(Image credit: Apple TV)
Tom's Guide Verdict: "Lucky" episodes 1-2Rating: 2/5 StarsVerdict: "Lucky" promises a crime thriller centered on Anya Taylor-Joy's titular character. But its two-episode premiere is often a trope-laden copy of better crime thrillers. Worst of all, it fails to engage the viewer, though the climax of episode 2 offers some promise.Premiere date/time: Episodes 1-2 streaming nowStreaming service/channel: Streaming on Apple TV"Lucky" felt like an easy win for Apple TV. It's a crime thriller miniseries starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Annette Bening, and Timothy Olyphant. As evidenced by the 2026 Emmy nominations, Apple has done more with less. I was eager to see how this tense thriller would play out.Unfortunately, a little under two hours later, I turned off the TV, underwhelmed and uninterested in watching more. While it has a promising premise, this series feels like one crime thriller trope after another. Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor's Agent Billie Rand is almost criminally uninspired. It brings nothing new to the archetype of a "hardass" cop that has a score to settle.In this case, the score to settle is with Priscilla Matheson (Annette Bening). Though upon further prodding from Rand's boss, it seems the FBI agent really wants to take down Wayne Whittaker (William Fitchner).Through the nearly 100 minutes we watch between the two episodes in this series premiere, Whittaker is perhaps the only intriguing character we're introduced to. We only get a brief scene with him, but he seems to have an evil within him that the others in this show don't possess. Which is saying something, given that even our protagonist, the titular Lucky (Taylor-Joy), is a con woman who stole millions of dollars and kills a man with a screwdriver in the first episode. There are no good guys here, and only a few good characters.Malcolm has been with Tom's Guide since 2022. He watches dozens of shows a year, so you don't have to watch any of the bad ones.Spoilers ahead for "Lucky" series premiere (episodes 1-2)
