Based on a True Story Season 1 Review: A Satire With a Mild Identity Crisis
Based on a True Story tries a little too hard to be too many things at once, and in the process doesn’t find its pacing until the end.
Based on a True Story is best described as a mix between the Kevin Costner movie Mr. Brooks mixed with the comedic timing of Weeds. It wants to talk about the commercial success of true crime, but in the process give us a dramatic story about a marriage both people are trying to save in the superficial social circles of Los Angeles.
The result is a series that lacks focus.
It isn’t until halfway through the season that it feels like the characters have started to hit their stride. While we get a glimpse at the relationship between Ava (Kaley Cuoco) and Nathan (Chris Messina) the motivation between them isn’t compelling enough to drive those episodes.
It isn’t until more is revealed about the characters that we can start to see how the effects of this freshmen outing are affecting them and their marriage.
While Ava and Nathan may be at the center of the story. The real crux driving it is Matt (Tom Bateman), and that’s where the show fails to meet its contract with the viewers.
The series sets up the idea that this couple wants to set up a true-crime podcast interviewing a serial killer, but we never get any of the answers they set out to provide. As a result, Based on a True Story Season 1 Episode 1, “The Great American Art Form” and Based on a True Story Season 1 Episode 2, “BDE,” are slow to set up and very different in tone from the rest of the season.
Once Matt starts taking a more active role in the story on Based on a True Story Season 1 Episode 4, “The Survivor,” we start to see another side of the show.
The trip to Vegas to go to Crime Con shines a very interesting light on the industry around cereal killers. Matt’s reaction to people profiting off of his name and image by pretending to be a survivor, creating merch, or writing a tv show encapsulates the commercialization that the series is trying to shine a light on.
The runaway success of the podcast and the cultural debate feels very relevant to current conversations. The way that their morality is being judged by celebrities even though Ava, Nathan, and Matt are trying to remain anonymous is a discussion worth having.
However, this debate is only brought up when it’s convenient for the plot and never serves as a moral question for the characters who aren’t thinking beyond the popularity of true crime podcasts.
Matt’s attempts at creating a universe for Based on a True Story, and his Zoom calls with others show a pivotal jumping-off point for where this series could go. His attempts to find another killer that Americans can relate to provide an interesting lens into how we view and dissect the psychology of these psychopaths.
However, the fact that these other potential killers seem so aware of their trauma is interesting when you go back to my point, that the series doesn’t deliver on explaining why Matt kills.
It takes sitting with the series for a minute to realize that the reason Matt murders people may not be the point at all, and it’s more our morbid fascination with why that the series is commenting on.
Yet that crucial component feels like it’s getting lost in the sauce.
It’s hard not to compare Based on a True Story to crime dramas like Dexter or You where we’re in the mind of a serial killer. Since we don’t have his motivation we don’t know what’s driving him and, as such, while we want to worry about his next victim, we have no way of knowing if that person is really in danger unless they’re his “type.”
Without that tension, the show lacks any real stakes other than seeing our main characters go to prison. Come on, why bother debating the closing line of “Who’s Next?” if there isn’t going to be some real danger?
While I really wanted the series to lean into more of the killer’s motivation and really wrestle with the questions of why this media needed to exist, I did find myself invested by the end of the season. I want to see what happens to Ava and Nathan and I want to know if Matt frames them.
Because, as much as the series doesn’t quite deliver on the contract of showing us the launch and ramifications of this podcast, it does draw us into a relationship. I want to see what happens to Ava and Nathan. I want to see how far they are willing to go and how much control they lose if Matt continues to just do what he wants.
If the series can just strike a balance in tone and pacing, it has all the potential for another great season. I know I’m going to be thinking about the theme of murder as content for a good long while.
Stray Thoughts:
- I know Crime Con isn’t an original idea, but did anyone see if and immediately think of the Cereal convention in The Sandman? The second Matt was there, I just thought “oh damn, it’s going full-on serial killer at the cereal convention.”
- You know, I was okay with a lot of the other blood and guts, but McEnroe! Really? He didn’t deserve this!
- What’s with all the hate for pickleball?
What did you think of this season of Based on a True Story? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Based on a True Story Season 1 is now available to stream on Peacock.
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Lauren Busser
Lauren Busser is an Associate Editor at Tell-Tale TV. She is a writer of fiction and nonfiction whose work has appeared in Bitch Media, Popshot Quarterly, Brain Mill Press Voices, and The Hartford Courant.