X
- 2023
- 13+
- Prime Video
- 2023
- 13+
- Prime Video
Summary Magnus MacMillan (Iain Glen) and his crew on an oil rig off the coast of Scotland are ready to return home when they suddenly find themselves enveloped by fog and find communication to the outside world cut off in this thriller created by David Macpherson.
Created By: David Macpherson
- 2023
- 13+
- Prime Video
- 2023
- 13+
- Prime Video
The Rig
Season 1 Premiere: Jan 5, 2023
69
5.5
Where to Watch
Summary Magnus MacMillan (Iain Glen) and his crew on an oil rig off the coast of Scotland are ready to return home when they suddenly find themselves enveloped by fog and find communication to the outside world cut off in this thriller created by David Macpherson.
Created By: David Macpherson
Where to Watch
All Seasons
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 7 Critic Reviews
69
57% Positive
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
43% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 7 Critic Reviews
69
57% Positive
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
43% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Questions such as, "Isn’t this a bit silly?" and, "What was writer David Macpherson on when he picked up his pen?" do linger in the wings, but the direction is terrific, the editing superb and the performances top notch.
This is middling in the grand scheme, but if you enjoy this particular genre (iso-horror?) there are plenty of worse ways to spend your time. The casting is excellent (superficially, the plethora of Scottish accents alone are worth the price of admission for me), John Strickland (Line of Duty, Big Love) does exactly what he needs to do as director, and there’s real suspense and real agony within the narrative.
While there isn’t a ton of character development as The Rig starts, the acting is excellent, and it makes the tension that’s building on the Kinloch Bravo feel palpable.
Macpherson doesn't reinvent the sci-horror wheel, save for a bit of eco-horror philosophizing here and there. But the show is effective in a nuts-and-bolts thriller way, with a cast of game Scotsmen (and a few others) grimly solving problems ranging from mutinies to prophecies to apocalyptic mechanical disasters.
If it had been squashed into 90 minutes, The Rig might work. But spread over nearly six hours, it feels slack and at times, a bit naff.
It’s a modern take on an old narrative form, and if there’s nothing as earthshaking dramatically speaking as whatever the Big Bad is managing as it comes for our crew, the need to know what’s what – including Glen’s Secret Sorrow and the role Mark Addy, who has yet to turn up unless I’ve failed to spot him under all the safety gear, is going to play – and the faith that it won’t all descend into a Lost-style debacle will keep you going until the end.
This is still highly watchable fare with some strong performances and atmosphere, it's just not quite as propulsive or as innovative as one might have hoped. Maybe the final three will come along and put those criticisms to rest. If not, and this remains comparable to a somewhat overstretched Doctor Who story writ large - well, there's nothing wrong with that either.
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 35 User Ratings
5.5
46% Positive
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
29% Mixed
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
26% Negative
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 35 User Ratings
5.5
46% Positive
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
29% Mixed
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
26% Negative
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Production Company:
- Wild Mercury Productions
Initial Release Date: Jan 5, 2023
Number of seasons: 2 Seasons
Rating: 13+
