The Romanoffs Review: Expectation (Season 1 Episode 4)
The Romanoffs, Season 1 Episode 4, “Expectation” functions more as a glorified character study than anything else–but that’s all it really is.
The new Amazon show has been one of the strangest series I’ve watched in a while, mostly due to how much the tone of the show changes from episode to episode. Yes, it’s an anthology series–but there’s really no cohesive thread connecting everything outside of surface-level associations.
Following Julia Wells (Amanda Peet) over the course of about a day, all of her lies unravel quickly as she is confronted by her past. It’s meandering, the character dynamics are interesting–but when it comes down to it, it’s pretty boring.
There’s no actual plot and no real endpoint, and considering the other episodes (which actually have plots), this episode is quite the letdown. I was about halfway through before I realized that the episode was, in fact, halfway done–and nothing had really happened.
The flashbacks feel extremely fake both visually (Sepia? Really?) and narratively, and serve little to no function in the story outside of providing some sort of emotional background that ultimately could have been provided elsewhere.
I’m still trying to figure out what this show is trying to do. Is Matthew Weiner trying to play with form, content, or both? Is it just all an opportunity to fling money at television experiments? I’m still not convinced all these episodes deserve to be on the same show.
In comparison, The Romanoffs Season 1 Episode 3, “The House of Special Purpose,” was wildly entertaining (and to a certain extent, I apologize for being so harsh about it now).
“Expectation” is slow with no purpose and lingering with no meaning. It’s rousing and emotional, but it feels more like the first episode of an HBO limited series.
The idea of this episode as a character study intrigues me because my disappointment in this episode probably stems from my expectation of the series as a television show. I’m demanding of a narrative, demanding of characters who are connected to their worlds.
This episode seems like a “Secret Life of Walter Mitty”-esque story–and really acts like a short story in terms of length and concepts discussed (Actually, I think it’d be a really fascinating short story–will someone get on this?).
I don’t think it works for television, and it certainly doesn’t work for a one-hour episode.
I’d really like to know how each of the episodes is conceived. Where do these plots come from? Is this just an opportunity to explore a variety of stories on the same disconnected series?
All in all, “Expectation” didn’t quite live up to my, well, expectation. Maybe I’m too eager to see something more distinct, something more like a mini-film that doesn’t just linger in its
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The Romanoffs airs Fridays on Amazon Video.
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Olivia Popp
Olivia Popp is a freelance writer, artist, and entertainment fanatic who started living and breathing television ever since her parents told her in elementary school that it would rot her brain. Now, she's a film student and TV apologist with a penchant for providing forceful and unsolicited series recommendations to anyone within earshot. Ask her about science fiction, comedy, nature photography, filmmaking, tasty cheese, or even more television.