I bought this for my wife for Christmas and we began watching it shortly thereafter. Initially I was discouraged with it because the first episodes are terrible. But my wife persisted and after six to eight episodes it began to get considerably better. Within ten episodes we were enjoying it a great deal. I think it was because the first episodes were lacking in pathos and charm, the writers trying to keep things a bit dark like an American soap opera. But when they gave that up it took on a life and personality of its own. The first segments (which were filmed in black and white) also had a stagey quality almost like burlesque where the actors overact to convey their emotions over great distances (unnecessary on the small screen obviously). I also had trouble with the son, whom I don't think is quite as strong an actor as the others (such as the actor who plays the butler Hudson, who is excellent) but he gets better as the series progresses.