Untamed

I was hooked right away and binge watched the 6 episodes without a single break, literally! I didn't realize I'd barely moved until I was done! My knees made me acutely aware though upon standing up!

Seriously though, gripping slow burn plus the landscape and cinematography is amazing of course. The mixed reviews on here so far just tells me that you will either love it or maybe not.

After watching I thought that the feeling or pull was very similar to the first season of Pickett on Prime. If you've seen that show's first season and liked it then Untamed is for you. To all readers though, I suggest watching the first episode and I guarantee you'll know whether or not it's for you by the end.

I would like to add that yes of course there are some things, just like in every show or movie, that the viewer thinks could have been better. But this was one of the best shows I've seen in a while.

(...That being expected of course with Netflix's production budget that has taken TV Shows to another atmosphere! So thanks for putting our subs to good use Netflix!)

In 2016 I fulfilled one of my life's dreams and I stayed 2 nights in Yosemite park, at the Ahwahnee Lodge. From this point of view the series is a true reward. The plot is a different thing. At the end you can't help but ask yourself what was the core story to begin with: the Caleb story, the Lucy story, the drug subplot... The problem with convoluted plots is that they get too twisty for their own good, and as a screenwriter and novelist myself I know what I'm talking about. The main character, a federal agent in charge of crime investigations in national parks, never connects with the viewer, or with other characters for that matter; not once he allows himself to even grin, never. His detachment from everything, except from his obsession to solve Lucy's death, puts us off from his emotional core as a human being. We care more about Vasquez, a normal person, or even Jill, his ex wife. Main characters don't need to be too complex or traumatized to be interesting, especially if they have to solve complex crimes. What about just doing their job in a professional and efficient way without spending too much time brooding? Direction is functional, acting won't earn them any awards, writing wants to be clever sometimes, and there are even some magic realism touches. All in all is a quite pleasant series to watch, but 4 episodes might have done it just as well. 7/10.

I put this on a lazy afternoon hoping to enjoy some good ol murder mystery. Safe to say I was pleased yet somewhat unsatisfied.

Speaking of the positives. The series is visually striking. The Yosemite National Park setting is breathtaking. Every frame feels like a nature documentary wrapped around a thriller. Eric Bana gives a nuanced performance as Agent Turner that holds the emotional core of the story. He's believable and grounded. The themes of grief, family, and inner conflict are earnest and handled with subtlety, even if not always deeply explored. Some of the emotional moments hit hard and it flows well across it's six episodes.

Now the series hits quite some rocky steps. The most noticeable issue is the predictable plot. You can likely guess the key twists an episode or two in advance. Some of the characters act more like plot devices than fully developed people. A lot of the subplots feel rushed or thin.

Overall, Untamed is a visually lush, emotionally restrained thriller that delivers a satisfying, if familiar, story wrapped in grief, secrets, and the stillness of the wilderness. It's not groundbreaking, but is still a decent watch.

I binge-watched Untamed and recommended it to friends. Yes, it was cheesy and unrealistic at times-but still an engaging watch with lots of moving parts.

I love a good whodunnit and enjoyed trying to piece things together along the way. Some twists genuinely threw me off, which kept it interesting. The acting was good, and I appreciated that the show didn't leave me hanging-unlike other series that end with vague interpretations. This one tied up the loose ends and gave me closure, which I loved.

Overall, it's worth watching!

Overall this is a good short series. This is about grief more than anything, the thing everyone goes through at some point. It also gives a slight nod to what happens to people who fall through the cracks, and how easy it is to fall.

Good parts: The first two episodes are the best - it does go downhill a bit after that, but the other episodes are still pretty good. The landscape is gorgeous. The people look real - they are not fake looking, which is nice. The actors are great, all of them. Writing is good.

Bad parts: The murderer doesn't feel right. I get the point, the cracks have to be shown, and the decisions the murderer made were selfish and led to a crappy life led by the victim, who had no chance. But the whole investigation was a big "so what" at the end. Also, it's tiring, that whole renegade cop trope.

But it's very good. I cried. More than once. I recommend if you like character development and beautiful scenery. If you need some car chases, this isn't for you.