- Network: NBC
- Series Premiere Date: Jan 7, 2013
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Critic Reviews
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On first blush, Deception is smart, stylish and involving. In time, it could drift. But, for now, enjoy the kind of storytelling that gives its core cast something interesting--and watchable--to do.
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Deception borrows a lot from that show and others, ending up more fun than challenging.
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For now, the Bowers and Joanna provide enough mystery to maintain our interest, but we're left wondering whether the show's compelling start is actually taking us somewhere, or if instead this, too, is only a deception.
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If you are looking for some upscale junk-food--beautifully packaged, nicely performed, delectably plotted, but shot through with hot air and likely to make you queasy by the time you reach the end of the bag--look no further than NBC's soap-mystery Deception, which starts tonight, and is, at least for now, scrumptious.
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Deception scores a point or two higher than the estimable "Revenge" in some regards. The atmosphere is darker, the story less outlandish, if only slightly, and Ms. Good's heroine boasts an attractively firm moral center.
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Been here/seen this--a lot--but familiarity could work in favor of Deception.
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Deception isn't like super-soapy "Scandal" or over-the-top "Revenge" (which has gone seriously downhill this season) in that both the story telling and the acting seem more realistic.
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It's a promising setup, but Deception doesn't allow us the dirty pleasure of enjoying the awful Bowers. [14 Jan 2013, p.56]
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Long-arc storylines usually need some immediate or fresh hook. Deception doesn't have that, instead reshuffling familiar pieces into a new puzzle.
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Viewed charitably, the series isn't bad as a sort-of "Dallas" knockoff, though it's worth noting TNT's rebooted "Dallas" covers similar territory in a more satisfying manner.
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Some of this is diverting or at least laughable enough to play along.
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The cast is good enough and the premise strong enough to carry it. Right now, though, Deception is a show that doesn't know what it is.
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It lacks momentum and nerve, and it's sitting on a wellspring of meaning that it's too polite to tap.
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Vivian's secrets are predictable. Judging from the first two episodes, Joanna is not much of a sleuth. Scene set-ups go nowhere. Minor characters are brought in, disposed of, and the show bumps along to another complication.
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While the show makes almost no sense, it is pretty to look at. And it does have a few good actors in its mix, even if they're not particularly well served by the scripts.
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Deception falls prey to the exhaustive method of too-much-storytelling, adding layer upon layer of mini-mysteries and twists until the weary viewer needs a detailed map to keep track--or turns off the show entirely.
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The writers, for their part, certainly inspire confidence when it comes to the sturdiness of their vehicle, and that's no small feat. It's the intervals between the intrigue, however, that feel regrettably squandered, and the characters' rare moments alone reveal little more than the actors' lack of direction.
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Even the actors seem grudging as they play their predictable parts. They never succeed in creating a sense of ensemble, enabling us to feel how these characters have known one another for decades.
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Judging by the first two hours, Deception is not as seductive as "Revenge" and contains even more clunky acting and just as much melodramatic music.
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Deception, in trying for something more "real" and not quite getting there, feels fake. There is little chemistry between the people who are supposed to have it.
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As long as the network realizes it's deceiving no one if it pretends Deception is anything but what it is: far-fetched, formulaic and maybe a little late to the party.
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If your taste runs to old formulas slickly employed, Deception will hold your interest. If you prefer innovation, it probably won't.
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The pacing is sluggish, the twists telegraphed and rarely shocking, turning this whodunit into a "who cares?" Deception gets NBC's midseason off to a dreary start.
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So far Deception feels like one long TV crime drama where everyone takes turns standing under a cloud of suspicion.
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The writing (Heldens and Peter Elkoff) is atrocious, the direction (Peter Horton and Jonas Pate) slow and flabby, and the performances run the gamut from sad to just adequate, but even proven actors like Garber couldn't make us care about any of this.
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Deception just seems sloppily constructed and poorly written, wasting some good actors (Victor Garber, Tate Donovan and Meagan Good) in the process and never giving you a reason to care.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 14 out of 31
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Mixed: 8 out of 31
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Negative: 9 out of 31
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Jun 24, 2014
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Apr 15, 2013
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Jan 31, 2013