Diamond Braxton

By: Diamond Braxton

When I heard that Jason Bateman was acting in a new Netflix original titled “Ozark”, I had to know what the show was about. Because of my obsession with Bateman in Arrested Development, I’ll basically give any show/movie with him in it a try. 

However in “Ozark”, Marty, Bateman’s character, is the exact opposite of what we see of him in Arrested Development. Marty is wrapped up in the money laundering business while also being the father of two children. Things go south when Marty’s business partners end up stealing money from the Mexican drug lord they work for named Del. When Del finds out $8 million was stolen from him, Del kills Marty’s partners in an instant. He then moves to put a bullet in Marty’s head too, however, Marty manages to talk his way out of death by promising Del $500 million dollars in 3 years. This was enough to make Del put the gun down, but that didn’t loosen the grip he had on Marty in the slightest. In “Ozark”, Bateman is the one bringing his family down rather than in Arrested Development when he was trying to save his family from their ridiculous spending habits and his father’s illegal activities. 

Now Marty has to move to Ozark to put his plan into action. He tells his wife everything, and they begin to put the plan into action. As truthful as Marty is, the same cannot be said for his wife Wendy. The show actually starts off with a video being sent to Marty’s email while he’s at work, and although the email says not to open it at work he does it anyways. To his surprise, a video of his wife having sex with another man pops up on his computer screen. Not only does Marty have to cough up millions of dollars, but he is also faced with an unfaithful wife after 22 years of marriage.

By the end of the episode, you’ll be wondering how they managed to squeeze so much into 50 minutes because it goes by so fast. Ozark reminds me of Breaking Bad in the most basic sense of plot elements, however, I mean this in the best of ways. If you loved Breaking Bad, then I suggest watching Ozark. If you love Jason Bateman and want to see him show off his acting skills, then I suggest watching Ozark. If you just need a new show to watch, then I suggest watching Ozark. Since the show starts off way too strong, this has to be the next crime/action show on your watch list. 

Need more convincing? Watch the trailer here: