#hilletti

Okay, so I'll say this: while I was first excited for Milo's new show, I was kind of turned off by the premiere, and I have watched all the episodes, but the story failed to impress me. So, I'll start with what I liked about the show and what I hated about the show, and all who read this can either DM, reblog, or comment your thoughts, whether you agree or disagree, so here goes:

Likes

1. Milo's character Charlie Nicoletti

Charlie, for me, resonated as a character- he was a guy living a life and wanted more. The fact that he isn't a mid-30s, but rather 40 year old, and wasn't the traditional hero that you'd find, that was extremely neat. The way Milo portrays him is off the charts- I could feel the pain that he felt when he got conned by his fiancee, when he got blindsided by Emma's profession, when he took a big risk and got the expected answer of rejection, having to take snubs from Emma and being wrung to full extent as an asset. So if anything, congrats Milo- your character won a place in my heart.

2. Daphne being a three-dimensional character than just a femme fatale/ Bond villain

Daphne is complicated - but she isn't the cantankerous villain you'd find in most con films, she's a little of Jamie Lee Curtis's Wanda, Lauren Bacall's Slim and Sophie Marceau's Elektra. And that speaks volumes.

3. Leo and Fran Nicoletti/Birdie and Ollie/Sibling dynamics between Emma-David and Charlie-Birdie

The romantic relationship between Leo and Fran, the single mom and daughter dynamic between Birdie and Ollie, and the sibling pairs of Emma-David and Charlie-Birdie were top notch. Knowing and seeing these kinds of relationships in my family onscreen was refreshing and if the show focused on that, it would've been a hit.

The con planning/ avatars

Milo slipping into different characters, hairstyles, costumes and accents- this was a bigger step in comparison to Jack Pearson and this also includes Fran, Leo and Birdie (especially Birdie). So Nicolettis, you've entered the pop culture lexicon (at least for me).

The Nicolettis and the Hills and their respective family dynamics

This had an essence borrowed from This Is Us- it was refreshing two very different families, albeit cut from the same cloth (metaphorically)- a strong marital relationship between the parents (Leo-Fran, Joseph-Grace), supportive and honest older siblings (David and Birdie), and two younger siblings shaped by their respective families (Charlie and Emma).

Hates:

1. #Hilleti (as a relationship)

I have to admit that I wasn't too jazzed up with Charlie and Emma- sure, they were the perfect example of different on paper, but compatible as hell, but the moments between this couple was too little and too fast- episode 1 was fun, episode 2 was the whole "rebound" situation, episode 3 was Emma "fitting in" with the Nicolettis and having that honeymoon phase, episode 4 was Charlie being whammed with Emma's profession but still taking it in stride which shows the peak of his love and episode 5 was the whole "I Love You" debacle which reminded me so painfully of Dean and Rory's first I Love You and the cliffhanger of Charlie coming clean and ending it with an "I Love You too".

2. David and Jennifer

David and Jennifer felt like the epitome of a perfect "killer" (pun intended) relationship- if you take couples like Ella and Pete from Lucifer, Van Pelt and Craig from The Mentalist, David and Jennifer would join the roster.

3. The whole Claire Fox storyline

I'll admit that this was something that disappointed me; it would've been fun to see a more layered red herring than this - 'Nuff said.

4. #Hilleti (as a handler-asset relationship)

This was by far, the most disappointing in the back half of the season- Emma became more unlikable as in episode 6, was Emma starting to become unbearable with her branding the Nicolettis as common criminals and then blatantly telling Charlie that she doesn't like him in the ending, episode 7 was Emma having that double standard of being jealous when Charlie gets close to Daphne, and then pretending that what she and Charlie had was nothing (Last week, you said you loved me - Last week, you were a bartender); episode 8 was again another dose of backhanded comments from Emma that at the point, nothing she could do was redeemable in my eyes, sure bending her rules to release Leo was a great point but that was it, episode 9 was Emma again snidely referring to Charlie protecting Daphne and Charlie finally snapping, episode 10 was them getting (momentarily) together, and having a Varchie moment which made me rolling my eyes, and the ending was like forcing something down my throat- we all know Charlie and Emma will get together, if it had been subtle like Jack and Rebecca's ending in the first season of This is Us, then that would've been more interesting and leaving a little thread that maybe Charlie would be pursuing Daphne.

5. The Maguires

They made me uncomfortable - especially Connor. But the fact that they tied it in a neat ribbon with Patrick's death, made me disappointed.