Scheming socialites, sunshine, and secrets. In the new Apple TV+ comedy Palm Royale, one woman schemes to secure her seat at America’s most exclusive table: Palm Beach high society circa 1969.

The show boasts an all-star cast, including Kristen Wiig, Carol Burnett, Allison Janney, Josh Lucas, Ricky Martin, and Laura Dern.

Let’s start with the good news: Palm Royale is always flashy and often funny. If you’ve checked out the trailer for this one, you’ve noticed the series’ signature look. It’s full of bright, flashy colors and vintage aesthetics. From the costuming to the sets, Palm Royale completely immerses you in its beachy high-society world. It’s easy to see why someone would want to make this world their everyday reality — which is exactly what Maxine Dellacourt (Wiig) sets out to do.

Maxine, who’s spent her life reading the Shiny Sheet and wishing for a more glamorous existence, finally gets her foot in the door of Palm Beach high society when her husband’s estranged aunt Norma Dellacourt (Burnett) falls ill. Under the guise of caring for the comatose Norma, Maxine worms her way into a club membership at the Palm Royale and into the lives of the women she’s been reading about for years.

With this setup, Palm Royale gives itself the space for plenty of laughs, as well as intrigue and drama as Maxine’s schemes escalate and more of Palm Beach society’s secrets are exposed. Sabotage, blackmail, and secret relationships abound. In Palm Beach, nothing is quite as shiny as it first seems — or at least, nothing shines without getting a little dirty first.

Carol Burnett as Norma Dellacourt in 'Palm Royale'

As one of the funniest people on screen today, Kristen Wigg (Bridesmaids, SNL) has no trouble roping the audience into Maxine’s schemes and antics. Whether she’s scaling literal walls, cheerfully denouncing feminism, or trying to out-catty a more experienced socialite, Wiig can (and does) get a laugh out of just about anything.

And of course, for any fan of comedy, it’s a delight to see Burnett on screen. Revealing her funniest moments would contain spoilers, but suffice it to say you probably won’t be disappointed here. The series also features recurring characters played by comedy vets Mindy Cohn (The Facts of Life) and Julia Duffy (Newhart). All in all, Palm Royale certainly features a cast well-equipped to handle its comedic range, which swings from the campy to the absurd.

Similarly, you can’t go wrong with Allison Janney as an imperious, powerful, bitchy matriarch. While ultimately I think Palm Royale as a show will probably slip from the collective consciousness, I can definitely see a bunch of Evelyn Rollins zingers turning into memes and reaction gifs we’ll be using for years to come. 

Allison Janney as Evelyn Rollins in 'Palm Royale'

On the other hand, Palm Royale feels like an almost criminal misuse of Laura Dern. Despite the Oscar winner’s best efforts, her character unfortunately still comes off as way too bland for the flashy, elevated world of the series. She never quite seems to fit, which is probably because the show flounders when it tries to dive deeper than catty socialite antics.

It seems like Palm Royale felt compelled to make reference to the political tensions of its 1969 setting, but it never commits to exploring them in a meaningful way. The way the show dances around the racial inequity between Dern’s Linda and Amber Chardae Robinson’s Virginia at their feminist collective reeks of obligation, like the show is just checking the bare-minimum box of acknowledging that dynamic exists before shifting the focus elsewhere.

Similarly, the series struggles to always reach the emotional resonance it clearly strives for. The sprinkling of Maxine’s backstory throughout aims to garner some empathy, but some moments prove more effective than others. Maxine herself always feels a little hard to pin down, which probably also creates more emotional distance than Palm Royale needs to succeed. Ultimately, pool boy and thorn in Maxine’s side Robert (Ricky Martin) comes the closest to acting as the show’s beating heart.

Maxine Dellacourt (Kristen Wiig) sits poolside at the Palm Royale

But perhaps the biggest issue with Palm Royale is that it feels like it overstays its welcome. Despite solid comedic performances and the criminal underbelly of Palm Beach and its eccentric residents adding a little soap-y flair, it can drag while watching. Episodes clock in around 50 minutes each, and the season stretches across 10 installments. Not only did this mean the momentum from the biggest laughs seemed to stall out moment to moment, it too often made it feel like the story itself was treading water. That’s one of the biggest disappointments of Palm Royale — the feeling that there’s enough here for the series to be a real smash, but too much extra junk bogging it down that holds it back from its potential. 

Overall, Palm Royale comes across as a bit more style than substance, but mostly in a fun way. You can think of it kind of like the flash and flair of Palm Beach itself. The overpriced tiki drink you order at the bar won’t be the best cocktail you’ve ever had, nor will the generic romance novel you read while lounging on the beach be the best book you’ve ever read. But neither are a bad time, and you’ll enjoy them enough in the moment. If nothing else, Palm Royale can definitely provide you with enough moments of enjoyment to hit play.

Palm Royale premieres with three episodes on Apple TV+ March 20. After, new episodes of the ten-episode season will premiere on the streaming platform weekly.