Despite the opening credits that resemble a PowerPoint presentation on how to utilize Lisa Frank stickers in scrapbooking, The Riches is the first FX drama to actually spark my interest. I’ve made attempts at others, but regardless of buzz or gratuitous nudity, the only previous success they’ve has had with me has been with their comedies.
The Riches is an interesting case. The premise is smart, but the development is kind of plodding and ludicrous. The acting is amazing, but the writers seem content with giving them just enough good dialogue to get by. And after a really awesome pilot, every episode seemed to fall into the clumsy routine of the Malloys/Riches getting frustrated with their charade and almost almost hitting the road. Things took a darker turn a couple weeks ago, and the storyline gathered a lot of momentum, but at the expense of a lot of whimsy. Dahlia speaking to her children like a schizophrenic would to her cats has been sorely missed since her sobriety.
This seems to be a recurring theme in The Riches. All the elements are there, but never at the same time. A fusion of all of the good stuff is what I want to see in the next season, because by the end of last night’s finale, it seemed like they had kind of run themselves into the ground. Taking the fish out of water is not a television first. But taking the fish out of water, dressing it up like a cat and having two different dogs from the vastly different socioeconomic worlds try tirelessly to out the cat for the opportunistic fish it really is… while innovative, is also very confusing. Conflict seems to come from too many directions on The Riches, and that’s why nothing seems to blend.
That is not say that they’re renewal is anything but deserved. All faults aside, The Riches is the best new show of 2007. It explores class in America from a perspective most people don’t even realize exists, and their subtle introduction of a transgender middleschooler, while confusing, is something you won’t see anywhere else. And even if The Riches were completely horrible, it would still be worth watching just to see Eddie Izzard every week. With the passing of Veronica Mars, he easily takes Enrico Colantoni’s crown as the greatest TV dad.
FX’s scheduling is a mystery wrapped in an enigma, so look for the second season of The Riches sometime in the next decade.