Magic City - Television Season 1 Review

I swear it's not intentional, but I find myself reviewing my third television show set in the beautiful city of Miami. I'd seen the first season of this show once before, but never got around to seeing season two. A co-worker gave me her copies of the show on Blu-Ray and I could hardly deny that I was eager to revisit the wonderful world of Miami circa 1959. Look for my review of the second and final season of this show soon.

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General Information 
Magic City is a crime drama set in the late 1950's in Miami, FL. It was created by Mitch Glazer and produced for the Starz network (yeah, that still exists). The show first aired on 30 March 2012, but only lasted two seasons. Although this show received middling critical reviews, I thought this show had enormous potential due to its setting. Those that are familiar with the time period and location will recall the CIA's infamous alliance with the American Mafia and Cuban separatists as part of a secret war against the newly established Castro Regime. To be clear, this show is entirely fictional, however the opening scenes of drowned wiseguys tied to their sank Cadillacs reminded me of how major criminal figures like Johnny Roselli met similar fates back then. A final observation that I'd like to note is that I don't understand why they decided to call the show "Magic City" as we actually don't see much of Miami in it. Don't get me wrong, it's a catchy title, but this show is more about the hotel it's set in than the city. 

The Story
I actually struggle somewhat to describe this show's story as it seems to lack an overall plot and seems to be more of a string of disjointed sub-plots. The main character is undoubtedly Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Isaac "Ike" Evans, however I'd be remiss to say that the show centers around him. It more-so focuses on the staff and inhabitants of the Miramar Playa. Ike walks a fine line as he manages his five-star hotel, while placating his silent partner/Jewish mob boss, Ben "The Butcher" Diamond. He recently took a new wife, Vera Evans (played by the enchanting Olga Kurylenko), and none of his original children seem too happy about that. One son, Stevie, is screwing Diamond's new wife (the others all tragically died in child-birth), while Stevie's brother, Danny, courts one of the maids while considering joining the Miami District Attorney's Office.

The story is clearly the worst part of this show as a lot of the sub-plots never link together, while other sub-plots are so predictable that they can be seen coming from a mile away. There was more than one occasion where I hoped the show would throw out a twist at some point, but it just never really came. I originally thought this show would be all about Ike trying to break free of Ben Diamond's influence, however that all seemed to putter out. By the time the final episode's credit's rolled, I concluded that this show is more a window to life in Miami during 1959 than any actual story with major themes.

As I mentioned in "General Information," this show really interested me due to its fascinating setting and historical importance for its time. Frankly, it seems that Starz squandered it. For a show that kicks things off with the fall of Cuba, barely any Cubans are in the show (beyond Ike's assistant Victor Lazaro) and only one paper-thin plotline had anything to do with Post-Revolution Cuba. The mafia/CIA stuff is barely there either as the only gangster stuff in the show is about Ben Diamond's cartoony crime outfit. Now, I love Danny Huston's Ben Diamond, however I never really found Diamond's group to be remarkable as they were mainly just a parade of mafia tropes with a handful of secondary cast-members from other better gangster shows like Brotherhood or The Sopranos.

Special Effects/Atmosphere

The Miramar Playa is absolutely fantastic to see. I don't drink anymore, but if I ever decided to fall off the wagon I'd do it at the Atlantis Room. The view from the hotel's balconies and cabanas are equally breathtaking. It all melds together to portray this beautiful sun-washed image of 1950's Miami. The costume design is nearly as good as the set-design. I really liked how the Miramar Playa contrasted with Ben Diamond's mansion as one was bright and open, while the other was dark and ominous.

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All bars should have mermaids

The use of music was really top-notch too as I think they found some really great selections of licensed music that blended seamlessly with some of the more ambient background songs. I personally think the show ripped off The Sopranos' use of Bo Diddley's "I Am A Man," but it all worked beautifully. If the story failed to meet expectations, Magic City does its best to shore up that failing with an incredible atmosphere.

The Acting
Jeffrey Dean Morgan got top billing, but I'd argue that he got outshone by Danny Huston's Ben Diamond. I've seen Huston in quite a few small roles in film, but I think this was the first time I'd seen him really let loose. The guy chewed the scenery every time he was on the set and you can tell he has a blast playing as the psychotic Butcher. Thus far, I have yet to see anyone else pull off sunbathing quite like Mr. Huston.

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I'm calling it now: Ben dies in Season Two from Melanoma

On another note, I really liked Steven Strait's Stevie Evans (I guess he didn't have to worry about forgetting his character's name). I've only ever seen Strait as Holden in The Expanse, but I think he's given more to work with in this show. In The Expanse, he frequently came off as a little stilted, whereas I really bought this 1950's bad-boy style that he exuded. Little things like his coifed hair and how his cigarette hung from his lip all looked great. I hope to see Strait in more stuff in the future.

The Best of the Best: Just watching various scenes take place around the Miramar Playa is a real treat. The hotel looks gorgeous and completely lived in. I can't imagine too many shows that can almost entirely take place in one location, but this one does it with style and grace.

The Worst of the Worst: Danny Evans could just not show up in Season Two and I probably wouldn't notice. Lily Evans is already a ghost child and Danny only shows up to piss me off or annoy Stevie.

Would I Recommend?
I really wanted to like this show as it checks most of the boxes for me. Despite that, I can understand why I decided not to watch Season Two when I first watched this series. With that being said, if you like 1950's-1960's period pieces, you might wanna check this out (at least watch the first episode). If you like shows based in Miami, I'd pass as this show really isn't about Miami. If you like gangster shows, I'd recommend The Sopranos, Brotherhood, or even Wiseguy first. I'm really hoping Season Two changes my mind about this series, but Season One does not give me much enthusiasm.

-------------------------------------------------Spoiler Comments-----------------------------------------------------

• What should have been a devastating revelation, with Vic's wife, Maria, getting gunned down by Cuban communists, was instead fairly anti-climactic. We never saw Maria until her ill-fated voyage and the only time I ever saw Vic was either when he was worrying about Maria or getting involved with his daughter's sex-life.
• How much you want to bet that the boring corporation that tried/failed to get Maria to Miami is a CIA front? That lead-guy looks like a 1950's spook from head to toe.
• I get that cops had more freedoms back then, but starving and unlawfully imprisoning Judi Silver seemed a bit too much for reliable testimony. I'd be as calm and cool as Ike was if I was in his shoes by the end of Season One.
• At some point I hoped Danny Evans would have to make a choice between siding with his father or with the Miami D.A. Instead, he just got laid and that's about it... Oh well, maybe Season Two will be better.
• Maybe I missed it, but why would a guy like Ike Evans make a deal with Ben Diamond to give him free reign over his hotel? I get that Ike was strapped for cash when he was first getting on his feet, but he couldn't have found a worse person to make a deal with.
• Speaking of Ben, how has he lived this long? He's certainly conniving, but I kept waiting for one of his goons to simply get tired of his bullshit and shoot him in the face while he suns himself in that fancy lounge chair.

----------------------------------------------------References--------------------------------------------------

*Amazon. (n.d.). Magic City television series cover image. Retrieved from: https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Season-Combo-Jeffrey-Morgan/dp/B00IGK6TEM.

**Architectural Digest. (n.d.). The sets of Magic City image. Pinterest. Retrieved from: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/92464598569637232/. 

***Movie Stills. (2013). Ben Diamond image. Retrieved from: https://www.moviestillsdb.com/tv/magic-city-i1832045/aVOxIs.