Palm Royale Season 1 Episode 5 Review: Maxine Shakes the Tree

Palm Royale Season 1 Episode 5, “Maxine Shakes the Tree,” finds Maxine’s plan unraveling at the seams as she digs deeper into Douglas’s past, spurred by her discovery on last week’s episode. It’s a slower outing that one might categorize as “filler,” but the writers plant narrative seeds and incorporate more necessary character development. 

Performances  

Maxine spends much of “Maxine Shakes the Tree” trying to reconcile with the bombshell she stumbled upon in Norma’s bank safe. It temporarily derails her objective to become Queen of the Season. Thankfully, the show finally answers the “who,” “what,” and “why” of the attempted murder at Douglas and Linda’s nuptials. 

Josh Lucas has found his niche and should pursue more roles like this wholeheartedly. He imbues Douglas with a goofy energy.

While his remarks to Linda about men having it “harder” because they run everything should be enough to make you despise him, Lucas makes Douglas so endearing that you can’t help but like him. Of course, we still have five episodes to go. There’s room for ole Dougie to disappoint us. 

Kristen Wiig steers this ship with a deft hand. Like Lucas, Wiig delivers a layered, nuanced performance, with charisma oozing from her pores. Maxine continuously makes poor choices, but she’s inherently a good person. We see glimpses of that on occasion. 

Through Virginia’s Eyes 

Carol Burnett and Amber Chardae Robinson still get too little screen time for this reviewer’s liking, but they knock it out of the park with what they have.

Burnett is a comedy goddess whose specific acting choices, even the seemingly trivial ones, shine on camera. Robinson’s main scene in “Maxine Shakes the Tree” showcases her subtle, effortlessly impactful work. Virginia is our grounding element in Palm Royale. She’s the voice of reason. Through her eyes, we see how ludicrous and outlandish this world is. 

Leslie Bibb is utterly hilarious in her one scene on the golf course. She takes big swings and scores a hole-in-one with every joke. 

A Game of the Mind 

“Maxine Shakes the Tree” delves deep into gender dynamics. It finally leans into its innate themes and tries to make a statement. The substance bubbling beneath the show’s glossy facade breaks the surface. Even the Our Bodies, Our Shelves women get a juicy plotline that could contribute significantly to the overarching narrative. 

Whether Palm Royale continues leaning into these themes remains to be seen. Here’s hoping it doesn’t revert to waffling between whether it wants to be a fluffy, mindless comedy or a comedy with something to say. 

There are a few glaring plotholes that stick out tremendously in this episode. For starters, how did Maxine never put two and two together regarding her relationship with Douglas and his engagement to Linda? The year was clearly printed on the wedding invite, meaning she and Douglas were together while he was engaged. This “revelation” doesn’t land quite as effectively as the writers intended. 

Secondly, it’s strange that nobody acknowledges how Norma is inexplicably, quickly recovering. She was on death’s door not long ago, and now she’s well on her way to walking and talking again. 

A Dreamy, Airbrushed Paradise

One primary complaint circulating social media is the intense airbrushing/CGI work on the actors’ faces. This reviewer has a theory — it’s intentional. These characters are clearly supposed to be older, and the timeline itself acknowledges this fact. 

However, the airbrushing represents the dishonest and duplicitous nature of these characters. They lie not only to others but also to themselves. There’s a heavy layer of denial painted over this universe as the one percent clings to a dying way of life while society hurtles toward the future. This picture-perfect, breezy paradise is anything but. Additionally, everyone has an ulterior motive, making it hard to tell which “friendships” are genuine. 

Maxine throwing the gun in the sea hopefully signifies the end of the attempted murder plot. It feels like an indication of the series putting this to bed so we can barrel forward, full-steam ahead, to the Beach Ball. After all, Maxine still has dreams of rising to the top. 

Overall, “Maxine Shakes the Tree” might not be everyone’s favorite Palm Royale episode. Still, it’s as sharp as ever on the comedy front and continues fleshing out these fascinating characters. Sure, it stumbles somewhat here and there.

That aside, the solid comedic performances anchor the narrative, and the necessary plot developments, even though they seem small, point us toward an exciting back half of the season (fingers crossed). 

Stray Observations: 

• “Kooky Woebegone Spud” is the name of my new band. It’s experimental jazz/metal/folk/pop music. We don’t confine ourselves to one genre. 
• “A lot of things can be true at the same time.” Virginia is a prescient soul. She predicted the state of social media 50-some years ago. I need everyone on Twitter to read that quote and commit it to memory. 
• Ricky Martin’s air trumpet fingerings in response to Maxine’s insinuation that he and Norma were in the throes of passion when she embolized cracked me up. It’s excellent space work on his part. 
• Douglas watched May December and knew he needed to ensure they had enough hot dogs for dinner. Someone, give this man his own cooking show. 
• Dinah and Maxine’s “Cuban Missile Crisis” joke is funnier than it should be. As a side note, riding around slightly buzzed in a golf cart sounds like the perfect afternoon activity. 
• “Edelweiss” is the least sexiest song in existence. If anything, it’s a libido killer. That said, Maxine’s line about the tune made me laugh out loud. 

What did you think of this episode of Palm Royale? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Palm Royale drops new episodes every Wednesday on Apple TV+. 

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