Hap and Leonard Series Review

Hap and Leonard (2016-2018)
Season 1 - 6 episodes (2016)
Season 2 - 6 episodes (2017)
Season 3 - 6 episodes (2018)

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Created by: Nick Damici, Jim Mickle
Starring: James Purefoy, Michael Kenneth Williams, Tiffany Mack, Cranston Johnson, Jimmi Simpson, Christina Hendricks, Pollyanna McIntosh, Brian Dennehy
Rated: TV-MA
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Plot
Set in the late 1980's Hap and Leonard is a darkly comic swamp noir of two best friends, one femme fatale, a crew of washed up revolutionaries, a pair of murderous psycho killers, some lost loot, and the fuzz.

Verdict
While season one was great, I enjoyed each successive season less. I'd recommend season one, but not the other two. This starts as a buddy adventure, but the next two seasons were more mystery than adventure. The characters are great, and that's what held me through the series.
Watch it (at least the first season).

Review
Being set in the '80s this piqued my interest from the start. I hoped season one would be a self contained adventure and it is. Stories happening across multiple seasons have a tendency to drag. With this show each season is self contained.

James Purefoy and Omar K. Williams play Hap and Leonard.

Hap and Leonard are a great duo. They're best friends. The actors along with the dialog do a great job. They are what carry this show. The show is set in the '80s, and with season one the characters are steeped in '60s nostalgia. Hap and Leonard get roped into searching for money lost after a bank robbery years ago. Of course nothing is that easy.  Of the trials they face, Jimmi Simpson plays a wild villain. He's calm yet very violent and unpredictable.

With only six episodes, this season doesn't have any filler, though there is a flashback strung across the season that goes on a few scenes too long. There's also a fake out in the last episode that's predictable and annoying.

I didn't enjoy seasons two and three as much. This became less fun adventure and more detective mystery with the guys thwarting the racist cops. The seasons were more comedic and the dream sequences felt out of place. Adventures suit the show more than mysteries.

In season two Leonard is suspected of a murder just because of his skin color. Season three has the duo going into an all out racist town. I wanted seasons two and three to be these hapless guys falling into trouble. Season three I liked less than two. It jumps around chronologically too much. There's too much fighting and not enough direction

I really enjoyed season one. If it wasn't for the chemistry between Hap and Leonard I wouldn't have made it through season two.