Ozark Successor Rockets to No. 1 on Streaming, But Its Rotten Tomatoes Score Trails Netflix’s Hit

Peacock has a new crime thriller, and it is doing numbers. M.I.A. just jumped to #1 on the service's Top 10 Most Watched list. The twist: critics are mostly lukewarm, casual viewer feedback is thin, and people keep calling it Peacock's Ozark replacement. Does it earn that tag? Not really. Is it still wildly watchable? Kind of, yeah.

The basics

• What it is: A hyperviolent, sun-baked revenge saga set between the Florida Keys and Miami.
• The lead: Shannon Gisela plays Etta 'Tiger' Jonze, a woman who wants the Miami high life until a family tragedy and the collapse of the drug-running business that kept them afloat pushes her into payback mode.
• Who else: Carey Elwes co-stars.
• The hook: Etta teams up with new allies to go after a rival cartel. Naturally, the cartel has its own move ready, threatening the city she loves and stirring up some international heat.
• The chatter: It's being positioned as Peacock's answer to Netflix 's Ozark, even though tonally it leans harder into pulpy chaos than moody prestige.
• The scoreboard: #1 on Peacock right now, despite 'meh' critic scores and not a ton of audience reviews yet.

So what does M.I.A. actually bring to the table?

This thing goes all-in on bloody, sweaty pulp. When it stops pretending to be solemn and just embraces its own ridiculousness, it's a blast. Think stylish visuals, relentless momentum, and plot turns that sometimes feel like they were scribbled on a napkin between stunt setups. The writing is tight enough to keep the story moving, even when it veers into the unhinged.

"It is a bluntly entertaining, thoroughly disposable series nestled partway between prestige antihero drama and enjoyably brainless pulp, not quite providing the pleasures of either but not exactly failing at its mid-level aspirations."
- Daniel Fienberg

"The hard truth is, M.I.A. is at its best when it stops trying to be Ozark and lets itself be Ozark's sweatier, more deranged cousin."
- Jessica Toomer, Collider

Bottom line

M.I.A. is not the second coming of Ozark, and that is fine. It plays better as a loud, messy, neon- soaked revenge ride than a brooding prestige drama. If you're in for pulpy carnage with slick Miami views, it's an easy binge. And clearly, the audience is curious enough to push it to the top of Peacock's charts. The question is whether it can stay there by leaning into what it does best: being unapologetically wild.