HBO's Luck Premieres, Viewers Worried About Accessibility

HBO premiered their brand new series Luck tonight, starring Dustin Hoffman, Nick Nolte, and Kevin Dunn as well as an all around ensemble cast. Fans have been waiting for the official premiere of the show since a preview was released last month. You can read our review of the first episode here. The show previewed with mostly positive mixed reviews. One of the biggest complaints was about the complexity of the subject matter: the world of horse racing. The show features a lot of insider knowledge about the track, and the gamblers that religiously follow it. Luck focuses on horse racing and the underbelly of the gambling world. It features jockeys, owners, stable workers and just plain old misfit gamblers. It was this last category that many viewers found were the hardest to follow speaking quickly in a cryptic language about "bug boys" and a "pick six" (I'm guessing it has to do with a selection of six, but I could be off). In response to this criticism, David Milch, the shows creator, told the Hollywood Reporter "I did my best to try and make it accessible, to provide surrogates for the audience who weren't familiar with the world so the audience would have a representative within the show." For my part, I watched the first episode (and reviewed it). I also know absolutely zip about the horse track beyond my vague knowledge of what the Kentucky Derby is. But the show doesn't necessarily hinge on the intricate details of coded track jargon, it is pushed forward by the collision of personalities that occurs throughout the episode. If anything, the show's confusion may be due to it's plethora of characters (with very good performances behind them) that are hard to follow. Still, it's impossible to gauge from the very episode and with a little luck (sorry guys, pun totally not intended) they will slowly