“You Watch My Back, I Won’t Stick a Knife in Yours.”
When I first heard the pitch for Based on a True Story, I was intrigued, but since I didn’t have Peacock at the time, I figured it would be like the millions of other shows I didn’t wind up watching. Then I got a good deal on Peacock and put it on my to watch list. Sadly, it was disappointing.
The story introduces us to the Bartletts. Nathan (Chris Messina) is a former tennis pro who was sidelined by an injury. While basking in his glory days, he gives lessons at a nearby country club. Or at least he did until he was demoted. Meanwhile, Ava (Kaley Cuoco) is attempting to work as a realtor, but not having much success. Needless to say, they are struggling to pay the bills. And they have a baby on the way.
Things change when Ava, a true crime podcast junky (as are her friends), realizes that their new plumber/friend Matt (Tom Bateman) is really the notorious serial killer the Westside Ripper. But, instead of turning him in, she convinces Nathan to confront Matt and then turn it into a podcast with a unique twist, the killer’s point of view.
Matt is on board. In fact, they quickly realize they’ve made a deal with the devil. Can they figure out how to keep their secret? Or are they in over their head?
My first clue that this wasn’t for me is the fact that it is rated TV-MA. And they meant it. We’ve got language and violence and sex, the complete trifecta. But I dove in anyway.
This is a black comedy. I get it. And when they are done well, I can laugh at those things. Even from my teaser, I can see ways this could have worked and been very funny.
Instead, what we got was more like watching a train wreck. It was bad, but I couldn’t look away. And, I figured, it only had 8 half hour episodes. I could get through that.
Most of the comedy isn’t really funny. In fact, it made me cringe. It would have helped if I liked Ava and Nathan. We were supposed to sympathize with them and laugh as their world got more and more out of control. I just couldn’t care about them. Instead, I actually liked Matt the most and found him the funniest character. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a completely evil serial killer. It’s just his reactions to things are the funniest.
Mind you, I’m not blaming the actors. They are all great. It’s just that the material really isn’t funny.
As I said earlier, I was curious enough to want to know how the season ended, and I figured it wasn’t that much of a commitment time wise. That was the final nail in the coffin for me. The show just stopped. Yes, I get the concept of a cliffhanger. But usually at least something has been resolved. In this case, we had nothing resolved at the end of episode eight. This is even worse since they didn’t get picked up for a second season until after these episodes were released. Come on, resolve something for us! This really felt like a regular episode leading into the next in the series.
Even though I still have Peacock and season two is coming soon, I won’t be back for more Based on a True Story. This wasn’t for me, and the end of the first season made me not trust them to resolve anything going forward.
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