Nearly four decades after sharing the screen in “Tequila Sunrise,” Michelle Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell are enjoying a Montana sunset on Taylor Sheridan’s new Paramount+ drama series “The Madison,” now streaming with its first-three episodes.
A considerable departure from the types of stories we’re used to seeing from Sheridan, “The Madison” stars Pfeiffer as Stacy Clyburn, a well-meaning Manhattan socialite who rushes to Montana upon learning that her husband Preston (Russell) has died in a plane crash during a fishing trip with his brother (Matthew Fox). The Clyburns’ world is understandably shattered, and the show’s purposefully slow pacing allows us to sit with the family members as they navigate every stage of the grieving process.
As is often the case with stories about death, regret is a major theme on “The Madison,” as each family member reevaluates the time they spent with the Clyburns’ late patriarch. For Stacy, it’s the devastating realization that Montana — specifically the Madison River, where Preston’s brother lived in peaceful isolation — was her husband’s personal slice of heaven, as revealed in heartbreaking journal entries he kept over the years. All he wanted was for Stacy and the kids to join him in paradise, to understand his enduring love for the Western landscape, but the lack of indoor plumbing at Paul’s cabin kept Stacy from ever entertaining the notion.
Even as the finality of death looms heavily over Stacy’s every move, she finds herself growing closer to Preston through reading his journals, finally meeting a man she never fully knew and falling deeper in love with each turn of the page. One of the more remarkable aspects of “The Madison” is the tangible relationship formed between Stacy and Preston, despite Pfeiffer and Russell only sharing the screen in a handful of flashbacks (and even most of those flashbacks involve long-distance phone calls from Preston’s previous trips to Montana).
The longer Stacy remains in Montana, the dreamier her experiences become, a concept reinforced by the show’s visceral direction. Christina Alexandra Voros takes full advantage of the natural landscape, representing Preston’s heaven in all its splendor. Every golden ray of sunshine and gentle ripple of the water draws viewers deeper into his world — a stark contrast to the show’s cold, unfeeling portrayal of Manhattan.
Is The Madison worth watching?
Despite sharing a creator and boasting similar visual aesthetics, “The Madison” has no connection to “Yellowstone.” Characters on “The Madison” are more likely to lecture someone about gun safety than actually fire one, and the only so-called villain on this show is death itself, an enemy they must learn to live with rather than defeat.
But “The Madison,” while consistently heavy, isn’t all doom and gloom. The show is peppered with much-needed moments of levity, most of which come courtesy of Stacy’s entitled daughter Paige (Elle Chapman) and dopey son-in-law Russell (Patrick J. Adams), a pair of tried-and-true city mice who don’t exactly acclimate to life out west as seamlessly as Stacy. The same can be said for Stacy’s wry New York bestie Liliana (Rebecca Spence), the kind of friend everyone wishes they had in their corner during times of crisis, someone who would wade into a river just to comfort you — Chanel outfit be damned.
There’s also a romantic subplot that unfolds in the second half of the season involving Stacy’s eldest daughter Abigail (Beau Garrett). Emotionally damaged by a tumultuous divorce, Abigail strikes up an unexpected relationship with a kindly sheriff named Van (Ben Schnetzer). Their right-place-right-time courtship reads very Hallmark on paper, but we must tip our hats to Garrett and Schnetzer, who had us fully invested by the end of the six-episode season.
Yes, “The Madison” is largely a show about death, but it’s also a show about hope and resilience and all of life’s beauty that we take for granted every day. Much like the grieving process, the show cycles through painful moments that completely tear you down, followed by hopeful moments that slowly build you back up.
THE TVLINE BOTTOM LINE: Those seeking a fast-paced Western akin to Taylor Sheridan’s previous offerings might prefer to fly over “The Madison,” but those willing to wade through the show’s slow-moving waters will come out the other side with few regrets — and an even deeper appreciation for Michelle Pfeiffer.
The first three episodes of “The Madison” Season 1 are now streaming, with the back half set to drop on Saturday, March 21. Have you checked it out yet? Grade it in our poll below, then drop a comment with your own review.