I hate gimmicky TV viewing experiences. Example – the Black Mirror “choose your own adventure” episode that had like, 1 billion different outcomes depending on which options you selected while viewing the show – just no. Just show me the best storyline and ending? Is that so hard? As such I’ve watched every single episode of Black Mirror except that one. No thank you!

Another beloved show of mine – The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (legend status show) – fell victim to a similar gimmick (Netflix is the common denominator here so I blame them), where they released a “special” episode after the series finale which I very much was excited for, until I found out it was another CYOA. So I’ve never watched the “final” episode of one of my all time favorite shows and honestly I’m not happy with Netflix for doing this to me (I’m sure they care immensely.)

So, here we are with yet another Netflix gimmick. Except the gimmick with Kaleidoscope requires less work and hence why I am actually watching it. Instead of making you choose how the show progresses, you can choose to watch the episodes in any order. Netflix has randomly shuffled the episodes for each Netflix account so you can just go with what they give you or choose your own order. Each episode is titled after a color (Kaleidoscope – get it???), and the only rule is that the White episode is meant to be watched last no matter what.

Since I refuse to believe there is no superior watch order I immediately googled “best order to watch Kaleidoscope.” Most reviewers recommend chronological order of events, but I found one review who was a bit more nuanced and laid out the best sequence even though it is slightly non-chronological. I appreciate their attention to detail and lack of laziness so I’m going with them (because I am lazy). Which means I will be watching in the following order: Yellow, Violet, Orange, Green, Blue, Red, Pink, White. Coincidentally, my random Netflix shuffle is already starting me on Yellow so this feels like a win. But also I’m already exhausted with the process that it took just to get to this point. Ugh.

The show is about a multi-billion dollar heist that supposedly is loosely based on the true story of billions of dollars in bonds that were stolen from a bank shortly after 9/11. No matter what episode you start with, you will quickly discover who the major players are, and that clearly there are a lot of complicated backstories and interpersonal relationships going on, as well as (unknown) events that have happened in the past and will happen in future. This is annoying but also creates a lot of tension and suspense that carries the show through the frustrating elements of not knowing what’s going on.

By the end it all comes together, everything is explained, all mysteries solved, including the biggest mystery of all – what happens the day of the heist. I place a high value on a show having everything wrapped up with a neat bow by the end, so this garners major points.

My final takeaway – it’s a generally good and fast paced interesting heist drama. Is it the best heist drama ever? No. It desperately wants to be a darker version of Oceans 11 but just lacks the charisma of the cast and plot. But Giancarlo Esposito, Tati Gabrielle (from You) and Paz Vega do a decent job of carrying the show right through its tragic end. (This is not a spoiler because its entirely possible for your first episode to be the one that is set 6 months after the heist which makes it clear something went VERY wrong. Uncovering what went wrong, and why, is the best part of the show.)

Kaleidoscope is a decent binge for a boring Saturday, but if you want a truly excellent heist drama, watch Money Heist (Netflix) instead.

6/10

(Netflix)