Sydney is ambitious and caring, with a type-A personality that not everyone will fall in love immediately, but that's the beauty of her character. She's like a slow burn. She takes over her father's architecture firm and as a woman in a man's world, she must fight to be heard and respected. Brendan, her brother from the same mother, is a self-centered world traveler who is good at getting by on his father's money but is also often the voice of reason. He comes back from France with a fiancée, Garance, who's not the most fleshed-out character. I'm guessing she's not here to stay. And then there's their mother, Lily, a courageous woman who accepted a lot in the name of love. She's not the focus of the pilot but I can see her ultimately becoming a fan favorite. 

Then there are the kids their father decided not to raise, and to not even stay in touch with. Alexandra Reid is a famous singer. She's not Taylor Swift but she is someone who is recognized on the street and she has a multi-million dollar loft. She's not exactly the nicest person, but she's complex and that's good fuel for the show. Her brother Wesley is even more damaged than her. He didn't have music to work through his pain and anger. He's played by Dave Annable, who's basically playing Justin Walker from Brothers & Sisters again, but older. I don't know if this casting is genius or lazy. But it will feel weird at the beginning for fans of the earlier show, that's for sure. Finally, there's Jimmy, Alexandra's old partner, a wiry, aloof, singer/guitar player and aging rock star who drank and partied a bit too hard. He’s surprisingly sweet, thoughtful and a good listener. Together, Alexandra and Jimmy bring a kind of Nashville vibe to the show and I'm honestly not sure how I feel about that. The Reids are harder to love than the Winters, but they are the rebels you want to root for. And when the two families are finally brought together, something special happens on the page, capping off a compelling pilot with the promsie of even better things to come.