Review: BALLERS Ep. 1 Series Premiere
Tonight was the season premiere of the new HBO show, Ballers. It goes behind the scenes to show the life of professional athletes. It follows Spencer Strasmore (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) as a retired NFL Super Bowl winner-turned financial advisor. Spencer must worry about his own financial situation, while keeping his friends out of trouble and his boss (Rob Corddry) off his back.
What I Liked
One thing Entourage always got right was the musical score. So far, Ballers is following in those footsteps. The intro music was a great choice. I forget which Drake song they used, but it was upbeat and immediately got me bobbing my head to the beat as football highlights played on screen.
Johnson as the lead character is something we’ve become more familiar with over the years, as his star power has risen in Hollywood. His acting acumen is on display next to guest star athletes like Steven Jackson and DeSean Jackson. Johnson plays Spencer Strasmore as level headed and calm among the swirling chaos that follows a pro athlete. We got groupies looking to hook up with a star, family and friends draining the player’s pockets, and fans instigating fights.
One thing that stuck with me were the one-liners. Some of the gems were “Monetize your friendships”, “Of course his life is hard. His name is JaMarcus”, and “Fuck Twitter”.
What I Didn’t Like
One criticism of Ballers early on is it lacks some of the comedy that Entourage was famous for. While I’ll agree the pilot was light on funny moments, that doesn’t mean it was a straight drama. The jokes were more subtle, and mostly came from the supporting characters.
Going forward, I would like to see more of Rob Corddry’s character. We know he plays Johnson’s boss, but more explanation of how they started working together would be useful. Plus, Corddry is an excellent actor when it comes to playing slightly sleazy characters.
Timdogg
#ComicBookChronicles @CBChron founder. Editor-in-Chief of @thekliqnation. Comic book reviewer, podcaster #RABBLERABBLE
