We’ve come to expect quite a bit from FX, the home of The Americans, American Horror Story and, most recently, Fargo. So when a so-far mediocre show like Tyrant comes along, we’re more disappointed than we would be if, say, the show had aired on USA. Despite its heavy subject matter, Tyrant often comes across as cartoonish and preposterous.
Bassam “Barry” Al-Fayeed (Adam Rayner) is a successful pediatrician living in California with his wife Molly (Jennifer Finnigan) and their two children, Sammy (Noah Silver) and Emma (Anne Winters). Twenty years after leaving his dictator father and his home in Abbudin behind, Barry returns for his nephew’s wedding. “Just promise me, we’ll come back,” he implores his wife. But, of course, if the family returned home to sunny California, there wouldn’t be a show, would there? We’re immediately stuck with a premise we’re forced to believe not because it makes sense but because it makes sense for the show.
That’s the first of many problems with Tyrant’s set-up. If you’re sitting there thinking, “Where exactly is Abbudin?,” you’ll never find it on a map, because it doesn’t exist. It’s a fictional country, and that allows the show to somewhat address the strife in the Middle East without having to actually address any real world events. It’s difficult to buy into the conflict of the show when, by definition, we know it’s not real.
Tyrant plays like a modern day twist on The Godfather with the “just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in” mentality. But Barry was out – for 20 years! – and it doesn’t quite seem realistic that his nephew’s wedding would be the thing that would make him return.
My biggest problem with the premise is the idea that Barry and Molly have lived their whole married life without discussing his childhood. I get him not telling his beloved that he executed a man to impress his father as a child, but wouldn’t he have told her more about the horrors his father perpetrated? Or, you know, couldn’t Molly and the kids use Wikipedia to find out exactly what had gone on in Abbudin and what a ruthless leader dear old grandpa is? Molly’s whole bewilderment at Barry’s reluctance to return home to his native land is ridiculous.
There’s been a lot of discussion about the fact that Rayner is a British actor and not at all Middle Eastern. And it is a missed opportunity that the show did not cast a Middle Eastern actor in this pivotal role. But Rayner’s performance is strong, even if it is difficult to have sympathy for someone who could have solved a lot of problems just by telling his wife the truth.
Barry’s brother Jamal (Ashraf Barhom) is a man so disgusting and ruthless that he rapes his own daughter-in-law. He’s currently a one-note villain and not at all interesting. And, despite his car crash, Jamal will be back, because Barhom is listed as a series regular.
Justin Kirk (Weeds) and Jordana Spiro (My Boys) briefly popped up as an envoy to the American embassy and his languid lady friend. Kirk is great at playing smarmy characters, so I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of John Tucker.
The pilot ends with Barry telling his wife, “I told you we shouldn’t have come!” as military officials stop the plane. The second episode will have to give a compelling reason for Barry to stay in Abbudin with his family or the show will become, “I told you we shouldn’t have watched.”
Other thoughts on the pilot episode:
• So Barry’s been gone for 20 years. He “ran away from his father when he was 16” and he had Molly have been married for 19 years. So they got married when Barry was 17? Something about the math isn’t quite working.
• Sammy is so annoying. I just don’t think a teenager would be so enthralled by the wealth of his father’s family that he wouldn’t know what was really going on in Abbudin. Aren’t teens more savvy these days?
What did you think of the series premiere of Tyrant? Talk about it below!
Amy Amatangelo is a Boston-based freelance writer, a member of the Television Critics Association and a regular contributor to Paste. You can follow her on Twitter or her blog.