17/36

Nondescript character: Where do you pray?

Chronology

After being released from prison after 25 years in prison, New York mob boss Dwight “The General” Manfredi was exiled to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Sylvester Stallone’s first lead role in a television series. Dwight “The General” Manfredi: I don’t go to church at all. The opening credits show various photographic and painted views and landmarks of Oklahoma superimposed on the New York cityscape: A statue of the Sioux Indian chief “Touch the Clouds” wearing a military headdress and bone choker (breastplate) atop the Brooklyn Bridge; The statue of the golden driller, installed on the Statue of Liberty; The West Gate Arch on Highway 66, set on the main “avenue” of Manhattan.

Featured on CBS News Sunday Morning: Episode #457 (2022)

In New York, in the Manhattan area, there are several numbered “avenues” that intersect with smaller, numbered streets. I watched it out of curiosity, without high expectations, I was just surprised to see Stallone in the series. You feel the tension in the walls, it also seems quite realistic, as the plot demands. I wouldn’t say that it’s funny, but a couple of funny walls as a result of the fact that Dwight (Stallone) is coming out of a 25-year prison sentence and has not fully integrated into the way the world is now; therefore, I assume that a sharp transition will offer him several interesting obstacles in the future for us.

I’m glad someone told him how to use Uber, it was fun while it lasted

It’s a pretty clever script, but not in an obsessively witty way that bodes well. Of course, Stallone plays a huge part, but the rest of the cast seems pretty good too. The show literally feels like you took gangsters written for a movie in the early 90s and just dropped them into 2022, which makes for a nice mix of humor and violence. I thought it would just be a one-off show, like some of Gerlion’s last films; mostly just based on his name and acting, but Taylor Sheridan does a good job here with a script worthy of a Stallone performance.

If it continues like this, great, if it gets better, it will be fantastic

I think it will be fun to watch macho Stallone build a criminal empire from scratch, in the backwoods of Tulsa. I like how at times it has this Western oatmeal feel, while still being mafia. I think the show may eventually go unnoticed and then get hype later when people ask how they didn’t notice it earlier because I haven’t seen that much publicity from Paramount. I went in without high expectations, but judging by the premiere episode, it could be a really fun watch.

TV and streaming

I’ll add a rating after more episodes are released and update if anything drastic changes in the show.