Summary
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Emperor of Ocean Park
chronicles a mix of conspiracy thriller and family drama set among the backdrop of politics and courts in modern America. - Stellar performances by Forest Whitaker and rising star Grantham Coleman keep the show moving despite complicated time jumps and plot twists.
- The series should’ve had more star power to balance out Forest Whitaker and tighter writing. It’s also a messy show, but it keeps you invested.
With so many historical dramas and fantasy series releasing these days, you’d be forgiven for mistaking the new MGM+ series, Emperor of Ocean Park, as one of them, but don’t let the title fool you. Created by Sherman Payne (Shameless, Legacies), this new show takes you through modern-day America, and it only flashes us as far back as the 1990s. So fret not, this is no fantasy effort, like the countless other genre projects out there these days. This is a conspiracy thriller grounded in the common issues America has faced for decades.
The series is based on the acclaimed novel of the same name by Stephen L. Carter. The term “emperor” is used loosely in reference to the Ocean Park community within Oak Bluffs, a summer colony on the esteemed island of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts (where Jaws was shot). Until the 1960s, Oak Bluffs was the only town on Martha’s Vineyard that welcomed Black tourists, and parts of Payne’s new series takes place on the island. But the often disjointed series jumps around from place to place and decade to decade, weaving together a complicated tale of corruption, political greed, broken families, and more.
The end result feels a bit muddled and derivative of other legal thrillers and procedurals already in existence. However, the direction and performances, especially by Forest Whitaker and Grantham Coleman, keep things gripping.
(Celebrity) Families Are Messy
3/5
Talcott Garland, an Ivy League law professor, finds his life turned upside down after the sudden death of his father, Judge Oliver Garland. As his sister Mariah, a former journalist and conspiracy theorist, questions the circumstances, Talcott is drawn into a web of political intrigue and family secrets, spanning academia and the elite circles of Martha’s Vineyard.
Release Date July 14, 2024
Seasons 1
Streaming Service(s) MGM+
Directors David Marconi
Showrunner Sherman Payne
Pros
- Forest Whitaker and Grantham Coleman are excellent.
- The series serves up some binge-worthy political twists, conspiracy thrills, and cliffhangers.
Cons
- The show gets messier as too many possibilities and subplots emerge.
- Emperor of Ocean Park could’ve used more star power and less derivative writing.
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All eyes will be on Whitaker, as per usual, but the man really leading the charge here is rising star Grantham Coleman. He recently collaborated with director Damian Marcano on Lawmen: Bass Reeves just last year for Paramount+. Now, they’re back in action on a different streamer, with Marcano directing several key episodes of Emperor of Ocean Park. Whitaker plays fictional Judge Oliver Garland, and Coleman plays his law professor son, Talcott. Tal suffers from perpetually living in his father’s shadow like his two other siblings: struggling journalist turned housewife Mariah (Tiffany Mack) and charming talk show host, Addison (Henry Simmons).
Once their dad turns up dead, however, with foul play suspected, Mariah wants to dust off her investigative journalist chops and get back in the game — even if that means pulling it all off without the knowledge of her overbearing husband, Howard (How to Make It in America star Bryan Greenberg). Easier said than done, especially when you’re in Washington D.C., brushing shoulders with political bigwigs who once worked with Mariah’s esteemed father, a highbrow judge who at one point was quite close to becoming a Supreme Court justice, which ultimately didn’t pan out.
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The Charming Grantham Coleman Leads the Way
Coleman’s Talcott has his own dicey marriage to maintain, and it doesn’t help that his rocky romance with wife Kimmer (Paulina Lule) all began with a bit of infidelity on their own part. At first, Talcott is suspicious of Kimmer sneaking around with other men, just as she did with the guy before him. As sister Mariah unearths additional conspiracy theories surrounding their dad’s death that seem to drive their broken and estranged family mad, Talcott begins trying to link Kimmer’s shady antics to a bigger plot at work. But is it all in his head? Coleman delivers a layered and committed leading turn that helps keep the otherwise overburdened Ocean Park story afloat.
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Then there are a couple of scene-stealing guest stars that keep things spicy every now and then, while we’re on the topic of Talcott. Among this Black family is an elderly white man known as “Uncle Jack” (Torrey Hanson), who keeps showing up at inopportune times to ask Tal about “the arrangements” following his dad’s passing. Talcott is utterly confused as to what exactly the arrangements are, and on top of that, he keeps catching glimpses of a charming young woman named Maxine (Jasmine Batchelor) he once met when he was on the bachelor scene. Why do these familiar faces keep showing up?
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Emperor of Ocean Park Feels Too Much Like a Book
The frequent time leaps between present day, 2007, the 2010s, and the late ‘90s might feel like overkill for some, especially as we’re trying to keep up with the handful of twisty developments surrounding the Judge’s untimely demise. But the lower-thirds keep us on track, with smooth post-production to make it all feel relatively seamless. It’s a bit jarring at first, especially with the principal actors looking virtually the same despite the time lapses, but as long as you’re not distracted, you should be okay.
The Emperor of Ocean Park is based on a hit novel, and besides the rare action and fight sequences, a lot of this feels like it could just be an radio drama or podcast of sorts. There are so many scenes of expository dialogue that it often feels like an audiobook of Carter’s writing, with more ‘tell’ than ‘show’ to it.
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It also doesn’t help that Whitaker’s star power almost creates a figurative island around the Oscar winner, separating his scenes from the show. Perhaps Emperor of Ocean Park could have benefited from at least one other A-lister to help sort of level the playing field. Don’t try to tell us MGM doesn’t have the cash to make these kinds of moves happen!
Nevertheless, that’s not to say the rest of the cast doesn’t give it their all, with a decently rich blend of smarts, heart, bickering, and more. Coleman is especially excellent. The cliffhangers aplenty make clear that this will become a binge-worthy show if you stick through the first episode or two, and it ends with enough questions that you’ll probably want a second season. Considering the amount of ethical problems with courts in this country (especially the Supreme Court), there’s certainly a lot more the show could explore.
Emperor of Ocean Park premieres July 14 on MGM+ at 10:00pm ET, with new episodes airing on Sundays until September 15. Watch it through the link below:
Watch The Emperor of Ocean Park
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