There's a lot I agree with in here. It feels like this show wants to be Ted Lasso but hasn't put in the work on the characters to get there. The best version of this show to me is something like Guardians of the Galaxy. A group of misfits that all find themselves thrown together helping each other for a common cause, Ted Lasso has a lot of that DNA. The issue then becomes are any of the characters even likeable? Do their stories work? Why should we care about them individually or collectively? This show doesn't have a heartbeat, which is the main issue. Feels like if Santi was a kid you want to root for it improves a lot of the shortcomings of the show. The actor isn't the issue either, he's doing what he can with what he's been given. Maron is mainly providing exposition. I'll continue to watch because because I don't dislike it, but I really hope they can improve by the end of the season.Dekker_Lentz said:
Episode 5 was better, but the show still really has a paint by numbers feel as we are having a build up, with the expectation it is going to fully drop off and be disrupted again next episode.
I am trying to figure out why I loved Ted Lasso and much cooler on this show. I think part of it was Episode 4 was just so bad and Ted Lasso Season 1 never had an episode as bad as Episode 4. It isn't the pronoun issue or even Zero's character. It was just the episode seemed to feel the need to explain the plot. Too much telling and not enough showing. Honestly, the fact the Santi's mother didn't know that Pryce had a kid is mind blowing. Pryce is a Ryder Cup caliber golfer, his son dying of cancer would be all over ESPN/news etc.
This episode did the same thing with Mitt's wife's death. Where the characters kinda just tell each other things without it always feeling earned.
I think what made Ted Lasso special, is the side characters all felt like they could have been a major character in another show, they side characters seemed to be living their own lives and having their own motivations. This show only Pryce seems to be going on the journey and the other characters are just there to say lines. I don't think I described this very well.
I think what bothers me about Stick is it feels too safe and too pandering, which I am probably holding against the show.
I think a more interesting show would have been just Zero, Pryce, and Mitts. Zero being this lost soul bouncing around dead-in jobs in around golf courses, her path intersecting with Pryce and him seeing a spark of talent and them trying to nurture it. Making the golf student more or a project and more questions on why Stick would help. There would have been avenues for more storylines and been different. Although, people would have screamed woke.
I think my biggest issue with the show is I don't really care about Santi. The actor is doing a fine job, but they don't give the character a lot to do. I almost feel like he is too good at golf for this story. His struggle is basically maturing and learning to manage the course which I haven't found as compelling as say Jaime Tartt from Ted Lasso who had massive trauma and character flaws to overcome.