First to say, I didn't like the 1996 movie very much, when it came out, for several reasons. The Grindhouse culture wasn't something I learned to love or hate where I grew up, it simply wasn't present. Now, about 18 years later, I gave it another try because of this new show, and I liked it a bit more, but felt that it has aged a lot since.
The new show, created by Roberto Rodriguez himself, is for me a big improvement of the original movie, in many ways.
First, Richie's character is much deeper than before, although Zane Holtz plays the psychopath in the first few episodes very convincingly, so I did mistakenly think it is going to be a rehash of the cool brother vs. mad brother relationship, which couldn't be farther from what it actually is in this new show. Luckily.
Second, the atmosphere is thicker because there is more foreplay near and behind the Mexican border (until dusk).
Third, the Vamps have much more background than before. They do their feasting, but it's not that simple. It's a ritual, and the arrival of the Gecko brothers isn't by accident but planned long beforehand. To add/resize the Carlos character was a very good and well elaborated idea.
And fourth, it's not a Rodriguez/Tarantino Grindhouse parody. That may be disappointing for lovers of that genre, but this show takes its time to develop the story, and it takes itself seemingly serious. When people or monsters die, there's very little to laugh about.
It seems like the story has been grown up with its creator. Of course it is still over-the-top horror-fantasy, and some of the old things are still there, but it feels much more grounded to earth and true-to-life thanks to the less flippant undertone. I would say it has got some shadows of Sin City, in a positive way.
Production values, from a TV perspective, are high, directing is solid, and acting is mostly very good. Of course, Don Johnson is a highlight (although I didn't recognize him instantly), but also is Robert Patrick. Zane Holtz is here my best actor, although he loses a bit of intensity near to the end of the show, which is owed to the story. Same goes to Jesse Garcia. Weakest performance is from Eliza Gonzalez, but I will not recall S. Hayek for comparison of acting - it's a charisma thing.
Of course there are some setbacks. While the show noticeable builds a distance to the movie, it tries to keep story-wise some unnecessary strings tight, while strangely most of the weird humor (like Sheriff McGraw's time counting in the Pilot, a wonderful little sequence) gets lost over the time. The Pyramid under the bar as a maze does not really feel big inside, that is a missed occasion. The ending itself is a bit weak, because it is not to far from what we've already seen, but there is not a real climax before, what I would expect. It's a bit like the scriptwriters lost their faith in their own imagination, to save it for the second season.
For that, I give a solid seven.
