Becoming The Muse

Lucky Miniseries Review

Lucky is a crime thriller television miniseries created by Jonathan Tropper for Apple TV. The show is loosely based on Marissa Stapley‘s 2021 novel of the same name. Lucky premiered on the 15th of July 2026.

The series follows Lucky a con artist caught in a multimillion-dollar heist that goes sideways and now must outrun their past, the FBI and a crime boss who wants their pound of flesh.

The Good

Lucky gets off to an intriguing start. A $10 million double-cross sets off a high-stakes game of cat and mouse packed with gunfights, car chases and tense grifts.

Anya Taylor-Joy delivers a gripping performance as the titular character, Lucky, a con artist raised into the only life her grifter father ever knew, whose survival has been anything but luck with an uncanny ability to read people… Luciana “Lucky” Armstrong is an enigmatic blend of resourcefulness, vulnerability, BS and badassery.

Timothy Olyphant is also having a great time as Lucky’s father, oozing laconic charm while escalating the chaos with self-assured cockiness. The father-daughter dynamic gives the show much of its emotional depth and provides a better understanding of Lucky’s choices and behaviour.

The supporting cast is also up to the task. Annette Bening plays Priscilla Masterson, a ruthless and dangerous crime boss, alongside her faithful right-hand man Dutch, played by Clifton Collins Jr., who handles anything that needs handling. Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor plays the world-weary FBI Agent Billie Rand, who is determined to bring down Priscilla, if it’s the last thing she does.

And one thing Lucky does particularly well besides the cat-and-mouse chases, is keep you guessing about who will actually make it to the end.

The Bad

The series leans heavily into crime-drama tropes, making some parts predictable. It does, however, redeem itself with a few surprising twists and a cavalier approach to its characters, anyone can get killed off, which can be frustrating when you’ve warmed to a character only for them to suddenly exit the stage permanently.

The writers’ idea of creating mystery also relies heavily on withholding information or keeping certain plot elements deliberately vague. Unfortunately, this sometimes creates something that feels more convoluted and implausible than genuinely mysterious.

There are sudden revelations that don’t necessarily justify all the subterfuge that preceded them. Consequently, the storyline occasionally feels stretched, and I couldn’t help wondering whether Lucky might have worked better as a feature-length crime thriller rather than a seven episode miniseries.

The Ugly

While the show likes to play in morally grey territory, the reality is that its central characters are, for the most part, bad people. That makes it difficult to wholeheartedly root for them to escape or get away with their crimes, as that seems to glamorise the grifter lifestyle and that you can con your way through life and the law…

And you may eventually find yourself rolling your eyes at the sheer frequency with which Lucky manages to slip through the fingers of both federal agents and seasoned mobsters, she’s so Lucky…

The show does, however, make an effort to demonstrate that some of its characters are battling their own moral failings and, in their warped way, trying to make the best of the cards they were dealt. But understanding someone’s circumstances doesn’t necessarily give them a free pass for their villainy.

If you live by the gun…

Final Thoughts

Lucky has a good premise, a solid cast, morally complex protagonists and an expensive-looking production. It has all the ingredients for a hit crime thriller, provided you are willing to suspend disbelief, overlook the clichés and forgive a few plot holes.

Have you watched Lucky? Does it sound like something you would watch?