The Big Door Prize

It’s another blissful, perfectly paced 10 episodes that hit the hardest when you least expect them to, the kind of television that insists upon the intelligence of its viewer, rather than itself.

The Big Door Prize works because it allows us to spend time with a group of appealing characters that have become a “found family” as they try to figure out just what they want to get out of their lives. That vibe continues in Season 2.

It charms you into watching and thinking instead of pressing a foot on your neck and pushing your face into the mire. I for one am grateful.

As with any ensemble, some arcs are stronger than others, but Read balances episodes so even if the new focus isn’t perfectly polished, the core cast is there to keep things humming.

Though it reaches for the deep and meaningful, this oddly moreish soap opera (which leaves the door hanging open for a third run) too often settles for fortune-cookie philosophy.

There is so much more this show tries to grasp in its minimal running time, and as a whole The Big Door Prize delivers some admirable drama. ... But irrespective of those whys and wherefores – The Big Door Prize ultimately falls short of greatness.

“The Big Door Prize,” Apple TV’s latest release, attempts to marry drama and comedy and fails at both, all while featuring Pinterest-perfect production design and writing that smarts of the Hallmark Channel.

A mysterious machine shows up in a small town that's supposed to give each person a card that announces their life potential. Obs, when the cards offer a new options, people begin changing their lives. This is billed as a comedy and fortunately Chris O'Dowd's lovable charm provides the moments of levity. Otherwise, this turns into a drama full of personal conflicts and controversial life changes. Speaking of potential, this series starts with an upbeat approach that's quickly subverted by lots of emotional interactions and frankly, characters that aren't especially interesting. It is, however, fun to see the unique comic style of Josh Segarra, who also has a part in the new season of The Other Two. The sci-fi angle of this series quickly dissipates to create yet another average drama with interpersonal anxiety. The final ep ends with lots of unanswered questions and a 2nd season is already planned. This makes the payoff even more frustrating, cause there wasn't one.

Silly, pointless show with terrible acting and nothing to say. Who cares where the machine came from?

Pros: Very professional looking show with some talented people involved. Cons: everything else. Feels like it was written by a large language model chatbot. Many random mismatched elements thrown together randomly that just sits there with zero momentum. Bland. Like a hallmark channel twilight zone but with no plot or tone or atmosphere. Also, something is strange about the reviews. Why are all the human ratings low but the professional critics are all so high? It’s not highbrow, it’s very accessible but there’s no substance. Did Apple take them on a wild junket on a private island and get compromat on them? Just asking questions.