The Better Sister

My wife and I finished all 8 episodes of this 8-episode miniseries streaming on Prime, also produced by the two main actors who play the sisters. When we watch a fictional series like this our best measure is whether we are anxious to see the next episode. With this series we always were and the last episode, which ties everything up, is entertaining and satisfying.

Jessica Beihl and Elizabeth Banks are in fine form and those characters, and their interactions, are the main thrust of the series. As episodes move along the stories continue to introduce new twists. For strict entertainment, it fills the bill. However it seems that every character uses the worst profane language that you can imagine, quite a bit too much in my opinion, so that was often a big distraction. It seems that all shows like this use that approach, sadly.

In many ways it is hard to find anyone to root for. No angels in this set of characters. But if everyone is bad (except the teenage son) then you find the entertainment in their misdeeds and seeing how they will survive the quagmires they find themselves in.

In the first episode we are presented with two big issues. First, a murder, and with clues we are presented it isn't clear who might have done it. Then we are presented with the tension between the estranged sisters. The victim has been husband to both of them.

Jessica Biel is the younger sister, Chloe, a prominent executive with a Manhattan firm, her husband is an attorney. They have a son, about 17. But they have only been married for almost ten years.

The other sister lives in Cleveland, OH, and has been sober for five years, clearly not yet living the good life. She is played by Elizabeth Banks as Nickey. The son is actually hers. The sisters get along like fire and ice.

We were entertained, the ending set itself up for a second season if they choose to go that way.

Not feeling the suspense, no plot twists, nothing exciting. Not sure if the segments with the dead husband/father are a dream or a hallucination or if they're doing a flashback moment. They seemed to be using them only to fill-in because they couldn't figure out what else to write. This literally puts me to sleep. I keep replaying what I missed after I fell asleep, hoping that there was something worth watching, but to no avail. Still confused only five episodes in and considering just giving up but want to see it all the way through to see if it has any redeeming value. Maybe I'll have a better rating at the end or maybe not.

Conservatively speaking I've probably seen more than a hundred criminal trials on screen. In about 90% of them a very big deal is made about keeping the defendant off the witness stand. In the other 10%, the defendant is begging against the defense attorney's wishes to be put on the stand. Sometimes when the defendant is the star and requires a star turn on the stand, they get their wish, but usually they don't. In this one the defendant suddenly appears on the stand. We don't know who called him there, but it's too early in the trial for it to have been the defense attorney...plus it's completely against the defense strategy. Plus there's evidence that's sprung on him that does not abide by the rules of evidence disclosure. It is a screamingly fraudulent scene for anyone remotely knowledgeable about criminal law, even if that knowledge only comes from the movies and TV. It completely undermines the story and the good work of Biel and Banks. Worst of all, it shows total contempt for the viewer. Turned it off after that.

6.9 stars.

In spite of the stellar cast, not just a few major Hollywood personalities, but five or six big-time actors, this series does not serve up a very entertaining experience. I've seen a hundred shows better than this in the same genre.

I made it through about half of episode four, and realized that I had wasted hours of precious life. Just because Banks and Biel are sisters in the story with interesting contrasts of character, doesn't mean they can force more stimulation out of the anemic narrative. Sure enough, the story is slow and somewhat mundane for a murder mystery.

Why is this show even on television? We are so accustomed to more intrigue and suspense without all the fluff and filler. This should be four episodes at most. I'm done with it.

After watching Lincoln Lawyer and True Detective and Fargo and The Sinner (season one with Biel-fantastic) and even Girl on a Train (not great), The Better Sister is not what I would prescribe for your mystery thriller cravings.

It starts with a murder, and catches you even though it is... calmly paced. The acting is really what hooked me. You never really like any particular character, but they are all unique, intriguing, and layered. The story line is a bit ridiculous at its most basic, but the character growth and slowly revealed history has a little something anyone can relate to. The build in revelations is done well and really catches your interest. Worth noting; some of the writing is a little too on the nose, but I viewed it as a comedic lightening of the general serious weight of the show, and kind of enjoyed it. I didn't binge, but one episode a night kept me ready for the next.