Kristen Wiig is a marvelously talented comedian who can probably do drama just as well; there seem to be no limits to her talent. There are, however, innumerable limits to this particular show -- most of all, the show hasn't any idea what it is. Sometimes it's a drama, sometimes a comedy, sometimes it's sad, sometimes it's surreal, sometimes it's lifelike. There are shows that can pull off this multiple identity issue but unfortunately this one doesn't come close. It doesn't do any of them well.
In fact, Palm Royale doesn't even seem like a show. What it is is a collection of sketches about the lead character. There's no through line, however. Just sketches. The characters all seem to have been told nothing about their last appearance; the show feels as if it was shot in random order. Nothing makes sense. Wiig is supposed to be a climber (literally, as in the first scene) but then it's later revealed that she's possibly the heiress to the most important person in Palm Beach (played by Carol Burnett, who manages to make a comatose patient funny). Sometimes she seems flush with money, but then she's broke. Then rich. Then broke. And if she really thinks she's going to inherit a fortune any moment, why make herself a fool in from of the people she most wants to impress instead of waiting a bit longer? The show is rife with problems like this.
Also, Palm Royale is set around 1969 but the characters all talk like it's 2024 -- they use slang that didn't exist then (especially the currently ever present "like," which didn't appear for many decades to come). Worse, the amazingly talented Laura Dern is playing a feminist who doesn't seem to grasp what feminism is; in fact, all the chatter among the feminist group is far too modern. No one on the show seems to have done any research into what women at the time actually were saying or doing -- there are silly anachronisms throughout, such as the women's bookstore being called Our Bodies, Our Shelves, a riff on the Our Bodies, Our Selves group that started later in 1969, and didn't become well known until well after the famous book was published in 1970. Or, people saying "Thank you for your service," a phrase that wasn't popular until decades later. A carefully thought-out show like Madmen would never have made such a mistake.
The show is just too sloppy and incoherent to really work, which is truly a shame as the amount of talent in the cast is phenomenal. But unless the writers can start telling a coherent story, this is a sad muddle of a mess with just a few funny moments.
In fact, Palm Royale doesn't even seem like a show. What it is is a collection of sketches about the lead character. There's no through line, however. Just sketches. The characters all seem to have been told nothing about their last appearance; the show feels as if it was shot in random order. Nothing makes sense. Wiig is supposed to be a climber (literally, as in the first scene) but then it's later revealed that she's possibly the heiress to the most important person in Palm Beach (played by Carol Burnett, who manages to make a comatose patient funny). Sometimes she seems flush with money, but then she's broke. Then rich. Then broke. And if she really thinks she's going to inherit a fortune any moment, why make herself a fool in from of the people she most wants to impress instead of waiting a bit longer? The show is rife with problems like this.
Also, Palm Royale is set around 1969 but the characters all talk like it's 2024 -- they use slang that didn't exist then (especially the currently ever present "like," which didn't appear for many decades to come). Worse, the amazingly talented Laura Dern is playing a feminist who doesn't seem to grasp what feminism is; in fact, all the chatter among the feminist group is far too modern. No one on the show seems to have done any research into what women at the time actually were saying or doing -- there are silly anachronisms throughout, such as the women's bookstore being called Our Bodies, Our Shelves, a riff on the Our Bodies, Our Selves group that started later in 1969, and didn't become well known until well after the famous book was published in 1970. Or, people saying "Thank you for your service," a phrase that wasn't popular until decades later. A carefully thought-out show like Madmen would never have made such a mistake.
The show is just too sloppy and incoherent to really work, which is truly a shame as the amount of talent in the cast is phenomenal. But unless the writers can start telling a coherent story, this is a sad muddle of a mess with just a few funny moments.