The Russian mob stuff was ridiculous (I still don't know why the writers had to include strip clubs and mobsters - I maintain that the world of ballet is interesting enough without all that extra stuff) but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The Swan Lake scene on the yacht was mesmerizing.
So Claire's relationship with her brother was/is consensual? Why was she so upset with him when he came to see her in New York then? Was she just mad that he left her to go into the military?
The Russian mob stuff was ridiculous (I still don't know why the writers had to include strip clubs and mobsters - I maintain that the world of ballet is interesting enough without all that extra stuff) but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The Swan Lake scene on the yacht was mesmerizing.
I just finished the series, but I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. I guess it was okay. Definitely one of Starz' weaker outings, and it's definitely disappointing to see Moira Walley-Beckett stumble after coming red hot off of Breaking Bad.
Other thoughts:
The dancing scenes were great - it really added to the immersion to see all of the actors performing their own routines - but I feel like there weren't enough of them.
I thought this was going to be very "inside baseball", but instead it felt like a superficial exploration of the world of ballet - like something that I'd seen before elsewhere. A while back I saw one critic compare the show to NBC's Emmy Winning 'Smash', and I actually think that's a fair comparison as I feel like 'Smash' would have been very similar to this had it aired on Showtime as was originally planned.
I don't think I fully grasp the exact nature of Claire and Bryan's relationship. I'm guessing he was the reason her bedroom door had all those locks on it, because their father appeared to be too old and frail to get around by himself. So, did he initially rape her and then some time after her pregnancy she started to have feelings for him? Or was their relationship always consensual like it appeared to be in the latter episodes? If so, then what was up with the lock?
The strip club / Russian mob stuff felt unnecessary to me, even though it did pay off in the end with the mob boss saving the company with his last minute donations. Out of all the storylines, this one felt the most like a set up for future seasons.
Speaking of future seasons, the side characters pretty much all felt like afterthoughts due to the fact that many of their storylines didn't get to go much of anywhere. The inclusion of so many side characters makes it painfully clear that this was supposed to be a recurring series. Ross, Mia, and Trey definitely got the short end of the stick, but at least Kiira, Bryan, and Daphne got some sort of closure to their arcs.
