What is the “Heels” series worth, immersed in the world of amateur wrestling starring Stephen Amell (“Arrow”) and Ludwig Alexander (“Vikings”)?
What is it about ?
In a tight-knit community in Georgia, a family professional wrestling association pits two rival brothers against each other over the legacy of their late father. If in the ring a good guy, the “main character”, is put on the scene facing his nemesis, the “secondary character”, in the real world, it can be difficult to rise to the level of these characters – or to leave them behind.
Heels, a series created by Michael Waldron with Stephen Amell and Alexander Ludwig – Broadcast on Starzplay
The hottest show of all the shows!
Definitely, the wrestling series are on the rise! After Young Rock (unpublished in France), the series devoted to the childhood of Dwayne Johnson and his relationship with his father Rocky Johnson, a former glory of the WWF (the former name of the WWE), it is in a register more dramatic than happens to us Heels, the new Starzplay production.
As explained in an opening card for the pilot, the world of wrestling is divided into two types of characters: the Baby Faces, ie the good guys; and the Heels, name given to scoundrels willing to do anything to win, including cheating. In Heels, things are nevertheless more nuanced, since there is in the series neither nice nor bad, each of the characters being at the same time a “Baby Face” and a “Heel”.
The series follows the story of two brothers, Jack (Stephen amell) and Ace Spade (Alexander Ludwig), son of a wrestling legend in a small town in the depths of Georgia. Rivals in the ring, the brothers are even more so in life, while the youngest tries to free himself from the influence of his elder, now at the head of the family firm: the Duffy Wrestling League.
Starz
A series that sends us “over the third string”?
Heels was created by Michael waldron, probably the hottest screenwriter in Hollywood today; also creator of the Marvel Loki series, he also signed the script for the film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (at the cinema on March 23). It is also because of his status as a bankable author that the latter could not himself perform the functions of showrunner on Heels : the supervision of the series has been entrusted to Mike O’Malley (Shameless).
The main quality of the series is its casting: passed from the universe of the Vikings to that of the wrestlers, Alexander Ludwig delivers an excellent performance in the role of the younger Ace, ready to do anything to steal the show from his brother Jack, camped by a Stephen Amell more than convincing, especially in the wrestling scenes (remember that the latter participated in several WWE matches in 2015).
If it is obviously aimed at wrestling fans (expect a lot of winks, and even a few cameos …), Heels remains widely accessible to viewers who would like to discover the workings of this codified universe. In short, a great summer success, which already gives hope that season 2 can see the light of day.
