The core characters of "RIde" are the McMurrays, a Wyoming family descended from generations of rodeo performers. The strong matriarch of the family is Isabel who is the glue that holds the family, ranch and all the other characters together. She has three sons: The two oldest, Austin and Cash are bull riders and the Tuff, the youngest is a "bull fighter" who distracts the bulls after the riders are thrown. Without divulging a spoiler, there is also a young woman, Missy, who lives on the ranch and is treated as part of the family; Missy is a former beauty queen who performs as an expert trick horse rider. There is a mysterious young woman, Valeria, who is also like part of the family; her relationship to them is not at first explained but becomes clear in subsequent episodes.. All of the other characters in the series are secondary; some protagonists and some "villains".
Although I hadn't planned on it, I ended up binge-watching all ten episodes in Season 1 of "Ride". I had originally given the series a low rating for much the same reason that many others here seemed to have, but with one important difference: I stuck with it through the complicated first couple of episodes which barrage the viewer with a whole lot of characters, situations and drama all at once (in fact, initially I was thinking that THIS is the show that should be called "Everything, Everywhere, All At Once). Yet by the time I had finished binging all the episodes I had changed my rating to a solid nine. When I initially watched the first episode, I kept checking to see if I had missed an episode because of the way the story jumped right into the middle of what seemed to be so many confusing storylines, characters and plot points. BUT... by the time I had finished watching the 10th episode I was completely hooked. It was well worth it to stick with it, because by the end of the first season all is explained and everything makes sense. As the story goes on, there is more and more action and the characters became more and more empathetic, and by the end all the loose storylines are neatly tied up and explained.
The storyline gets more dramatic and there is more conflict and more action as "villains" are introduced who are working against the protagonist core family.
I am an avid reader, and I could compare this first season of "Ride" to successful novels. As with all good stories, there is a beginning and a middle that builds to a climax and a denoument that wraps everything up.
On a final note, if anyone is looking for a shoot-em-up, action-packed Western, you will be sorely disappointed and will probably give "Ride" a low rating because it did not meet your expectations. After all, this is a Hallmark Channel original, and like all Hallmark productions it's all about the characters, the situations and the drama. For those whose expectations lie within the Hallmark genre, you will be very satisfied with "Ride".
I really hope that we see more of the. McMurrays in a. Season Two. But if not, the writers did a fantastic job of tying up all the loose ends in Season One so no one is left hanging.
Although I hadn't planned on it, I ended up binge-watching all ten episodes in Season 1 of "Ride". I had originally given the series a low rating for much the same reason that many others here seemed to have, but with one important difference: I stuck with it through the complicated first couple of episodes which barrage the viewer with a whole lot of characters, situations and drama all at once (in fact, initially I was thinking that THIS is the show that should be called "Everything, Everywhere, All At Once). Yet by the time I had finished binging all the episodes I had changed my rating to a solid nine. When I initially watched the first episode, I kept checking to see if I had missed an episode because of the way the story jumped right into the middle of what seemed to be so many confusing storylines, characters and plot points. BUT... by the time I had finished watching the 10th episode I was completely hooked. It was well worth it to stick with it, because by the end of the first season all is explained and everything makes sense. As the story goes on, there is more and more action and the characters became more and more empathetic, and by the end all the loose storylines are neatly tied up and explained.
The storyline gets more dramatic and there is more conflict and more action as "villains" are introduced who are working against the protagonist core family.
I am an avid reader, and I could compare this first season of "Ride" to successful novels. As with all good stories, there is a beginning and a middle that builds to a climax and a denoument that wraps everything up.
On a final note, if anyone is looking for a shoot-em-up, action-packed Western, you will be sorely disappointed and will probably give "Ride" a low rating because it did not meet your expectations. After all, this is a Hallmark Channel original, and like all Hallmark productions it's all about the characters, the situations and the drama. For those whose expectations lie within the Hallmark genre, you will be very satisfied with "Ride".
I really hope that we see more of the. McMurrays in a. Season Two. But if not, the writers did a fantastic job of tying up all the loose ends in Season One so no one is left hanging.