If a movie or series needed an actress to play an unhinged soccer mom getting chased by bad guys and getting into all kinds of trouble, Tatiana Maslany should be right at the top of that list. Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is an over-the-top dark comedy thriller that has Tatiana, a recent divorcée trying to keep her life together while supporting her daughter, running all over Queens trying to piece together a murder mystery from an online targeted scam gone wrong. It’s just a mid series that’s short on comedy and filled with constant self-sabotage. In all honesty, this show at first seems to me to be more at home on Netflix rather than Apple TV. It just has that Netflix pacing and feel to the entire show.

It’s not that I don’t want to root for Paula but the show can make it difficult at times with her decision making. But again, it’s just a show. Her battling custody for her daughter throughout the entire show while throwing her life in danger at every turn during her free time between work and time with said daughter likely can put some viewers off. Even once she knew a bad guy has invaded her house while they were away, she treats it like nothing and sweeps it under the rug. Again, just a show. It’s those times that suggest maybe Paula is not in the best state to raise her daughter and that she should have lost that custody battle.

Rather than fleshing out some interesting villains, the show instead opts to go with the mysterious person or group pulling strings from behind the scenes at first. This is fine, as it makes me a bit more committed to the story at times, trying to see what will come of it in the end. However, when the bad guys chasing Paula get popped themselves out of nowhere, it can get a bit absurd. Like that mysterious lady assassin toward the end? It’s obvious that the majority of the characters in the show are flawed in some way or another, and I think that’s what makes it interesting at times. Maybe Rudy is the most innocent person of them all. I think I’ll watch season two when it comes along, as there is some fun to be had here. It will be exciting to see what no-good Mallory will be up to. Heck, she’s probably in on the scam, or at least part of the blackmailing of Paula regarding the incident in Portland.