Greenleaf is okay, but they make a lot of mistakes in the writing and casting and that prevents them from being great. Agree with a few of the reviewers on IMDb. My take. Biggest flaw, Rick Fox. Rick does not fit. Anyone who says otherwise, watches too much Tyler Perry. Looking at his scenes with Grace as compared to Dondre's scenes with Dawn Lyen on Queen Sugar or Alimi w/ Rutina Wesley on Queen Sugar...you see how much Rick is NOT an actor, particularly for a Drama, and how casting dropped the ball. When you see Queen Sugar's love scenes, you BELIEVE it...each look, each statement. When I see Darius and Grace, I feel like I'm watching an intermediate scene study course. Merle is great but I agree with another reviewer on here that Rick takes away from a potentially good or even great scene. In contrast, Queen Sugar actually picks actors who ARE those characters and who are not getting roles based on their connections and past NBA performance. Queen Sugar actors fit the essence of their characters just as much as the leads. They are authentically a part of the Queen Sugar experience. Each scene is enhanced as a result. Ironically Noah and Grace put me more deeply in Greenleaf sphere, but that is no more strangely. Rick is just Rick Fox all the time. He has not become Darius and I think is on Greenleaf for the wrong reasons. Plus his disposition is not really trusting, which may be why half the audience does not trust Darius. Further the tone of his voice is awful (playing a reporter), a bit goofy, and he makes almost the same generic expression in each scene. You can't fool a loyal audience and make them like something that obviously doesn't work. No amount of retweets will make that happen. Rick needs to leave Greenleaf sooner, rather than later. And if he actually cared for the series and the lead actress' career, he would do it on his own. Open the door for them to be great and honest. Get his pride out.Unsure I'll watch Season 3 with him as the lead character's main love interest in perpetuity, as that means we will see TOO MUCH of his poor acting, his weak story, and he honestly looks too old for the role. Season 2 was hard enough. I saw a comment the other day on Merle's own Facebook where someone from Belgium said: "I'm still traumatized by you dating the old guy in season 2." I agree with fan. Was that the intention of the writers and casting? Was Darius supposed to be older, thought he was supposed to be late 30s, early 40s. Rick looks mid 50s+. Surprised the producers have opted to up him to series regular when in general the public is not really responding to this pairing enthusiastically. Occasionally you will get some that "like" them, but usually for superficial reasons, not story. If your lead character has a mediocre story and co-star as her support, that to me would be panic zone for the producers. Time to switch it up before it's too late. Darius should do half of Season 3, if he were to return thereafter it would be simply to wrap his story up for good. I have no interest of knowing his back story unless he is going to do something sideways to Grace and if he does that, then he should leave anyway.Producers give your lead a stronger love interest and co-star or you will lose the audience or Grace's character will continue to NOT be talked about by the majority of the audience, which IS HAPPENING like a reviewer on here said. They talk more on supporting characters than her. Rick makes her forgettable. Puzzled how producers have allowed that. The lead should not be in a box of indifference. Not Merle's fault. It's on writers and casting. We will be cool with a Rick Fox exit. The actor playing Noah was not Denzel, but he is better than Rick and had better chemistry with her and gave Grace again a youthfulness and authenticity. He WAS Noah..and people talked about his character with her a lot more (still do). Noah and Grace have one of the top scenes from the series period, to date. But the writers foolishly killed that momentum by not having him return Season 2. If he is missing Season 3, writers are on something.If no Noah return, there are plenty of up and coming black actors who would work well with Merle, who are former basketball players "acting" like actors. Not hating on Rick; this is constructive criticism and my opinion and also the opinions of many others I have talked with online and off. We are frustrated that Greenleaf has made a mistake that many shows of the past have made and that is hire off brand actors for shows that are supposed to be next level. Rick was good on The Game, that fit him. Greenleaf, not so much, especially not opposite a trained Broadway actress. Trust me, Greenleaf needs to fix this asap. Give Grace someone better...or...

If I was rating the show based on the cast, it would be 10 out of 10. However, Greenleaf is not about entertaining the viewers. Instead, it appears to be an attempt to lobby for total acceptance of a gay lifestyle in the church.The show seems to toss the Ewings' of "DALLAS" into the stew pot, add a couple of Megachurches, and stir in an LGBT Rally. The result is "Greenleaf" a modern soap opera with an all star cast and the controversial topic of Homosexuality at the forefront.The first season kept me mesmerized as I followed the life of the Greenleaf Family, amid the aftermath of a suicide that brought a prodigal daughter back to the family mansion. As the family sat at the dinner table, I recalled the dinners of the Ewing family and the rivalries between siblings. While there was no JR, Grace, the lead character, came through as a Bobby Ewing character, beloved by all, but unable to overcome the influence of her powerful mother.As the season progressed, we learned of a deeply buried secret of a perverted uncle who preyed on young girls. This appeared to be one of the main story lines through the first and into the early part of the second season. However, it would be only one story line, soon overwhelmed by possibly the primary agenda of the writing staff; homosexuality in the Christian Church.The number of characters who were gay seemed to grow from week to week. In the end, one of the son-in-laws, a family friend, a church choir director, his spouse, and a counselor all "came out of the closet." While the introduction of gay characters is nothing new, the idea of battling the traditional church stance of frowning or even opposing homosexuality, became center stage. Even a meeting of local churches turned into a lobbying effort to overcome any opposition to the full inclusion of homosexual individuals and relationships, into the church.Even if the story line stopped there, it would hardly be the first time that gay relationships entered our living rooms. However, the main plot now seemed to focus on a wide variety of caveats. There was the divorce of one of the Greenleaf family members because the husband was gay. A choir director was fired because they were in a same-sex marriage. But, alas it didn't stop there. Each episode brought the main story line deeper into the clash between Biblical Verses opposing a gay lifestyle and the New Testament concept of "Love" covers sin. I believe that this was not a creative accident by writers, but the main purpose behind the series. When Bible Verses are reinterpreted by characters portraying ministers, it is not just part of a larger plot, but the very theme itself.While I enjoy a strong performance by a highly-talented cast, it seems that homosexuality in the Christian Church, has become a rallying cry of the writing staff. When any subject overpowers the show, it turns from a medium of entertainment to a protest rally.I must step aside for a moment and add a personal dimension to this review. As a Christian, I do not believe that anyone is sinless. I also believe we should love one another. However, when any drama style show attempts to interpret scripture, it leaves the realm of entertainment and enters Theology. Overall, the show is interesting but it is overshadowed by an effort to mold the writers view of the Bible into a soap box for gay rights. Please return the show to a story of a family who struggles with a variety of social issues. Leave lobbying for interpreting the Bible to religious venues.

So I just finished watching this show known as green leaf and this show was based on black Christianity and hypocrisy and corruption. This show tackles religious issues like rape and money drama and so much more especially with the gay community. As a black atheist who used to be a Christian it was hilarious to watch. This show while promoting black Christianity funny enough the opening to the show shows that Christianity and slavery went hand-in- hand and even went as far as to show the slave ship that many slaves were on because of the Atlantic slave trade and the beginning of Christianity. And now when you mix both the opening to the show to the actual show together it kind of seems like it's showing the truth all- in-one with slavery and Christianity being hand-in-hand, but then also showing how black people are so strongly religious because of this slavery to begin with which I find is insanely deep. So if you are still and Christian and you're an African American I say wake up. But if I had to rate this show I would give it a 6/10.

I see great potential for an interesting look at the inside world of wealth. power and the cloak of holiness. David Keith is a master in delivering dialogue. I love Lynne Whitfield as the matriarch with some obvious issues, yet to be revealed I hope. As the series continues, I (dare I say it?) pray the writers become more confident and provide more realistic speaking styles. The decor of the home, church and offices are beautifully done.Kudos to production staff. I admire the modern styling of the characters. An accurate mix of traditional, natural, ethnic clothing and hairstyles. Multi-racial actors in all types of roles. In fact, the realistic relationship between Grace and her daughter is something I can identify with. Thanks for that. I'm excited that Ms. Winfrey supports this type of project.