Warning: Spoilers Ahead

The year started off with a new Netflix original, Kaleidoscope. The show revolves around a group of seven adults, many with a criminal past.

The main character, Ray Vernon, played by Giancarlo Esposito,  leads the operation. As the leader he gathers the rest of the crew with whom each have their own personal skills to complete the heist. 

Their main objective is money, specifically $7 billion. At the same time, money slowly pulls them apart.

The order of the episodes is customized for each viewer. The series kicked off with an intro episode titled “Black”, and from there the order of the episodes were customizable. Each episode is titled a different color (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Violet, Pink and White). The last episode that is watched must be “White,” as it is the day of the heist connecting all the prior confusions together.

I watched the order from “Yellow,” “Violet,” “Orange,” “Green,” “Blue,” “Red,” “Pink,” to “White.”

I went in with high hopes after hearing so much talk about it on social media. I was expecting it to be more fun to decide the storyline, but it did not add anything to the experience. Luckily, I picked “Yellow” as my first episode which was a perfect way to start because it introduced the characters and their background. 

Next came “Violet” which introduced the background history of Roger Salas, the owner of the bank they will be stealing from, and Ray. Ray’s personal vendetta and the motive behind the heist was revealed. 

Red and Pink are based on the days after the heist. Since the resolution was revealed before the climax, it left me making many assumptions about what happened. There were no celebrations nor money among the group so I knew the heist had gone south. 

I liked watching it while making predictions about what could happen.One of the underdog teammates, RJ, played by Jordan Mendoza, was missing so I suspected he had not stolen the money. Instead, he got killed rather underwhelmingly. 

The “White” episode concludes the series with the climax of the story: the day of the heist. It’s your classic heist ending with elements of betrayal between teammates and unanswered questions being answered, all while the clock is running. 

Many of the characters had no substance. Ray lacked the precision and cunning personality needed to be a leader. 

Although, it was intriguing to see how his past weaved with other characters. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to make them likable.  

As I finished the show all I could think about was how watching this show was a big waste of time.

The ending’s plot twist was underwhelming with Ray Veron’s daughter playing the hero and saving her father from leading a life of crime. I expected there to be a more “full-circle” ending with all the members splitting the money, but instead many teammates were killed. 

I would rate it a 6.5/10 because I liked the attempted creativity, but it failed to capture my attention due to the lack of plot