Fictional Band Brought to Life: A Review of the Daisy Jones and The Six Show
By: Mallory Johnson
Author Taylor Jenkins Reid’s bestselling novel Daisy Jones and The Six was just adapted into a television show of the same name by Prime Video, and I loved it! The story follows a fictional band in the 1970s, (modeled after Fleetwood Mac), their rise to fame, and the eventual breakup of the band. The show follows Riley Keough (American Honey, It Comes at Night), Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games franchise, Adrift), Camilla Morrone (Death Wish, Never Goin Back), Suki Waterhouse (The Broken Hearts Gallery, Seance), Will Harrison (Madam Secretary), Josh Whitehouse (Valley Girl, Alleycats), Sebastian Chacon (Emergency, Pose), and more. Before I go any further, SPOILER ALERT. Also, major trigger warnings for addiction (to drugs and alcohol), drug use, an overdose, and cheating. Minor trigger warnings for child abandonment, toxic relationships, sexual violence (implied, off-screen), pedophilia, death, loss, grief, an abortion (off screen, discussed and implied), and sexual content.
I am a huge fan of the book this show is based on, so I went into the show with very high expectations - and the show very much exceeded them! I have read the book twice and unfortunately don’t remember much of it. My favourite part of the book getting adapted is that they made the music that the band made in the book! There are some song lyrics at the back of the book and the creators of the show changed quite a lot, but it makes sense since Taylor Jenkins Reid is an author, not a songwriter. The music is phenomenal and addicting to listen to.
Sam Claflin as Billy Dunne and Riley Keough as Daisy Jones truly steal the show in every single scene. They have phenomenal chemistry that I loved, which is necessary for their roles. Sam is an iconic actor who is most well-known from his performances in many book-to-movie adaptations like The Hunger Games and Me Before You. He played a very complex and hard to love character very well, making you feel bad for him, be angry at him, and love him at the same time. Riley is the granddaughter of the icon Elvis, which is very cool. Shockingly, though, this was her first time singing! Both her and Sam, the two fronts of the band, were the only ones who had no musical experience prior to the show. The band members went through extensive band camp and rehearsals to ensure they were prepared, and you can tell for sure. One aspect that I loved about the show was that they further humanized a lot of characters, giving side characters more screen time, allowing them to be more fleshed out and human. For example, the character Simone gets her own love story in the show that I am pretty sure she didn’t have in the book. There are many scenes that are hard to watch in the show, but the tough subject matter is handled very well.
I was shocked in the first and last episodes when they used direct quotes from the book. I watched the first episode with a friend and was saying something and interrupted myself when I realized they were leading up to my favourite quote from the book! I was saying that an actor looked familiar and then said, “OH I know EXACTLY what she’s about to say!!” and then sure enough, she said it!
Overall, the show was very well done. The characters felt real, and the costuming was fantastic. The show only has one season with 10 episodes as of now, and I am torn if I want a second season yet or not. They told the full story of the book in season one, and I’m not sure what they would do in season two. The soundtrack was amazing, and I loved how they featured Fleetwood Mac music too. I give the show a perfect 10/10 and cannot wait to see what’s coming next! I look forward to re-reading the book and re-watching the show after this summer!