Chapter One: Make Your Mark

I didn't expect this show to have a stable plot as I went in almost completely blind (having only read the summary of the plot), and what a wonderful surprise I got when this first episode turned out to be better than I expected. The humor is a bit dark but the show has its wholesome moments as well, the few bits of violence are well made and as it's said in the trivia: it's not romanticizing any of the gore. Give this pilot a watch if you want well executed humor with tiny bits of realistic violence.

I don't know if I ever picked Bill Hader as an actor-assassin, but here we are. "Barry" is a show where he plays exactly that: trying to find purpose in his life through acting while secretly working as an assassin killing people. Sounds like a fun time. Along with Alec Berg, who has worked on multiple hit shows throughout the years, Hader was announced as a co-writer and creator of the show, which began its run back in 2018. It has gained a lot of acclaim and if the pilot is anything to speak from, this is going to be a truly innovatively awesome show.

At first, I thought I was in for a slow-moving show about this guy working contracts and killing people. However, it quickly turns up the volume after an incredible opening scene and shows the audience that this is a show filled with drama and intense scenes. The show does a great job of taking Barry's main job as an assassin and pairing the intense nature of it with the acting class that he takes, and it almost seems like Barry is more frightened by standing on stage as a mere scene partner than putting a bullet through a guy's brain. Not only is that brilliant storytelling, but it's a great way of getting us into the mindset of this character, which is a very twisted one. I didn't expect Bill Hader to make an impact like that out-of-the-gate, but he actually gives a great performance that captures that feeling of desire that his character is walking around with inside. It's being believable displayed to the audience without trying to forcible make the guy sympathetic. He's clearly not a great guy, but we still can't help but feel for him. The episode kinda seems like it could have easily been a one-off due to its sense of finality at the end, but that just says to me that they know how to make the show without the need for setting up a lot of stuff. At least not yet. Also, can we just accept that Henry Winkler is a national treasure? Because that's just a fact.

"Chapter One: Hit Your Mark" definitely hit the mark and shot the show off to a great start. Even though it felt like a good deal of finality was given, I can't wait to see what the writers have come up with for the next episode, which is currently queue'd up and ready to go.

This has gotta be one of the most interesting premises for a comedy I've ever heard. Like how on earth do you think of something like this.

To start with, the plot kicks off well and is pretty riveting straight away. There are memorable characters, which is a classic for HBO. It's dark tone and sense of humour make it for me. The suspense also lets the episode have another layer on top of its already brilliant structure. Bill Hader did an extremely good job on this one and I hope to see it get better and better. It has a lot of potential and it could go literally anywhere.

Overall, great plot and characters 8.2/10.

Make your Mark introduces all the inportant characters of the show and gives a great impression of what you can expect from further episodes.

Story: The premiere has the difficult task to catch the viewers interest. Barry does a great job here introducing us to the characters. The mix of action and comedy that will follow us the whole show is great. The pacing is fabulous since you only have 30 minute episodes and not 1 hour movies.

Acting: As I watched the show the first time it was a few months after watching Dexter and I have to say that Barry reminds me of the outstanding performance of Michael C. Hall's Dexter. I love both actors and their performances. The other part of the cast is also great.

Verdict: This is a good start into the show, hopefully it can keep this quality.

(7/10)

Barry is a jaded assassin, pondering his chosen career. His latest assignment sends him to Los Angeles to take out a personal trainer who is sleeping with a mob boss's wife. He follows the personal trainer into an acting class and discovers that he may have a talent for acting. Could this be the new direction he is seeking?

A dark, quirkily funny opening episode. The thought of an assassin first of all pondering his career choice and then considering acting is absurd. However, like much of the comedy in the episode this absurdity is wonderfully understated. It's the deadpan matter-of-factness about Barry's chosen profession and current life that make this so funny.

With this setup it is intriguing to see where this goes from here.