Liv is an unfriendly, hard-nosed corporate lawyer who finds it hard, or pointless even, to form relationships with anyone - at work or otherwise. She is played by the very pretty Mexican actress, Melissa Barrera (In the Heights, Scream) and does an excellent job of displaying many of the emotions and exasperation the character must have been feeling, stuck in the middle of nowhere.
She's been in a plane crash, you see, in amongst the forests and lakes of Canada. She was desperate to get to visit someone (who we later discover was her mum) and when her flight was cancelled, she begged for a ride on a small plane with a couple of hoods, as it turns out, who were clearly tied up with money and drugs. The flight has not been logged, the two characters with her don't survive the crash for long and so nobody knows she's there.
She's on her own. Which, as it turns out, is a large reflection tool used throughout as we discover that she's been left on her own specifically during her childhood, but also in her recent life by those around her. The little girl who plays her as a child is equally pretty, the young Spanish actress Joselyn Picard.
Most of the 'action' takes place in the first half of the show and is directed by Maggie Kiley. As we get into episodes 4-6, things slow down to a large degree. There's plenty of those flashbacks and even Liv hallucinating as she loses strength and reflects more on her life and childhood. There's a switch of director at this point, to Rebecca Rodriguez.
As more information is uncovered about her background, in the style of Lost, we find out much more about not only her childhood, but her recent past too. We discover the reasons why she's like she is. From a very difficult childhood where she felt abandoned and lost and we start to see the parallel with the present dilemma, being abandoned and lost.
She reflects on what went on with her mother, the trauma with her father too, but also how she mistreated a current suitor, bed-partner and work colleague played by Jeff Wilbusch. She's had to act independently throughout her life and here's an unwelcome opportunity for her to rely on her resolve, skills and wits to come out the other side. We're not encouraged to like the Liv character. She's nasty to people and it's only as the story unfolds that we're permitted to warm more to her.
There are plenty of dumb things that she does in her plight, inconsistencies, events and unlikely decisions made - and they could have gone two ways with the outcome. A nice neat Hollywood ending or one which is much more likely realistic given the situation. I won't tell you which is chosen but whichever it is, the strings are pulled together nicely for the viewer in what we learn about Liv, what life has been for her and if she were to survive, what it could be like. Yes, there are also flash-forwards which she sees (or rather hopes for)!
Watch it for the very good performance of Barrera. It's quite moving in parts, thrilling in others, but tight too - especially in terms of the flashbacks. They involve few people but tell the viewer much. Watch it also for the scenery which the series makes the most of in terms of cinematography and setting. It seems to have got bad press so far, but I really enjoyed it, was moved by it in places and particularly enjoyed the performance of the main leads.
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