Review: Kaleidoscope
February 14, 2023
On January 1st of 2023, a unique TV show, “Kaleidoscope,” was released exclusively on Netflix. Throughout eight total episodes, each with the name of a different color, the viewer slowly pieces together information about a major heist. The series follows a group of criminals led by Leo Pap, who plans this heist on a bank owned by his old foe, Roger Salas.
What’s so unique about “Kaleidoscope” is that the episodes can be watched in any order, with the exception of White, which must be watched last. Netflix automatically randomizes the order you see them, but if you’d like, you can still watch them in your chosen order (as long as White still comes last, of course). Each episode occurs during a different time period, slowly giving the viewer access to different pieces of the puzzle.
This is each of the episodes in chronological order:
Black – 1-minute teaser
Violet – 24 years before the heist
Green – 7 years before the heist
Yellow – 6 weeks before the heist
Orange – 3 weeks before the heist
Blue – 5 days before the heist
White – the heist itself
Red – the morning after the heist
Pink – 6 months after the heist
The order I got was Green, Yellow, Blue, Violet, Orange, Red, Pink, and finally, White. Personally, I enjoyed this show and found the unique format quite enthralling. However, some critics seem to disagree. In a review, “Netflix’s ‘Kaleidoscope’ Invites You to Scramble Its Storyline: TV Review,” Daniel D’Addario, chief TV critic for Variety states, “The show’s attempts to convey the texture of these characters’ relationships in quick ways that wouldn’t jar viewers who’d already been spending time with them didn’t consistently land, and the stakes seemed at once huge — the players were in the midst of a web of crime and confusing loyalties — and nonexistent.” Other reviews provided various other critiques and plenty of commentaries. Despite this, I think that the show was quite engaging and worth a watch.
D’Addario, Daniel. “Netflix’s ‘Kaleidoscope’ Invites You to Scramble Its Storyline: TV Review.” Variety, Variety, 22 Dec. 2022, https://variety.com/2023/tv/reviews/kaleidoscope-giancarlo-esposito-review-1235467409/.
