so well, every single actor is incredible and it has a really good ending. Everyone I know are watching other shows and I've been telling everybody to watch THIS show b/c it will not disappoint. I'll probably re-watch the whole thing again because otherwise I can't get my Cody family shenanigans fix. Ha! J ended up being my favorite though. I loved the changes through everyone's characters though, too.

The show itself starts strong during the first 4 seasons. Unpredictable, raw, risky and includes great main characters. But who really steals the show are Smurf and Pope. Amazing from the beginning till the end.

My third favorite is J, who shows a great transformation during all the seasons. I'm not going to spoil anything but probably is the great acting surprise here.

On the other hand, the show is not perfect because of season 5. The worst one. Boring, slow and with no tension. You can skip and go from 4th to 6th.

Season 6, is an amazing trip to conclusion. It shows how Game of Thrones, Dexter new Blood should learn from here how to give viewers a real conclusion.

So, overall one of my favorite shows ever. A must.

OK so the movie was absolute class. Sheer genius in every sense. But the thing is it was never going to reach the mass market.

This show is both fun, dark and exiting. Yes the material is very similar to the original movie, but it's not trying to be something different. The masses won't watch the original movie because it's Australian and too heavy. Haters are gonna hate, but I would urge them to remember that very little material is original out there. Nowadays almost everything is an adaptation. This the perfect adaptation for the mass market who simply don't want to sit through one heavy, dark as hell feature, they want a recurring show, they want to get to know the characters. If this does its job properly it will have viewers turning to the feature film in between the first and second season...

As you can tell I loved this adaptation as much as i loved the original feature, almost more because it was fun. I want fun. I want well executed television and I felt that I was given just that.

I advise you try it out for yourself. You're either gonna switch off or turn back on so what's the worst that can happen!?

Great show, kept pace with it all the way. Loved the story line and the total mix of characters. Good plots as well as family ties. But, we get to season 5 and it all goes downhill. Back in time then present, back in time and then present. So much that it became so annoying that I just FF through the rewind history stuff. Nearly half the of series 5 was flashbacks.

If there is a series 6, I can only hope it does not resort to flashback's again, it totally spoiled S5. The base it there to continue the series, I be waiting to see what happens, if anything, as S5 may have done too much damage to repair viewer interest.

I watched the first 3 seasons in 2019 so I was able to binge and that's the best way. So Covid happens and many shows were delayed and some even cancelled. During Covid, Blacklist(the best show ever written from beginning to end imo) became my fix as well as Bosch and Longmire. Then I move to Thailand to retire and needed something to pass the long hot days and I see Animals Kingdom has 3 more seasons. Yippeee! I decide to pick up with the last few episodes of Season 3 to remind me of the characters and storyline. It didn't take long to see why i was hooked on this from Season 1 episode 1 ! Having spent the last 30 years living in Los Angeles, I was well familiar with the lifestyle and the terrain of this show! It felt like home in some ways! Now that I am into Season 5 now, it feels a little played out. There are too many weak points in the various stories that just don't seem realistic enough to be believable. For instance, Josh's girlfriend discovers who he is, knows he is dangerous and yet still rats on him. Not until she is threatened by Josh, does she back down. Real life, it never happens. The big gunfight at the Cody's with the gang they stole the gold from. So the neighbors are so used to parties and what not, they don't know the sound of a semi-automatic weapon? Just didnt seem plausible. Lots of moements like this. Ok, I heard Season 5 is the weakest, maybe they were struggling for ideas? But heard S6 is the one! I also like the parallel storyline of a young Smurf(even though they never say how she got that nickname) running congruent with the present, giving us insight into how Smurf and her family of misfits evolved into thier present day form. That was a great idea and the younger Smurf and Pope's dad were magnetic on camera. Hated what happened. So, I may come back and revise the review after completion but I really like the show, even if I did have to watch a little too much of 2 men kissing!

Per usual, I was late to the party of "Animal Kingdom" but it didn't take me very long to binge all six seasons. When I started season four I wanted to come here to read the reviews but decided not to because I didn't want any other influence on my opinion of what was taking place with the Cody's. Now that it's over I was able to see my opinion was very similar to most. I was afraid things would start declining with each new series because that happens often. There were some things that they could have done without adding but it's not a deal breaker for me personally. Smurf's facial expression's and flaws were almost too much or weird in more ways than one but I just tried to overlook that part of it. I like a series that has character's I end up caring about or rooting for in some way or another and that happened here. The way it ended makes me think that there could be another season or even a spin off to see "now what are you going to do" but supposedly the 6th season was the final. I guess it's left to our imagination. If someone asked me for a good bingable scripted series recommendation I would definitely include Animal Kingdom, if they haven't already seen it because like I said, I was late starting it to begin with. It kept me entertained, intrigued and looking forward to each episode to see what was going on with all of the main character's.

I remember watching Fin Cole since his days on Peaky Blinders and while he physically looks the same, he certainly shows his skills throughout this show. It's hard to work out what he actually feels about his family but the hatred at times shines through, especially knowing they lived a mile away and didn't do anything to save his Mum. Smurf cast her out of the family and J has never forgotten that. As the show moves through the seasons and you become more involved in the show and characters, I found myself liking Pope more and more. At first he seemed really creepy, especially standing over J's girlfriend in the bedroom but the more you learn about Pope, the more you feel for him.

I REALLY like this show :)

I give a ten to any show where I wish there was another episode right after the one I just watched...... or when I can't wait for the next episode...... I did not think I was going to like it while watching the first show, second show I warmed up a little and by the 3rd show, I was totally hooked.... Having a show centered around "the bad guys" is interesting... and this family is amazingly good at being really, really bad.... yet believable as they do all the normal things any family does (i.e. cooking, cleaning, rules in the house etc.) The characters are so believable.... I think that I have known someone like each of them, but putting them all together makes for a dangerous group... The flashbacks that explain how each of these people became what they are is so insightful. The casting is perfection......

This tv show kidnapped my heart Even tho It's starting to suck a bit but the love i have for the first four seasons is driving me to watch whatever they put on .

They could ruin the show and as far as I'm concerned I'll still love it .

It's the way it is , I'm a hostage.

Thoroughly enjoyable. I even see a little young Michael Corleone in Joshua "J" Cody (Finn Cole). I don't know if they'll be able to last more than 5 seasons or so.. but the first 3 have been entertaining and full of adrenaline. I do feel like Season 1 is a bar that the show will never again reach.