Review of Running Point Season 1

If you’re new here, and stumbled upon this blog through the mythical powers of the Internet, welcome! I know a lot of visitors to my website are people who randomly come upon this website through search engines like Google, but I also do have a lot of visitors who come back. Regardless: my name is Ashley, and I started this blog in order to keep track of everything I’m coming across in the world.

About a year ago (at the time of typing this) I quit my job as a professional film critic to explore what was out there in the world when it came to publishing about the movies and books I wanted to see, not just what was popular in the moment. Digital media and working within it can be fun and all, but it can be grinding when you’re just chasing after all the latest trends and clicks for SEO.

I started this blog four years ago, during the pandemic, but never really took it seriously beyond the occasional post here and there about what I was up to. In 2023 I began to realize the impact this blog was having on me, and other people were reaching out about reading it, so I expanded. Once I quit my job, I decided to focus on the blog more while job hunting, as I do make a few pennies here and there from the display ads on the screen.

Television has been something I’m really catching up on during this period, as television shows require quite a bit more commitment than a movie for me. You can’t also really take a break from them somewhere in the middle of a season, as then you’ll completely lose interest or forget the entire plot. When I do that I try not to review those shows, as my review is a bit more unreliable.

I wasn’t originally planning to watch Running Point on Netflix, but then I saw a clip on Instagram of a traditional Korean scene and that’s what convinced me to watch it. I remember exactly when it came out because I kept getting fed ads for it, then it appeared on my Netflix recommendations. But I was stubborn and knew I had other things I wanted to watch first, so I procrastinated hard.

Let’s get into the review! I know I have a tendency to ramble, so I’m going to cut it off now before I get fully into that mode.

The antics behind managing a professional basketball team, with a dash of drama in the coordinator’s personal life.

Our main character in this show is Isla Gordon, who, once upon a time, was a party girl. She’s now changed her ways, but after years of being ignored by her father and brothers, she decides she’s going to step into the family business. Her father is the former owner of a pro basketball team in Los Angeles, and her brothers are the ones who help run it.

Isla steps into the role of coordinator for charity activities, which starts the chaos of this series. She expects to not have as much tension and chaos in her role at first though, but when her brother Cam, who’s suffering from drug problems, decides to step down as the president, he makes the decision that Isla is going to be the next president.

This is completely out of nowhere for so many people, and throughout the course of the series we’re going to see how Isla struggles in this new role. She doesn’t always struggle though—there’s character growth to show where she’s always been kind of a leader, even though no one ever let her have the opportunity to be just that. From new sponsorship ideas to figuring out who or what needs to be replaced, the world is now her oyster.

She’s going to have to make big decisions while in this new role, and sometimes they’re going to be difficult ones as well. It doesn’t help when she has her own problems in her personal life, and a chunk of the series focuses on her world outside of the realm of sports. We also get to learn more about her brothers and their problems, which lends some comedic and serious moments throughout the first season.

There’s also another very random variable that shows up: Jackie Moreno, who works at a concession stand at the games, learns that he’s actually Jack’s son. He’s definitely an illegitimate son, but he only found because after his mother tragically passes away, the truth was revealed to him.

The family does learn about Jackie’s existence in episode 2, which throws in a completely new set of plot points involving him in the family business. He’s no longer just a concession boy, as Isla hires him as her new assistant, but it’s a completely different world on the other side of the court.

Overall Thoughts

This was an interesting first season, although I don’t know if I’ll continue watching this show in future seasons. I was entertained while watching it, I will say that, but when I was getting to around episode six it started feeling more repetitive and tedious to watch for me. It had a comfortable rhythm that I wanted broken up, which didn’t happen.

For me, I thought Isla was the most interesting character, but I just didn’t vibe with this show when I was watching it. The comedy elements were fairly effective throughout, and they worked well with the story and what was happening on screen. I did laugh a little bit when watching this!

I think this is a lighthearted show and a great way to unwind on a weekend after a long work week. You don’t have to think too hard when watching these kinds of shows, but that’s usually not what I go for in a show, hence probably why I have some apprehension about this season.

We’ll see if I watch season two! Maybe a blog post will appear in the near future when it comes out. I think if you’re interested in this show and haven’t watched it already you should give it a chance.

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