With the fall weather taking a turn and heading quickly for winter, I thought it would be fun to go back and re-visit one of my favorite dramatic television series of all-time, “Bloodline” — which is set in sunshine of the Florida Keys.
“Bloodline” first premiered on Netflix back in 2015, although I didn’t watch it back then. It took me a few years and it was one of the first shows I began binging at the start of the pandemic.
The show has three seasons, and each one is more interesting as the plot thickens. At the start of the show, we hear the voice of John Rayburn (Kyle Chandler). He says: “Sometimes you know something’s coming. You feel it. In the air. In your gut. And you don’t sleep at night. The voice in your head is telling you that something is going to go terribly wrong and there’s nothing you can do to stop it. That’s how I felt when my brother came home.”
Intrigued? Good — you should be.
The show begins with Danny Rayburn (Ben Mendelsohn) returning home to Islamorada, Florida, for the 45th anniversary of his parents’ — Robert (Sam Shepard) and Sally Rayburn (Sissy Spacek) — seaside hotel, the Rayburn House. There, a pier is going to be dedicated in their honor to mark the occasion.
But things go sideways pretty quickly.
It becomes very clear in the first episode that Danny is the black sheep in the Rayburn family. In addition to John, he has a couple of younger siblings, Kevin (Norbert Leo Butz) and Meg (Linda Cardellini), who have their own issues. Kevin is an alcoholic and Meg is engaged to police officer Marco (Enrique Murciano) but has a wandering eye.
With Danny in town, the bad blood begins to flow. Both Kevin and Meg want Danny out of town as soon as possible, while John is more sympathetic.
If you are like me, you will chew through the three seasons of “Bloodline” pretty quickly. There are many, many plot twists and turns. Each episode has a cliffhanger of sorts. It’s hard to know what’s next. Like many shows of this era, bad things happen, but you are rooting for those involved. John is the county sheriff, but he is forced into some pretty awful situations — mostly by his family.
The acting is out of this world. Chandler (“Friday Night Lights”) is absolutely outstanding as John. He neglects his own career, health and well-being to protect his family. Mendelsohn does an amazing job of playing scumbag Danny. He gets unconditional love from his mother, but still finds ways to get under the skin of the rest of his family. What can you say about Spacek and Shepard? They are two of Hollywood’s finest in the twilight of their careers, but they shine nonetheless.
The supporting cast — Butz, Cardellini and Murciano — do an excellent job as well.
“Bloodline” is definitely in my top five when it comes to television dramas. “Breaking Bad” is my absolute favorite and “Bloodline” doesn’t touch it, but it will definitely keep you engaged from start to finish.
“Bloodline” starts slow. However, once the plot thickens, the show becomes binge-worthy. There are a series of flashbacks to the family as teenagers and it becomes very clear that Danny was involved in some way, shape or form with a tragic event. If you start the show, stick with the first two or three episodes. You won’t regret it.
Since “Bloodline” is a television show, it is unrated. However, it would be rated R for adult language, adult situations, drug use, violence and sexual situations. It is available only on Netflix.
Chris Morelli is the managing editor of The Centre County Gazette.
