TV Review: All’s Fair – Season 1

As an avid fanatic for all things Ryan Murphy, even the cast announcement for his buzzy new series, All’s Fair, left me salivating for yet another iconic pairing of star power and bitchy dialogue. While the 9-1-1 franchise proved Ryan Murphy Productions could tackle a good procedural, how would that work in the context of a team of divorce lawyers? Hatched as a dream package in the wake of Kim Kardashian’s surprisingly great turn as the villainous Siobhan in American Horror Story: Delicate, All’s Fair surrounds the media mogul with top tier talent and hilariously soapy excess. The cast alone promises riveting performances, and with Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz, and Joe Baken penning the scripts, each actress gets their respective time in the spotlight. This outrageously fun nine-episode addition to the fall is overflowing with ridiculousness—and may be your next TV obsession.

A decade ago, three women—Allura (Kardashian), Liberty (Naomi Watts), and Emerald (Niecy Nash-Betts)—broke away from their old mentor, Dina (Glenn Close), to start their own practice from scratch. Their sour rival, the fiendish Carrington (Sarah Paulson), has never forgiven them for leaving her behind. In the fast-paced pilot, we get a glimpse of these women both in the past and the present as they ring in the firm’s ten year anniversary. Now celebrated for defending women wronged by powerful men, the trio run their firm with a mix of precision and flair.

When Allura’s husband, Chase (Matthew Noszka), insists that he wants a divorce, the professional turns devastatingly personal. Emerald and Liberty rally around their friend, vowing to get revenge in the only way they can. The fact that it takes so little time for one of the leads to become embroiled in a case of their own adds a surprising charge to their dynamic. It also breaks from a case-of-the-week by giving a larger overarching battle the center stage. Who better to represent Chase than Allura’s ex-coworker, Carr? The setup primes Paulson for one of her juiciest roles to date. In just this first stretch of episodes, she has already branded Allura a “discarded cum rag,” a “cunt burger,” and insisted that she will eat up embryos with a side of A1 Steak Sauce.

Each woman in the firm has her own unique set of strengths that boldly define them. Sure, they are all rich and privileged in their own ways, but between the first three episodes, these sharp scripts provide unexpected texture. Allura acts as the emotional center of the trio and co-founder of the firm. Beneath her polished exterior lies vulnerability, especially when her seemingly perfect relationship implodes. Kardashian again surprises as a dramatic actress, given her previous image. That she holds her own at all between the rest of these mega-stars speaks to that aura she brings to the character. Naomi Watts plays Liberty, the sharp-tongued realist unafraid to speak her mind. The compelling angle of her character deals with her embracing the chance for love whilst attempting to juggle her career in the process. Then there’s Emerald, the firm’s cybersecurity and research guru. Though I fondly miss Nash-Betts’s work in last year’s underrated Grotesquerie (where is season 2?), she leans into the quippy nature of Emerald in this entirely different type of role. Emerald’s devotion to her kids and her work makes her an emotional grounding force. Even Dina (Close) receives a compelling backstory as she grapples with her husband’s terminal illness whilst joining the firm alongside the ladies in the second episode. The rest of the supporting cast is quite good as well, even if Noszka’s Chase remains the sole bit of male eye candy thus far amongst the lineup.

Allura, Liberty, and Emerald form the heart of All’s Fair—three women bonded by ambition and friendship. They toast with their “victory fizz,” deliver scathing one-liners, and support one another through professional triumphs and personal wreckage. Murphy’s exploration of their dynamic rarely falls into the traps that plague procedural dramas, carving All’s Fair a unique identity all its own. Ironically, the series DNA feels most closely tied to FX’s flagship, Nip/Tuck. While that legendary show mostly focused on a male perspective and featured garish surgeries and splashy violence, All’s Fair is almost the polar opposite. The strong female characters assess a unique case each week, doing whatever they can to shift the power in favor of the victim. Every line, extravagant outfit, and poppy close-up oozes with style. Depending on the game plan, this could be an ongoing series for many years if it strikes the right pop culture cords. It probably helps that the cast chemistry is off the charts, peppered with Murphyverse alums. Drenched in color and sharpened by biting humor, All’s Fair is a decadent delight proving beyond a doubt that Kardashian and Murphy make a potent combination.

The first three episodes of All’s Fair are streaming now on Hulu and Disney+.