I have a B.S. in criminal justice and working on my master's now. I've learned all about what is happening in this show. The for-profit private prison system has always been a contentious issue for over a century. I was excited to see a show that highlighted how the system worked and was even more excited to see it from the perspective of the villain. Jeremy looks to be a perfect fit for this role too. I did however lose complete interest thirteen minutes into episode one when it got too woke for me. White people bad, America bad, men bad, etc that the prison teacher was professing to the inmates. For the love of god, please make good movies and shows and leave the freaking politics out of it. I'll stop watching now and move on.

Have you ever wanted to spend an evening with brutal prison guards, corrupt politicians, ridiculous police who kill suspects, endless gray skies, and pointless nudity? No. Then skip this woke mess.

They killed the reason I wanted to watch this show and why I signed up for Paramount +.

It doesn’t expect the viewer to be dumb and need everything spelled out. It’s got subtext and layers. The characters are complicated and intriguing. The dialogue is sharp.
The action, the way the system works, the people… all are very realistic.

If you like Wind River, then you’ll likely like this too.

turned off after 13 minutes of watching them teach CRT to prisoners.

I’ve only watched the first two episodes so far, but I can already tell I’m going to have to increase my blood pressure meds and switch back to antiperspirant deodorant to make it through the rest of the season. It’s from one of the co-creators of Yellowstone, so I knew it was going to be juicy. But holy wah. 🤤 Jeremy Renner is a snack, as always. I also love that it’s set in my home state of Michigan (even though they make it look like an absolute pit, which I will forgive, because it does set the overall mood of the show). We’ll see how the show develops, but for now, I give it 5 stars.

***SPOILER ALERT!!!***

I've seen preview after preview of this show. And I really enjoy a good crime drama, whether it's a show or film, especially from Taylor Sheridan. Yellowstone is such an amazing show that doesn't ever disappoint. And after seeing some of the cast members that'll be in this show, I just couldn't wait to watch it and was super excited!

I really like Jeremy Renner. I've watched and really liked many of his films. He's a great actor.
I've also seen Dianne Weist in numerous different films over the years and have always liked her. I'd have to say Parenthood is probably my favorite, she's amazing and funny in it!
As much as I like those two, honestly it was Kyle Chandler who drew me in. Ever since seeing him in Bloodlines I've been a big fan of his. He's excellent in that show.

I truly wanted to like Mayor of Kingstown. While watching the first episode, I tried really hard to understand what all is going on. After 20 mins, I still felt confused about everything and everyone. Nothing was pulling me in and hooking me. I decided to not abandon ship yet and moved onto the next episode. I just kept hoping by the time I finished the second episode I'd understand more and feel like I was finally being pulled in.

Well I just finished the second episode and I've decided I'm not moving forward with it.

First of all.... I'm so upset Kyle Chandler's character was killed off in the first episode. WHY did they do that?! Extremely disappointing. He's the main reason I wanted to watch it. And as much as I really like Renner and Weist, I feel that the show won't be the same without Kyle. I also only know those three and a couple other actors who were in Yellowstone too.

If there is a plot then I completely missed it. There doesn't seem to be much of anything happening. I also haven't been able to find one relatable character, someone to make a connection with.

I very much wanted to enjoy this one. But unfortunately it's unwatchable IMHO, suffers from several disappointments and confusion too. And CRT?? Come on, enough of the woke BS. Taylor Sheridan's other work has been phenomenal. What a bummer this one turned out to be woke garbage and a huge disappointment.

I thought this show was going to be good but I WAS WRRRRROONG! They got a lot of big names in here but they are just being used for nothing. The guy from Yellowstone wrote this and he needs to stick to westerns Crime Thrillers are not his thing. Antoine Fuqua should have directed these episodes instead of just Executive Producing. They only brought him in for certain names to appear. Dianne West teaching and it was so boring I fell asleep. They got the female prisoners acting like she saying something profound. Jeremy Renner in the woods being mesmerized by a bear. They are not even Mayors. This show is all over the place. Yellowstone does that mess saying catchy one liners but not really saying anything and acting like it’s a noteworthy line. I was not impressed. That may work for Yellowstone but it doesn’t work in this type of drama.