Ransom Canyon

Gorgeous cast and setting with surprisingly great romances and intriguing Texas small town drama. I have been a Josh Duhamel fan since he was Leo duPres on All My Children 25 years ago because he's such a tall handsome dreamy leading man. And I have been a fan of Minka's ever since Friday Night Lights. Their incredible chemistry and relationship is the heart of the series for sure. There's so much longing and love there. Josh and Minka truly are incredible. Can't wait for more Quinn and Staten.

Also loooved the relationship between Ellie and Yancey, and Lucas and Lauren. Seriously, the romances and relationships on this series are so good, there really isn't a weak link at all in the bunch. The show is so SO bingeable and rewatchable. I want S2 now Netflix!!

Could've been good but something's off kilter.

The best episode was the rodeo (5?) one. And what happened to the 2nd bad ombré?

Had a few good twists but missing chemistry.

Good actors in it but maybe it's the writing...because something doesn't gel. Sadly it's supposed to be Texas but filmed elsewhere. Hard to believe some events, as in aftermath of tornado; dang, the town cleaned up fast.

Not enough dance hall scenes; only saw one act. Later scenes looked like it was just a large diner.

There was a lot of hype for this but the series didn't live up to it. Yellowstone meets Virgin River? Nah. Hallmark version of Virgin River.

As it's been said it's a Texas soap opera. The characters are half way interesting and the plot is there. It's an modern "Dallas" but with less polish. It's easy to watch and you can actually follow it while doing something else at the same time. It's not bad, it's just not particularly good. It has some decent photography and scenery and Josh Duhamel is easy on the eyes. It's an age old story of feuding families and has the heroes and villains. It's somewhat predictable and cheesy but mildly entertaining at the least. At least most of the actors are new faces and have some actual talent. It's not raunchy but does have some almost sex scenes and a few catastrophes thrown in to keep it moving. Not hard to follow.

This is exactly why new shows shouldn't be compared to giants like Yellowstone. Ransom Canyon has its own vibe-definitely leaning into the soap opera lane and I'm not mad about it. I grew up on Days of Our Lives, so a little melodrama now and then feels like comfort food. Honestly, some of the plot twists had me half-expecting Stefano DiMera to walk in.

Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly as the leads, the chemistry is there, no doubt, but I found myself wanting just a little more from them emotionally. His brother-in-law, Davis, is a walking red flag-a full-blown nightmare, really. There's a brief moment where you think, maybe there's some goodness buried in there, but nope. Especially once he teams up with Staten's dad, who's just another barrel of bad decisions.

There are quite a few subplots woven in-Yancy and Ellie, the teenagers (Reid, Lucas, and Lauren)-and while they played into the main arc, some of their drama didn't land for me. A bit too much going on at times.

That said, I did enjoy the show. I'd absolutely tune in for season two. I went into it with zero expectations, which honestly helped. Trying to compare it to a juggernaut like Yellowstone or even Virgin River is just setting yourself up for disappointment. And let's be real, even Virgin River has its fair share of soap-level chaos.

I haven't read the books the show is based on-maybe I will, maybe I won't. Sometimes diving into the source material ruins the fun of the adaptation.

Bottom line: This isn't Yellowstone, it isn't Virgin River, and that's okay. It has potential, there's room to grow, and I'm rooting hard for Staten and Quinn. His grief-fueled stubbornness nearly drove me to drink, but I also totally got it. Grief does that-it hardens and isolates. I just hope he softens before she walks away for good.

This show is ALOT!... a lot of drama, a lot of poor choices, a lot of damaged people and a lot of hurt feelings.

This cast is mostly great, but there's something that just rubs me the wrong way and I can't figure out what.... Is it the writing? Is it the casting? Is it the character arcs? Is it poor acting? Is it a lack of chemistry?

It has so much potential.. but this is a lot of drama squeezed into ten episodes!

Like I know in real life people make poor choices and things get complicated, but this is a lot!

Individually the stories have glimmers and moments of greatness... but when they're all put together I don't know if it works? It's like the recipe isnt perfect?

I don't know, I feel perplexed... I binge watched the whole season and still have no idea if I like it or if I want more of it.

I don't know if this review helps anyone, but there it is! Haha!