I gave up on it as of the end of last week.
Pros
The Old Guy running the API shop is an interesting character. His transformation during the trip to DC was good, kind of doddering and out of it but once he hits DC, sharp as a tack - he made two great speeches on 'the tie' and 'it's a gift' that went to heart of intel work these days.
Cons
- the Miranda Richardson subplot, like watching HGTV as she picks her way through that impossibly wide and well decorated townhouse. Criminally bad, like they could afford her for only one day and shot all her scenes quickly.
-too many cliched characters ( the Retired Burned Out Guy, the 9/11 Dad, the Young, Troubled but Brilliant Analyst, the Grumpy Boss etc etc....)
-a character who is a bad photocopy of Arvin Sloane
-poor writing and direction, at times it feels a bit like really a slow version of National Treasure and then sometimes like some sort of askew Charlie Rose segment (see the 'bomb him or not' debating club segment that went on...and on....)
-the lack of technology used by the team makes sense to a point, but often gets stretched past it. E.g. calling in a hit by using crossword puzzles across multiple newspapers? Come on..
-at times, the show seems to stop and look at itself and say 'aren't we clever'? And this is happening already. Eg the scene last week where three of the 'conspirators' were standing in the inevitable abandoned building. LOL it was grasping to be 'heavy' and ended up coming off so contrived
Sorry to tee off at length at this, but I've been so disappointed by Rubicon.
I think there is a real gap for an intelligent political drama, something like BBC's Mi5/Spooks, which I really like. When I heard AMC was stepping up, I looked forward to it.
But just too slow. Five episodes gone = 40% of Year 1.
More comments see
www.televisionwithoutpity.com - Rubicon forum. Consensus is that the pace is killing this show.
But the worse thing about it is, I had moments watching it when I really, really wished Alias was still on.
