Series Talk: Dirty John

After watching You, I noticed a new series on Netflix: Dirty John. A series that's also about manipulation. The series Dirty John is based on the podcast that's also called Dirty John, by Christopher Goffard. It's based on a true story. 

Debra is dating. One day, she has a date with John. He's charming and kind and their relationship goes fast. Debra's kids don't really like John. They think he's acting strange. They try to warn Debra. But she just sees the charming side of John. 

Well,I really have my doubts about this series. Maybe it's just my expectations.  I had expected a bit of story like You. And in some way it is. But it's also very different. The story line is very interesting. John does seem like a great guy for Debra at the beginning. His first date is strange. And doesn't end too well. That's a sign. But they make up and what follows is a dream romance. I really liked Debra's daughters. They're great. They don't just see how John is, they are also funny & straight forward. I really liked to watch it for them. 

Something that annoyed me after a few episodes, was Debra. Where 'You' tells the story from the manipulators side, we now see the story from more of distance. But mostly from Debra and her family's side. Plus, it's based on a true story. That makes this way more of a drama series than 'You'. 'You' was also a thriller and was so different. Debra didn't seem very powerful. I got that feeling mostly due to a lack of dialog. Where her daughters speak about their concerns and show proof, Debra just stays quiet most of the time and has this empty smiles. I missed a bit of depth there. You can see much evidence against John, but you don't see enough of what's charming Debra. It makes it very hard for me to see the whole from Debra's side. She also seems so unaffected by everything. I would have loved to see that more. See the story from John's side, and from Debra. More than just the story of what John did and what it means for her family. 

The main roles are for Connie Britton (Debra) and Eric Bana (John). It's difficult to say what I think about Connie. I had trouble seeing the story from Debra's side. And I'm not sure if that'because of how Connie portrays Debra or just the way the story is portrayed (Not emphasizing enough how John is charming her). Eric Bana did a great job in portraying John. From the first moment I found him a bit creepy. And you get the feeling something isn't right. On the other hand, I didn't see a lot of the charming side of John. You see i from a distance (some happy images of Debra and John), but it didn't really convince me of how charming John was.   

Debra's daughters, Terra & Veronica are played by Juno Temple (Veronica) and Julia Garner (Terra).  I really loved them both. It was easy to see the story from their side and I really like the character of Veronica. She's so smart and I had to laugh a lot about the things she said! 

I was also surprised to see Jeff Perry as Michael O'Neill. I know him as Cyrus in Scandal. He's such a great actor! 

1 up until now.

Imdb: 7,2

Me: 5,5