I am – Hercules!! It’s an hourlong comedy-drama, from playwright Dmitry Lipkin (“Cranes,” “A Forest of Stone”), about a family of Irish-gypsy grifters who luck into impersonating a wealthy, freshly-killed lawyer and his family. The American con-men in "The Riches" are assayed by Britishers Eddie Izzard (“Ocean’s 12”) and Minnie Driver (“The Phantom of the Opera”), as well as Shannon Marie Woodward (Tommy Led Jones’ daughter in “Man of the House”) and Noel Fisher (“Agent Cody Banks”). Driver looks very tall and skinny and hot. Izzard’s accent is all over the place. The con jobs they pull are often not very convincing, which is a real problem. Its “fool the neighbors” premise reminded me again and again of better shows like “Weeds” and “Big Love.” Still, I had little difficulty getting through the three episodes FX sent along, and may even be tempted to check out the fourth now that “Studio 60” is no longer on Monday nights. But what matters Herc’s opinion? One of my best-looking friends, actress/model Lorielle, saw it at a screening Saturday night and wrote:

herc i went to the premier of the riches last night--- and i LOVED it!! it was really good! and different from anything ild ever seen! i loved the crazy weird world the created-- and the raw, intense, crazy, weird characters! eddie izzard and minnie driver were fabulous!! i fell in love with both of them! and we've only seen the tip of the ice-berg... they have soo many more secrets! xo lorielle

Variety says:

… FX's latest -- a blend of "The Grifters," the CW's already-axed "Runaway" and HBO's secrets-behind-closed-doors "Big Love" -- doesn't possess the requisite magic to steal our hearts. … Although not the mess that "Dirt" is, the series is conceptually problematic, and seemingly ill-equipped to go the episodic distance. …

The New York Times says:

… It’s so compelling it deserves to be a hit, generating as much media attention and Internet chatter as “Deadwood,” “Nip/Tuck” or “24.” … has a voice and peculiar style all its own, the comedy always offset by a lurking sense of sadness and menace. …

The Los Angeles Times says:

… does not bear intense scrutiny. … There are more than a few problems here … Because the American dream the Malloys set out to "steal" is conceived here in the narrow terms of stuff and money, they only seem to be trading down and their project makes no sense. For now, they're just another wacky TV family in improbable circumstances getting by on their charm. …

The Chicago Tribune says:

… The dangers for the mostly engrossing “Riches” is that it occasionally hits the “we’re stealing the American Dream” theme a little too hard, and it remains to be seen whether it will coast on the taut, engaging performances of Izzard and Driver. …

The Philadelphia Inquirer says:

… the best new TV show of the 2006-07 season… Rejoice, all you smart, rich, discriminating TV-watchers, crying in your Grey Goose or Glenfiddich since Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip got the hook. …

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

…There is a dizzying array of strange and wonderful dramatic themes and virtuoso performances in the new FX series "The Riches," but your first reaction might be just to stare at it. "The Riches" is both unique and intoxicating -- and plenty more. But first, let's just stare at it, wonderstruck. …

The Miami Herald says:

… funny and intriguing … British comedian Eddie Izzard, best known here for his work as a stand-up comic but a veteran of the London stage, portrays Wayne with amiable swagger, and Minnie Driver (FX likes those Brits; they must work cheap) is saucy but secretly vulnerable as Dahlia. …

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer says:

… vacillates between riveting and middling … Izzard slides around in his non-regional American enunciation, and if you listen closely to it (something you might do if you're familiar with his other work), the flaws can overwhelm the dialogue. … Doug Rich, the man Wayne is impersonating, is in a profession few people, even that kid in "Catch Me If You Can," could believably walk into. He gives it a shot, stumbling through an awkward, stop-and-go interview speech, and what is supposed to be a humorous interlude falls dead. …

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

… "The Riches" certainly has some rich elements -- there's even a little dark humor, just not enough of it -- but in early episodes, the show remains wobbly as it tries to find its footing. …

USA Today says:

… Created by Dmitry Lipkin, The Riches most often treats this family and their mad attempt to steal a new identity with a delightfully light comic touch bolstered by an underpinning of yearning. And Izzard has the comedy and yearning down pat, with star power to boot, making you root for Wayne even when you know you shouldn't. … The show stumbles whenever it tries to become dark or serious, a problem epitomized by Driver's character and performance. Neither is awful or unsalvageable, but everything about Dahlia does tend to be exaggerated, from the character's drug problems to the actress's accent. Lighter would be better.

TV Guide says:

… results are mixed … When the Malloys trade in their RV for the Riches' gated-community mansion in the ultimate scam, the culture clash is almost as jolting as the show's inconsistent juggling of tones from humor and drama to suburban satire, much of which falls flat. The Riches is intriguing but not exactly compelling. … hard to believe and not much easier to embrace.

10 p.m. Monday. FX

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