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Claws | Florida-noir dramedy ft. treacherous manicurists | Sundays on TNT

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus


'Claws' is a midnight-dark, wickedly funny meditation on female badness set in a South Florida nail salon. It follows the rise of five diverse, strange, and treacherous manicurists working at the Nail Artisan of Manatee County salon, where there is a lot more going on than silk wraps and pedicures. 'Claws' is about good women caught in bad places with worse men. It's the story of hardworking women trying to get by in this economy, set against the surreal, bright, gritty landscape of Florida and the luscious, absurd, extreme excesses of the crime world.

The series was created by Eliot Laurence (Welcome to Me) and the pilot was directed by Nicole Kassell (The Leftovers, Rectify). Janine Sherman Barrois (ER) serves as showrunner.

The 10 episode first season will premiere on Sunday, June 11 at 9/8c.


Cast



  • At the center is salon owner Desna, who lives with and cares for her mentally ill twin brother, Dean.
  • Jennifer is Desna's best friend and a tenuously sober ex-party girl raising two children from previous relationships.
  • Virginia is bored and impatient with her job, and makes no effort to hide it.

  • Polly, a mild-mannered preppy who recently served time in prison for identity theft.
  • Quiet Ann, Desna's enigmatic driver who also provides security for the salon.
  • Adding chaos to the Nail Artisan mix is Roller, a gangstered-out redneck who runs a barely legal pain clinic and uses Desna's nail salon to launder their obscene profits.



Other cast members include:

  • Harold Perrineau as Dean, Desna's mentally ill twin brother.
  • Dean Norris as Uncle Daddy, a dangerous Dixie Mafia crime boss who is deeply Catholic and actively bisexual.
  • Kevin Rankin as Bryce, Jennifer's husband who is also newly sober and trying to stay legit by working as an abundance coach.
  • Jason Antoon as Dr. Ken Brickman, a bona fide doctor at a decidedly un-bona fide drug clinic.


Videos


Official Trailer


Promo Photos

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Reviews

Variety said:
There is something uniquely and pervasively raw about Floridian life — whether that is the alarming number of strip clubs per capita, the unrelentingly hot sun, or the population's odd obsession with alligators. ”Claws" gloms onto the landscape with surprising ease, riffing on Florida's self-conscious trashiness (”WE SELL BIG SHRIMPS," reads a sign outside the salon) and its gloriously unlikely cultural mashups. For its unique details alone, it's thrilling.

The Hollywood Reporter said:
If you wanted to see a TV series adaptation of Harmony Korine's film Spring Breakers set in the world of nail salons, then TNT's Claws comes close.

Newsday said:
Despite this setting and these tropes and especially despite Nash and the rest of the good supporting cast, Claws doesn't work. The brush strokes are way too broad, the tone too slapdash.

New Orleans Times-Picayune said:
There is sex. There is violence. There is strong language.

But along with all that, there's also a dark vein of humor and, more importantly, an unflagging sense of urgency and suspense to keep things moving.

"Claws" is good television, at least at first blush. TNT has sent over only three of the first season's 10 episodes for review so far, but I can't wait to sink my claws into the other seven.


L+SD Ratings

Episode 1 - 1.2 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating
Episode 2 - 1.2 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating
Episode 3 - 1.1 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating
Episode 4 - 1.2 million and a 0.5 18-49 rating
Episode 5 - 1.2 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating
Episode 6 - 1.3 million and a 0.5 18-49 rating
Episode 7 - 1.3 million and a 0.5 18-49 rating
Episode 8 - 1.6 million and a 0.6 18-49 rating
Episode 9 - 1.3 million and a 0.5 18-49 rating
Episode 10 - 1.6 million and a 0.6 18-49 rating
 

G0523

Member
I just read about this on TV Line and Vulture. It seems interesting and I like Niecy Nash from when she was on HBO's Getting On. I'm just not that sure what to make of it really. I might give this a shot.
 
accounting
would have stayed on to do the whole season but we already had something scheduled

i hung out in the art dept all the time, so much fun trashy Florida stuff
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
‘Claws’: TNT Drama To Stream On Twitter After Sunday’s Cable Premiere

The premiere episode of TNT’s drama Claws will stream on Twitter following its June 11 launch, TNT has announced, calling it the platform’s first streaming of a basic cable drama.

The Twitter presentation will immediately follow the one-hour debut.

Viewers also will be able to watch the opening episode through tntdrama.com, TNT On Demand and the TNT mobile app.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
The Daily Beast said:
What you bask in while watching Claws is the world that’s been created, and the women who populate it. It’s a world maybe you don’t quite understand but is so meticulously crafted that it doesn’t become hick tourism, but instead a heightened version of an already colorful reality.

Yahoo TV said:
I liked Claws’s sun-baked Florida setting, and the way the cameras capture the difference between the inside warmth of the nail salon versus the harsh ugliness of store-front life outside. And Nash is really excellent, rendering Desna in all her tough, vulnerable, shrewd complexity. The writing of the show needs to become as complex as that character.

Vulture said:
Tonally, it’s a little bit Orange Is the New Black and a tad Breaking Bad, dressed up in clothes a Real Housewife might wear if she were strapped for cash.

Perhaps the best thing about the show, aside from its excellent cast, is its insistence on revealing the humanity and nuance in flawed female characters struggling on society’s lower economic rungs. The worst things about it? A tendency to succumb to crime drama clichés and engage in tonal change-ups that sometimes make it difficult to know whether to laugh at Claws, laugh with it, or not laugh at all.

Still, there’s a twist at the end of the third episode, the last one made available to critics, that, along with the fine performances and the welcome focus on female solidarity, will keep me coming back to this series, at least for a few more episodes. The polish on Claws has some noticeable chips in it. But I don’t want to remove it, not just yet.

.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
The series premiere is tonight!

Tirana

Desna (Niecy Nash) gets entangled in a money-laundering scheme in the series premiere of this dark comedy centering on five hardworking yet treacherous manicurists at a Florida nail salon.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
I thought that was a lot of fun. Love the cast, the humor, the setting - can't wait to see how things develop from here.

Also, I did not expect them to go as far as they did, content wise. It's actually probably the most graphically sexual show I've seen on basic cable (FX included!). TNT pushing boundaries.
 
The Hollywood Reporter
"If you wanted to see a TV series adaptation of Harmony Korine's film Spring Breakers set in the world of nail salons, then TNT's Claws comes close."

Hmm I love Spring Breakers, might have to check this out if I got the time. Thanks, Ratsky!
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
New episode tonight!

Funerary

Desna and Virginia prepare a cover story to tell the ladies following an entanglement with Roller. Also, Desna's dream salon is falling apart, and Virginia goes missing but returns with a concocted tale that sends Desna on an unforeseen journey.
 

element

Member
So far so good. I like where they are going all the cast is solid. I hope more people watch.
Also, I did not expect them to go as far as they did, content wise. It's actually probably the most graphically sexual show I've seen on basic cable (FX included!). TNT pushing boundaries.
For TNT this is insane. Nothing will come close to what FX did with Nip/Tuck!
 
Watched the first two episodes. Pretty great. There's some things in this show where I can't tell if it's supposed to be serious, and it just makes me laugh because of how goofy it comes off. Also, the whole funeral part was hilarious.
 

otake

Doesn't know that "You" is used in both the singular and plural
It's set in South Florida and the cast is 99% non-latino..... Are we sure this isn't supposed to be set in north florida?

Doesn't really matter but it kind of sticks out...


disclaimer - i live in north florida but visit Miami often.
 

Xyrmellon

Member
It's set in South Florida and the cast is 99% non-latino..... Are we sure this isn't supposed to be set in north florida?

Doesn't really matter but it kind of sticks out...


disclaimer - i live in north florida but visit Miami often.

Manatee county--which only makes me think "white trash".
 

TripOpt55

Member
I gave this a go since Ratsky mentioned it in the Summer TV thread. Definitely a fun TV show so far. It has such an eclectic group of unique characters. Quite a cast to bring them to life too. And the funeral was just incredible. Every new detail was just cracking me up from the parade to the quote from Arnold to the Hasta La Vista banner. Hysterical.
 

Aiii

So not worth it
Goddamn that funeral.

Dean Norris is a gem. Not that that is news, but still, he is ridiculously funny.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
New episode tonight!

Quicksand

Virginia's lies deepen as Desna tries to cover their tracks. Meanwhile, Desna is determined to get her dream salon, and Desna and Bryce are in danger of Uncle Daddy's wrath when something goes awry at the clinic.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
This show is so wonderfully offbeat. I love it!

(and of course the robbery was just a ploy by Uncle Daddy to get everyone working for him indefinitely)
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
New episode tonight!

Fallout

Desna is haunted by recent events with Roller, which motivates her to try to spring from Uncle Daddy's control. Also, Bryce falls deeper into the Dixie Mafia; Polly reconnects with her former gold-digging friend; and Quiet Ann gets into a lady-mess.
 

tribal24

Banned
yass didn't know this was getting a thread. The amount of nudity in this like you guys mentioned up there is crazy for basic cable. This show is so fun and different
 

TripOpt55

Member
This has such a colorful cast of characters. Can't think of anything I watch quite like it. Another good episode this week. At least a couple times an episode they surprise me with some line of dialogue or a scene. Seems unexpected for a TNT show though I guess I don't watch much on there these days!
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
New episode tonight!

Bats**t

Bryce wrongly accuses Dr. Ken of a crime, and Desna and Jennifer may be Dr. Ken's only hope. Also: Dean sees a disturbing billboard ad, leaving Desna to deal with the fallout; Virginia and Desna must go to Polly for help when Desna's past haunts her.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
(to his kidnapper)

"Please don't do this! My cousin is a huge exporter of carpets - I can get you one wholesale!"

lol

EDIT: That was a really fun episode!

I lost it at the dance number. This show is too much lol.

The dance sequence was so good!
 

TripOpt55

Member
This was my favorite episode yet. So many great sequences. Bryce chasing Ken. The part with the billboard. Polly sneaking in to plant the evidence. And then the part where it jumped between the murders and the dance sequence. And then the ending is there to throw another wrench in things.
 
Fuck, man. Latest episode is some heavy shit with the foster parents.

This show has been really great so far. Glad to see it's been renewed.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
New episode tonight!

Self-Portrait

The ladies go to their fancy new salon for the first time, but they aren't met with the kindness of strangers. Also, the women decide to compete in a nail-design battle; Virginia seeks life's finer things; and Jennifer discovers an agonizing secret.
 

TripOpt55

Member
Another great episode. I really root for the girls. Seeing them win the contest was awesome and it is a bummer when Desna and Jenn aren't getting along. This is perhaps the TV surprise of the year for me so far. Sort of like Search Party last year or Mr. Robot the year before (though I don't like it as much as I did those).
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
A pube statue crafted by a faux British swamp woman who is keeping a half dead hunk chained to the bed (in nothing but a pair of black briefs) for use as her sex slave?! This show is fucking i.n.s.a.n.e!
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
New episode tonight!

Escape

The aftermath of a nail competition finds Desna having hope that she can escape Uncle Daddy's grasp. Also, Jennifer struggles knowing Desna's dark secret; Polly discovers her maternal instincts; and Dean may have found his first spark of romantic love.
Watchlist I’ll Watch57 Watching
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
lol @ Uncle Daddy doing lines off a turtle's belly.

That was a good episode, as usual. I was surprised that Uncle Daddy let Desna off the hook. We'll see how long that lasts...
 
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