What a Greek classic this is. As with others here I'm so glad to catch this series currently on ABC iView after dodging it previously. Maybe I was ready for it now because it's relevant and revelatory of what happens to young men finding their feet in a tough world. In this case, the world of elite sports. Admit I rushed to find out who this Matt Nable is and what else he's done. Totally surprised to find he's an Aussie and not Hungarian! How convincing he is, along with all the others in the cast. Barracuda's an attentive study in clashes and polarities, how you can make choices: to be aggressive, hungry, angry vs entitled, confident, moneyed and weak, and any combination of those. The structure is very much classical Greek theatre with Emma (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) in the role of commentator (Greek chorus) to Danny (and us) of her family.
Good treatment of the press mediating life into trash (especially if you watched Frontline TV series). Everything counted for something - even Torma's house. Great script and characterisations. Loved Theo and loved the motor bike guy ("I'm not a spastic!!"). Thought Rachel Griffiths good in the part of not being able to say much while her life spins away from her dreams. And Helen Morse the tiny, aged controller watching all of them vying for power and favour. In support of the focus on beautiful masculinity, an article somewhere described Elias Anton's dedication to building his physique for the role, so I hope people don't assume it's about beauty for voyeurism. Athletes are the gods of Olympus basically, physically and in the dramas they play out among themselves, beyond the rest of us. My heart goes out to reviewer Jacob James Stapleton from London who knows what it's like to live this life like a comet – a gift with a sting in its tail.
Some reviews here seem to miss the biggest thing in the frame – it's easy when it's so big we can't see it. The Pool, the arena. It's a beast, and as one said, what's going on above it, in it and below it. Frank Torma the water whisperer, kindly shares with us his wisdom and knowledge of this beast. And, much like Cassandra really, the key figures seem deaf to his warnings.
