The Affair

My wife and I just binge watched the five seasons of The Affair. It's an addictive show to watch, certainly because the way the story is been told. The plot unfolds slowly by telling the story like each character sees it, or remembers it. Each character sees or remembers the story differently and that's what made this show stands out from the rest. You never really know who tells the truth or lies. The different characters probably think their version of the facts is the truth. It's just about their perspective of the facts, it's about how people see things differently and are convinced their version is the only truth. The first three seasons are better than the last two but overall it's a satisfying show to watch. A very good cast made it all more believable. No actor or actress really stands out, they just all delivered in their own way. Maybe the writers did at one point overdo it, with too many affairs and sorts, and that's why I thought the last two seasons were not of the same quality as the first three. For a drama series it's captivating and entertaining. Much better than the daily soaps with the same gossip stories we are bombarded every day.

The theme has been done to death, but this time prepare to be pleasantly surprised, for the execution of this short series is quite good and features not only lust but also the characters' psychological descent as influenced by loss, poor communication, and bad parenting.

I have just finished the entire first season, and I must say, it was not at all what I expected. I thought it would be a simple, sexy, scandalous story full of clichés; instead I found myself more and more drawn to a deeper, psychologically complex drama that perfectly illustrates how there are three sides to each story: his version, her version, and the truth. Expect solid performance, melancholic scenery, careful art direction, and excellent choice of costumes as per each character's persona.

Oh and you have got to love the opening theme performed by Fiona Apple.

I troubled myself to understand the thing that makes this show so seductive, so different. To discover what is the ingredient that creators ably slipped into this immensely emotional and sensual potion. Something that imbues this show to its firm core. After a long consideration, I realized, that this one thing I was looking for is nonexistent. Because this show in its entirety is that special thing. The combination of intriguing, complex characters, empathy that they draw from the viewers. Mystery, that so elegantly dances through the plot, while hypnotizing us to follow its perfectly composed, unpredictable step. Casual, compelling, conversations that silently pull you even deeper down this beautifully directed world. By telling this story through the eyes of the characters, we find out that their view of the same situations vary. Not only that they see or understand something through their psychological state, this multi-character experience exposes us to realization that each person is living a life as vivid and complex as our own. This would be impossible to achieve if not the breathtaking actors and actresses that catapult this show to another dimension, yet never more close to humanity, to now, to us.

The affair is a deliberately slow- paced,beautifully shot,compelling show. The 2 main characters recount their truth in regards of the forming of "the affair" with a crime mystery in the background as an excuse to do so . We, as viewers,must decide and deduct our truth from their accounts. I love the psychological aspect of this show. In fact it's the main reason for my watching. How a very same event is viewed and felt and told differently from the people who experienced it.If you enjoy this show, I would recommend you also read "The One" by Vivienne Harris-Scott. The premise is nearly the same: what happens when 2 people fall in love when they should not.Each chapter is told from one person's Pov as Alison and Noah's, and it is as compelling to read, if not more,as there is also a suspense element. In fact, I had Déjà- vu when watching the first 3 episodes!Anyhow, with this as with H.Levi's " in treatment " Showtime has hit the jackpot. A mature and sophisticated audience will thoroughly enjoy this.

Season 1 deserves a 10 star rating in my opinion. Loved the 2nd season as well. Afterwards, it's just an okay show but since I fell in love with (some of) the characters I just had to continue watching it till the end. Overall, I think they focused on too many other things like Whitney's story, also Joanie's in the future. It didn't catch my attention, at times I found it quite boring and unnecessary. In later seasons, the parts that were told from Noah's and Helen's perspective were by far the most interesting ones.

Good show with a brilliant season 1 and 2 but sadly with a lot of flaws in later seasons.