Amazon Primed to Make Me a Believer

Finally bit the bullet and watched "television" on my laptop last night -- in bed, full-screened -- so I could see what all the hype was about surrounding "Transparent." (My DVD player is preloaded to allow me to stream Netflix and Hulu Plus but not Amazon Prime.) Wow -- just wow. Have only watched the first three episodes, but I can't say enough about this family drama. Although it is about the transition of the Pfefferman family patriarch, the show is much more like "Six Feet Under" than anything I've seen since. All three of our heroine's children have huge and discrete story archs -- which because they are all so self-absorbed have little do to with their father's decision to live his truth -- so the show is much more than a show about transgenderism, although that part is beautifully realized too. I doubt many people base their TV-watching on what I say, but I did want to take a second to mention that I am thoroughly impressed and moved by Jill Soloway's show. Might be time to get a Roku.

Also got to see the pilot of "Red Oaks." It's very enjoyable -- set in tennis club in 1985(!) -- and our lead Craig Roberts is utterly adorable. I think the show has a lot of potential, but I doubt it will win enough votes from Amazon Prime viewers to be turned into a full series. With that said, I will try to think of it as an adorable TV special I happened upon.

UPDATE: I was wrong!!!!! (I was so sure I was right I didn't even investigate.)

Amazon Picks Up ‘Red Oaks’ to Series

Directed by Sundance award winner David Gordon Green (Pineapple Express) and executive produced by Academy Award winner Soderbergh (Behind the Candelabra, Traffic), Red Oaks stars Craig Roberts (Submarine) as David Myers, an assistant tennis pro at the Red Oaks Country Club in suburban New Jersey in 1985. David is reeling from his father’s heart attack and conflicted about what college major to declare in the fall; his father Sam Myers is played by Richard Kind (Luck). While there, David meets a colorful cast of misfit co-workers and wealthy club members including an alluring art student named Skye, played by Alexandra Socha, and her corporate raider father Getty played by Paul Reiser (Mad About You) and Ennis Esmer as Nash. A coming-of-age comedy set in the “go-go” 80s that is equal parts hijinks and heartfelt, Red Oaks is about enjoying a last hurrah before summer comes to an end—and the future begins. Red Oaks also stars Jennifer Grey (It’s Like, You Know) as Judy Myers, Oliver Cooper (Californication) as Wheeler and Gage Golightly as Karen. Red Oaks is written by Gregory Jacobs (The Knick) and Joe Gangemi (Eliza Graves). Soderbergh, Green, Jacobs, and Gangemi are executive producers.