The Queen's Gambit has left me with a very weird question that I don't know that I can answer quite yet. Is Anya Taylor-Joy a good actor or is does she just posses a captivating appearance? There is something about her that is intriguing in everything she does but I still don't know that I've seen her do anything super impressive as far as acting goes. I think that may be representative of the series as a whole too. Is it good or is it just attention grabbing? It's very well shot and edited. It sure looks pretty and they managed to make chess entertaining enough but beyond that, this is a really by the numbers "sports" story. It does explore the plight of the savants, which is a different take on things but may also not be super relatable to the average person. "Boo hoo, I'm too good but also not quite good enough sometimes!" isn't exactly the most sympathetic of stances.

Still, this was an entertaining watch and despite how by the numbers it was I did find myself wanting to watch each episode. If nothing else, I give this credit for the magic trick it performs and the demonstration of how style can really make an impact on how a series or piece is perceived. It's worth checking out, I don't think it quite lives up to the hype but it's a very solid show.