The Right Stuff (1×01, 1×02) Sierra Hotel & Goodies Early Review

Is this National Geographic scripted series moved to Disney+ the right stuff? It all depends on the audience.

Synopsis: A new government agency called NASA hand selects hundreds of military test pilots until a mere seven are named the Mercury Astronauts; The press descends upon the domestic lives of the astronauts. Shepard and Gordo wilt under the limelight while Glenn thrives. Glenn secures a deal with Life Magazine that grants exclusive access to all seven astronauts in return for life-altering compensation. By the time the astronauts arrive in Florida to begin work, even Shepard has come to understand the power they now hold. (Disney)

There have been countless film and television adaptations, fictional or non-fictional, about the space race so all that backstory is more or less already out there. The Right Stuff is yet another addition to that discourse but does it do enough to set itself apart from the rest? That answer, at least so far, is not yet but that’s not to say that it can’t happen. The series essentially lives or dies based on the personalities of these characters and the drama surrounding them on their way towards the inevitable conclusion of ending up in space. Of course this series takes some liberties with its inspiration in order to tell its story, also based on Tom Wolfe’s book, The Right Stuff. The main problem with the series through the first two episodes, Sierra Hotel and Goodies, is that the characters and their subplots were on the dull side while the dialog was on the corny side, resulting in something overly vanilla. That being said, the series still had some good going for it. One can’t help but to get Hidden Figures vibes from it at least in terms of its authenticity, however, the convoluted narrative along with the aforementioned problems don’t give us enough to root for.

Sierra Hotel was all about introducing viewers to the characters but the choice to start near the end of the journey with test pilots Alan Shepard (Jake McDorman) and John Glenn (Patrick J. Adams) in what was a how-we-got-here situation. The only point of this was to contrast these characters. While both were going into it for different reasons, Shepard seemingly still held a disdain for Glenn. It appears that the bulk of the series takes place during the 2 years prior to the Mercury Mission. Bob Gilruth (Patrick Fischler) and Chris Kraft (Eric Ladin) along with their young assistant Glynn Lunney (Jackson Pace) started the team for the Mercury Mission which would eventually become what is now known to be NASA.

In terms of the other pilots, the only one that truly mattered was Gordon Cooper (Colin O’Donoghue) who was also a troubled man that had recently lost his friend, another test pilot, in a tragic crash. Meanwhile, the contrast between Shepard and Glenn continued as the arrogant pilot wanted to be known for his skills but not his personal life compared to the veteran Glenn whose personality was more inviting and whose abilities spoke for themselves. Suffice it to say that the screening process put them through the ringer as 100+ candidates were whittled down to 32 and then 7. The physical testing was something but the bigger challenge was the mental testing. Some clearly handled it better than others as it was certainly an eye-opener for Shepard while Cooper’s attempts to keep up appearances publically were certainly a challenge. Both look to continue to be challenges over the remainder of the season.

Goodies saw the would be astronauts be faced with the pressures of being in the public eye and of course some handled it better than others. Glenn and his personality were certainly a lot more comfortable than Shepard which definitely frustrated him to say the least. Meanwhile. their families faced the same kind of pressure. Nevertheless, they more or less stayed the same in front of the cameras. This episode provided further insight into Cooper’s family and his troubled marriage to Trudy Cooper (Eloise Mumford) whose put her passions aside in favor of her husband. The prying only made him more nervous. Thankfully the Coopers had the Glenns to turn to, including his wife Annie (Nora Zehetner). Now as a result of some recent failings, the Mercury team turned to PR to attract more funding for their program. Since people were clearly not their strong suit, they enlisted the help of a man named Shorty Powers (Danny Strong) who paraded the pilots across the country. Suffice it to say that Powers’ methods did not make everyone comfortable.

Fortunately, Glenn found a solution to everyone’s problems by turning to a Hollywood agent who approached him and got a deal done with Life Magazine which afforded them a hefty sum of money and more control over the narrative about them. A move to Florida saw the boys being boys and having some fun while Cooper’s family continued to struggle in his absence.

In the end, assuming the characters’ personalities develop a little more, The Right Stuff could indeed be that but as it stands, it’s just The Okay Stuff.

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.