The title: Daisy Jones & the Six (Ep 1-3)
Alternate title: Daisy Jones' Free For All Red Diary
The who: A standard issue cool gal and a basic band who join forces to fight any spark of imagination.
The what: A soup of clichés.
The when: The year of our Lord 2023, but also the '70s (and many other years and decades in between).
The where: The TV on Jeff Bezos' yacht.
The why: Because nostalgia is the new sex.
The how: The same way babies are made.
The origin story: Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Generously inspired from the life, times, and many fallouts of Fleetwood Mac.
The tagline: “Their music made them famous. Their breakup made them legends.”
The suggested tagline: “The book was famous. Fleetwood Mac are legends. So.”
The creators: Scott Neustadter and Michael H Weber.
The Rotten Tomatoes plot synopsis: In 1977, Daisy Jones & The Six were on top of the world; the band had risen from obscurity to fame, and then, after a sold-out show at Chicago's Soldier Field, they called it quits; now, decades later, the band members agree to reveal the truth.
The accuracy of the above-mentioned synopsis: The truth is out there.
The suggested synopsis: In 1977, Daisy Jones & The Six were on top of the world; the band had risen from obscurity to fame, and then, after a sold-out show at Chicago's Soldier Field, they called it quits; now, decades later, the band members agree to reveal the truth. But you've seen a better version of everything here before.
The gimmick: Told in a pseudo-documentary style with a television filter effect, just because. Anyway, go watch This Is Spinal Tap.
The character/cast breakdown:
— Daisy Jones: Daisy Jones (Riley Keough)
— The Six: Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin), Graham Dunne (Will Harrison), Eddie Roundtree (Josh Whitehouse), Warren Rojas (Sebastian Chacon) and Karen Sirko (Suki Waterhouse)
— Billy's unfortunate photographer girlfriend/wife: Camila Alvarez/Dunne (Camila Morrone)
— Your mom's favourite producer: Teddy Price (Tom Wright)
— Aspiring disco singer constantly taken advantage of by Jones: Simone Jackson (Nabiyah Be)
— Tour manager with hair of a god: Rod Reyes (Timothy Olyphant)
The acting: From Morrone and Be trying to salvage the show, to Chacon crossing the bridge over to absolute parody. Also, for some reason, in the big anticipated sequence when Jones finally meets The Six for the first time, the whole thing suddenly turns into an over-acted sitcom, right out of some teenage fanfic script.
The band: Stillwater, minus the intrigue and inherent cool.
Their rock n roll credentials: Not earned.
I'm scared I'll fall in love with Daisy or Billy or both: You won't.
The good: If you're looking for comfort food, this might be the show for you. Familiarity, be in the context of the various story lines, the setting, or the themes, is the force behind the series, which can make the entire affair either tedious or easy to go down, depending on where you are in your life. Moreover, as previously mentioned, Morrone delivers the standout performance, so that's good, I guess. And of course, Olyphant's character — what a joy.
The bad: Well, one would assume that with so much groundwork and curiosity already in place to build upon, the show would be in a position to punch above its weight, and perhaps even transcend various genre expectations. Instead, the series uses the audience's acquaintance with the subjects to cut corners and generally be lazy. Almost everything in the show plays on worn out tales, predictable arcs and obvious tropes in a checklist-esque manner that even the most devout nostalgics might find jaded.
The sets and the costumes: Yup, it's the '70s alright.
The music: “Daisy Jones & the Six now first fictional band to hit No 1 on iTunes”
How much nostalgia? Eat it.
How much sex & drugs & rock n roll? For a show built around a rock band in the '70s Los Angeles music scene, and where one of the protagonists is supposed to be a cheating alcoholic, exceptionally PG-13.
The shorthand and the stereotypes: Far too many to put down here, but the one member who ends up leaving the band early to go to college is a skinny guy with glasses. You get the idea.
Expected number of love-triangles and resulting conflicts in the future: ∞
The been there, seen that: All of it.
The dialogues: Unremarkable when in the '70s, cringeworthy when in the present. (Well, perhaps the show does have something to say after all.)
Are there any pets on the show? None. Not even a talking parrot.
Can I watch it with my kids? Yes, a great show to put them to sleep.
The vibe: Vanilla.
The final verdict: Recycle bin.
Daisy Jones & the Six is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
