After seeing several seasons of Outer Banks I cannot deny that I was amused and entertained: all episodes are chock-full of high paced adventures, treasure-hunting and pursuits by villains, all this on exotic locations and with as an extra some romantic entanglements between the young and attractive cast. So what's there not to like!?
Well, I do have some reservations too. The goings-on are all extremely farfetched and unrealistic: like how this group of teen-friends succeeds time and again in escaping right under de nose of the police or heavily armed criminals, frequently amidst a shower of bullets but always unharmed; or how they solve mind-boggling mysteries (like for ages hidden treasures or the location of the legendary El Dorado) within the flick of a wrist, or thanks to out-of-the-blue strokes of luck.
The young cast is evidently supposed to illustrate the importance of true friendship, but their juvenile behavior gradually gets on your nerves, with all the bro'ing and dude'ing and the unavoidable reversed baseball caps. And silly nick-names of course, like JJ and Pope and John B (what's the B for anyway?). They all look good, but the acting is just adequate, only Drew Starkey really stands out as the troubled Rafe, and Rudy Pankow was pretty convincing as the resourceful, ADHD-fuelled JJ.
In fact it's more a series for teens, hardly exceeding the realms of The Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew. Maybe, as a reasonably grown-up person, I shouldn't watch this at all, but hey, sometimes it's nice to go with an easy and enjoyable flow without too much thinking. If there's yet another season in the making, I bet I will not be able to resist it. Again.
