The Paradise - Al paradiso delle signore

The Paradise is just that! An amazing show which captivates you very quickly and has you thinking constantly. If it is not about the era, the times, the cast, or writing...It is what is next! I am a definite movie buff with hundreds of thousands of shows watched. Not to say anyone is qualified to say what is good or bad but The Paradise is just simply VERY good in many ways. This series was a refreshing step away from the overdone crime dramas and did not need or require nudity nor profanity to make is superb. Some here criticize the last episode(s) however they may not understand this - the writers knew the show would be canceled well before it ended, sadly, and were required to conjure up a somewhat appealing ending. I am highly disappointed, again, in the BBC's horrid decision to cancel. Those in the BBC who "decided" to cancel are far better off working as shoe makers or barbers and should kindly step out of the entertainment business.

I couldn't get into Mr. Selfridge but I enjoyed this show. It's a shame there are only two seasons. Why BBC, why??

When they cancelled Lark Rise to Candleford, the BBC promised us that it was to "make room for other dramas". So far, I haven't seen anything worth watching, until The Paradise came on. It has the same gentle feel that Lark Rise did, and the same idea of having pride in the work you do. It is really nice to have a TV show which is not obsessed with having nude scenes in it, or using swear words at every turn, but rather concentrating on a good script, and a storyline that makes you want to know what is going to happen next. Some of the characters do feel like they need to find themselves a little bit, but since this is the first series, I think that they can easily be forgiven for that! This is definitely a show to watch, especially if you were a fan of Lark Rise to Candleford.

I've never been one for 'period' or costume drama but I quite enjoyed the two episodes I've seen so far.

I don't understand the "distinctly cardboard-looking Victorian Street" comment in one of the reviews. Really? It looked real enough to me and judging by the location feature on this site it was.

There are loads of streets like that in the UK. I can think of a few in Bristol alone.

I mistakenly watched the second episode before the first and I was quite surprised to see two or three characters behaving quite differently between the two episodes for no apparent reason.

Other than that, just relax and enjoy it. Or not watch it just to pick out perceived flaws.

If you come to this series having first read Zola's book, you'll be greatly disappointed. There are few touch points between the two, and the entire spirit is different as well. What they do have very much in common is the theme of big business relentlessly and irreversibly destroying small business.

That said, I enjoyed this series. Denise is suitably innocent and pure, Moray is single-minded and lecherous, and the introduced character of Jonas is malevolent. Yes, the whole show has Victorian melodrama stamped all over it, but that doesn't make it any less compelling.

Given the ending of series 1, I can't imagine what series 2 will be like.