Mr. Robot Season 1 Review

Mr. Robot Season 1 Review

           

It took almost a whole year, but I finally gave in to the recommendation from a friend to sit down and give this show a chance. After its release last year, I had heard rumbles of its critical success but even then I sort of just blew it off. It could’ve been the fact that the show airs on USA Network which for me, has always been the go to for NCIS or Law and Order: SVU. While I do like those shows, I just never thought much of the network other than those shows and maybe some newer procedural shows. I’m excited to say that I was so wrong to judge based on the network. With one addition, USA Network has stepped into the game of high quality television. This may only be one show and may be the only show of its kind on this network, but if that isn’t the case than they’ve definitely joined the fray of Netflix, HBO, and Showtime.

            Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead seem to be on the top of the podium with a few other shows as the kings of television right now, but ask yourself, which ones are actually relevant? Sure, I tune into Game of Thrones for the appeal and fantasy of the show and not necessarily for realistic storytelling. The Walking Dead, while more grounded is also more for the appeal and fantasy rather than relatable and realistic. What I got from Mr. Robot was something relevant and realistic in the world we live in today. Not to knock on any of those other shows because I’m an avid watcher of them weekly, but it was refreshing to have something realistic for a change. We live in an age of social media and reliance on technology through our day to day lives. Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail, brought to us a story about cybercrime, mental health, and aspects of being social. I had my own opinions about social media prior to watching this, but this show all but confirms many of the issues I have with it and honestly should be a must watch for everyone to open their eyes. 

            Keeping this a spoiler free review is difficult when it’s only 10 episodes and has many plot twists, but I’ll refrain if you’re still on the fence about watching it. The biggest comparison I can make for this show is to the anime Death Note. Both are so very different and yet, I constantly felt reminded of Death Note through the tone and the cat and mouse back and forth interactions between Elliot (Rami Malek) and all of the other characters. It is essentially a cybercrime story, but that is set in the background for the majority of the season, the real focus is on Elliot and his growth from episode 1 to episode 10. What I love most about his development is that he actually does develop and grow and it wasn’t force fed to you. By that I mean that you can see his growth through each episode just through his body and speech when interacting with other characters. That takes an incredibly skilled actor to pull that off without having to say much. Rami Malek, a guy that I honestly haven’t heard of prior to this show pulls ahead of everyone else in this show. Christian Slater is a man full of talent and is getting the most credit for his performance, but I believe Malek far surpasses him by the time you get to the final episode.
            The only major criticisms I have are that early in the season there are some episodes that are a little slower, mostly for setting up plot points that matter later on in the season, but it’s not a big complaint because it is necessary. I also believe that the episode where the twist unravels is a little confusing at first and maybe not explained or executed the best way initially. I was a little thrown off, but as I figured things out with Elliot I began to love it even more. I also don’t agree with the character arc of Elliot’s childhood friend Angela (Portia Doubleday). I liked her for most of the season and I kind of understand her motives when going into the last few episodes, but I didn’t like that they did that to her character. Ultimately these are minor complaints and not that big of a deal. I can’t recommend this show enough and the best part is that according to the creator, this is act 1 of a 3 act story. I see season 2 surpassing season 1 as we begin unraveling the mysteries left at the end of season 1.
 
Grade: A