Transparent

I kept watching and watching, hoping that as I got to know them I would begin to care about this extraordinarily shallow, spoiled and obnoxious bunch of people - or even to laugh at them for being so relentlessly revolting - but the opposite happened. By the middle of Episode 7 I loathed every one of them so deeply that I just wished The Big One would finally come along, pull the chain, and flush the entire state of California to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean where it belongs. Then it occurred to me that I didn't HAVE to watch this crap, so I stopped.

I love the idea behind this series, and it might have been really good if only there were at least one character I could stand to watch, or laugh at, or maybe even like. There isn't.

Tambor and Hoffman are excellent in roles that fit their talents so perfectly that it's hard now to imagine either of them ever playing any other characters. I do care about those two actors - especially, now, for the first time, Hoffman. I just don't care at all about either character. I wish I wished Maura well, but I just don't. I can't. She's too dishonest and shallow and selfish.

The other actors - with one notable exception - are all right but don't bring any personal depth to their tiresome, narcissistic characters, as Tambor and Hoffman do. The exception is Judith Light, whose restrained and sensitive performance in Save Me was a revelation. Here she shows no subtlety or intelligence at all, playing a Southern California Jewish matron so shrill and strident that the human being is completely lost in the stereotype.

Most of the writing is clever, the production is excellent, and the series might have been a real treat if I could only have cared about even ONE of the profoundly revolting characters.

Jill Soloway is the writer of the show. All this, is her idea, i mean, she has created such a fresh and original comedy drama, but her mindset and political awareness ruin many moments. I understand the show is a celebration of love, pain, sexual diversity, but we can clearly see the stamp of the writer's ideology all around the show: she tells us what's right, what's wrong, what is good, what's not, what should be liked and what should we not like.

The core concept of the series is basically based on her father's story, he came out of the closet a few years ago at a certain old age, but she places these other characters and focuses on them too much that we lose the actual protagonist and she does that because she wants people to feel rappresented and change the mind of those who do not accept the LGBT community, but no, everyone has the same mindset in the show: liberal, modern and open-minded, which are all good elements, but the other side is missing.

Jill is not a transgender, her father is and we watch the show through her eyes while we should be watching through his. I'm not saying he should've wrote the story, what i'm saying is, although she got into his trousers, that was not enough, because she focused on too many other characters, like the children, we can easily assume they're based on herself, and the show keeps going on with their side, but what's even more wrong is the fact their side is extremely politically manoeuvred, gender identity is brought in, dramatized family troubles, culture and religion.

Jill didn't bring just a story, she brought her life in and with that her views on the world. Don't get me wrong it's a good thing, but not everyone can actually releate to it, since the show in not unbiased on these themes, but has a very strong agenda.

What started out as a unique idea and was well written and acted has quickly gone the way of most TV and lost it's way. This last season is simply an annoying repetition of the various characters dysfunctional relationships and in ability to cope. In many ways a lot like my own family which drives me totally nuts. It did better when it was examining the issues and angst of becoming a trans late in life but now has decided to abandon that theme and go on to frustrating portraits of Jewish angst. We cannot follow this show any longer and have abandoned it for more intelligent viewing. This is now nothing more than a copy of all of Woody Allen's earlier movie themes.

In what could have been an insight into the different lives of a culture we rarely get to contemplate we instead get to focus on a collection of ugly characters believably reflecting the current state of the self centered American psyche. The dialog is witty, the acting is convincing, and the action is believable for the country it comes from, and it's a thoroughly engrossingly unpleasant experience that eventually has you wondering "why am I watching these horrible people?". It's like a lot of American TV of recent years, deriving entertainment from pain & ugliness, and feeding back into the normalisation of that thinking. I got tricked into watching this by the interesting premise and revolted by the self centered side characters to the point of having to abandon the exercise. I don't want these people in my life.

Stories like this only come every so often. Its subject matter is just as strong and as unique as it's cast of characters. I decided to take a chance on watching the pilot after hearing that Jeffrey Tambor plays an interesting role in this story. Beyond original, it is one of his toughest and brilliant performances in his long artistic career. The pace of the show along with it's abundance use of nudity reflects the mundane as well as the rawness Transparent showcases. It's audience is guaranteed to grow as the subject matter starts to become universal to each of the show's characters. Each of them are going through a transformation. This fantastic cast includes Gaby Hoffmann, Judith Light, Jay Duplass, Amy Landecker and Rob Huebel. Each bring a subtle interest to the show's subject matter.

At times there are moments of comedy, sadness and deep thought. Very few shows are able to capture this. Second to only House of Cards, Transparent will and should be the most watched "online" series today.