Jean-Claude van Damme is living an empty life of luxury, his best career days behind him now, and little in his life. A chance encounter with an old love, Vanessa, triggers him to reboot his career. However it is not his van Damme days that he wants back into, but his shadow career of van Johnson, where he used European-set DTV titles as a way to get inside enemy regimes and act as a secret agent who nobody would ever suspect.
I think probably everyone has seen the film JCVD, where the actor plays straight in a surprisingly brutal film which not only stripped him down as a person, but broke the 4th wall to give him on-screen time to reflect on his life and who he has been. It was a great moment and for the actor the film was a brave but rewarding choice. The TV show sort of extends that idea of putting van Damme into playing himself but not really playing himself; of joking about his career but celebrating it at the same time; of mocking his films but delivering what we all like about them. It is in no way as serious as JCVD, but it rides on from it. In doing so it is a real odd mix, and it is never totally clear that it knows how to balance all the things it is trying to do.
At times it is very silly, others it asks us to buy into the characters, and then at the same time it is funny. The same is true of the plot, which jumps all over the place and rarely totally works. The multiple personalities, the time-travel, the spy thriller, the personal reflection - all of it has a part, even if it never gels. That said, it is still an enjoyable season. It is well put together so that enough works to cover the weaknesses; the action and comedy all work, and the cast bring a lot to the screen. JCVD himself is great - he gets the scene, whatever it is. His comedic timing is good and he is still a very good physical presence - even when the scene is daft, he goes with it and makes it work. Kat Foster is more than just a pretty face; she has good chemistry with van Damme, and convinces as a character. Arias is a weird find but fun casting - hard to recognize him when compared to his other work. In support there are several familiar faces that add weight to the show and also do good turns - Rashad, Rota, Schiff, come to mind, but also a collection of goons and other such roles.
Overall it is a fun season that mostly plays for laughs and gets them. The general standard is amusement with fun action, but tries to have a narrative that works (even if it gets silly too often). Not sure where the ending really leaves them to go except to get more silly, but on the basis of this season I would like to watch more if they can reign that back and play to what they did well here.
I think probably everyone has seen the film JCVD, where the actor plays straight in a surprisingly brutal film which not only stripped him down as a person, but broke the 4th wall to give him on-screen time to reflect on his life and who he has been. It was a great moment and for the actor the film was a brave but rewarding choice. The TV show sort of extends that idea of putting van Damme into playing himself but not really playing himself; of joking about his career but celebrating it at the same time; of mocking his films but delivering what we all like about them. It is in no way as serious as JCVD, but it rides on from it. In doing so it is a real odd mix, and it is never totally clear that it knows how to balance all the things it is trying to do.
At times it is very silly, others it asks us to buy into the characters, and then at the same time it is funny. The same is true of the plot, which jumps all over the place and rarely totally works. The multiple personalities, the time-travel, the spy thriller, the personal reflection - all of it has a part, even if it never gels. That said, it is still an enjoyable season. It is well put together so that enough works to cover the weaknesses; the action and comedy all work, and the cast bring a lot to the screen. JCVD himself is great - he gets the scene, whatever it is. His comedic timing is good and he is still a very good physical presence - even when the scene is daft, he goes with it and makes it work. Kat Foster is more than just a pretty face; she has good chemistry with van Damme, and convinces as a character. Arias is a weird find but fun casting - hard to recognize him when compared to his other work. In support there are several familiar faces that add weight to the show and also do good turns - Rashad, Rota, Schiff, come to mind, but also a collection of goons and other such roles.
Overall it is a fun season that mostly plays for laughs and gets them. The general standard is amusement with fun action, but tries to have a narrative that works (even if it gets silly too often). Not sure where the ending really leaves them to go except to get more silly, but on the basis of this season I would like to watch more if they can reign that back and play to what they did well here.