Quick disclaimer: Sadly this isn’t a review of a new Netflix series, but my attempt at showing how great it would be. Also, it captures a few snapshots from the thrilling Road to Tokyo for American teams so far. Don’t go search the new releases on Netflix, but maybe we can push for a show like this in four years. For now, enjoy the post.

This is it, the 2020 Olympics are almost here! It’s what beach volleyball fans live for. Only 24 teams of each gender will make it to Tokyo and there have already been so many dramatic plot twists in the race for those elusive places.

For American and Brazilian teams the task of becoming Olympians is even tougher. The Olympics puts a limit of two teams per country, but both nations have tons of international talent. Being in the top two from one of these giants of the beach makes qualifying more of a fight between national rivals than against the rest of the world. I think this has the makings of a great Netflix series.

April Ross and Alix Klineman would be the stars of my imaginary beach volleyball docuseries. Photo by FIVB.

Brazil won’t be able to sell their TV rights though. That’s because they took the fun out of their Olympic buildup by naming their Olympians early. Thankfully for fans of sports drama, USA Volleyball is letting the plot develop all the way to the end. It has been thrilling so far and it will only get better. It’s sure to keep us on the edge of our seats.

Season 1, Episode 1

The first episode was shot in Qinzhou, China where Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb won gold. Although the three-star tournament isn’t the most important of the season, it was a perfect series debut. The focus was on the Tri Bourne feel good story. He returns to international competition after battling back from an autoimmune disease that had kept him off the world tour since 2016. We see archived footage of Tri and John Hyden falling just short of the 2016 Olympics. The USA sent Phil Daulhauser & Nick Lucena and Jake Gibb & Casey Patterson to Rio instead. In Qinzhou the script writers build everything towards a second round match where Tri gets his revenge over the flamboyant Patterson, knocking him and partner Stafford Slick out of the tournament.

Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb got their partnership off to a great start with a gold medal in Qinzhou, China. The childhood friends are still Photo by FIVB.

And they set up so much more drama for the rest of the season. Casey’s partner from the Rio games, Jake Gibb, is now partnering with Trevor’s little brother Taylor. Taylor is a dynamic defender and a crowd favorite everyplace he plays. The Crabb boys and Tri Bourne all grew up in Hawaii playing volleyball on the baby court at the historic Outrigger Canoe Club. Beach volleyball was invented at outrigger over 100 years ago and Netflix goes all in on the Hawaii angle. Returning to the court, Trevor and Tri march on to the inevitable gold medal in what seems like a Hollywood ending. But this was only episode 1.

The first episode also introduces us to Kelly Claes and Sarah Sponcil, who take bronze in China. The young tandem spend their time between matches writing rap songs and thinking of new ways to engage their fans on social media. On the sand Sponcil is a human highlight reel, diving and scrambling after every shot. Sarah has the nickname of the flying squirrel. She is still in college, a star of the UCLA beach volleyball team. Kelly graduated a few years ago from rival USC. When the ratings for episode 1 come back it is clear that America loves them. Surely they will be the sweethearts of the series, but are they serious contenders for the Olympics? After all we haven’t met Kerri Walsh Jennings or April Ross yet. But wait, in the preview for a future episode called The Hague, Kelly and Sarah have silver medals around their necks while April and Alix Klineman look at the podium in frustration. Maybe these girls are for real.

The Women’s Story Lines

Later in the season, we learn that April and Kerri Walsh Jennings were supposed to partner and bring gold home from Tokyo. They won bronze in Rio together. Kerri was going to retire after Rio if she had won her fourth gold medal, but they settled for bronze. So she came back to try for another gold and an amazing sixth Olympic appearance. But then the backstory takes an unexpected turn. April and Kerri have split up. They broke up over a dispute between Kerri and the AVP. April went one way, Kerri went another.

Netflix relishes the chance to paint the AVP tour, which is broadcast by rival Amazon Prime, in a bad light and portray Kerri as the hero against unfair AVP contracts. April and her new partner Alix Klineman are cast as villains for one episode but nobody buys it. The villain role doesn’t fit them at all. Viewers complain that parts of the episode felt like an infomercial for Kerri’s p1440 venture. The producers vow to stop spinning the stories. The race for Tokyo has enough drama as it is. Ratings sore over the coming weeks.

Kerri Walsh Jennings continues to reach higher and higher in her quest for an amazing 6th Olympics and 4th Gold medal. Photo by FIVB.

Summer Ross and Sara Hughes feature in early episodes. They start strong with a bronze medal in an early four-star. They were America’s best the previous season. It seems like they are on the brink of another breakthrough but something isn’t right. Viewers are shocked and heartbroken when a back injury rocks their summer and explodes their Olympic dream. The series doesn’t linger on their disappointment for long because Kelly Claes and Sarah Sponcil keep getting results. Kelley Larsen and Emily Stockman make it known that they want to crash the Olympic party, too. How many great American teams are there? The answer is far more than can play in the FIVB. There are so many more Olympic caliber teams yet to travel abroad, just waiting to get their chance. The producers have no idea where to send the cameras, it is all just too good.

The Men’s Plot Develops

Soon we meet Phil Dalhausser, a gold medalist and beach legend that was once the most dominant blocker in the world. He is still able to shut down the opposition and take over matches seemingly at will. He and Nick Lucena are introduced as America’s best hope for a Gold medal in Tokyo. They prepare to make their unstoppable surge to the top in episode four, but Phil suffers an injury. They miss some events and under perform in others. Their climb up the rankings stalls.

Phil and Nick celebrate a victory at the Vienna 5-star tournament. They only made two semifinals all year and haven’t competed in the minimum 12 tournaments yet. Once they get started in 2020, they are going to make things very interesting for the other American men. Photo by FIVB.

Meanwhile, Tri and Trevor pick up a huge amount of points at the World Championships, maybe they can become Olympians after all. In one memorable episode they are cruising through the group stage at the Vienna five-star, when more drama strikes! Tri breaks his hand on the ref’s stand celebrating an early tournament victory. They have to withdraw and throw away literally hundreds of qualification points. Will that be the end for Tri and Trevor? And when will Jake and Taylor start playing in more world tour events? They are dominating the AVP but way out of the Olympic race for a while. But that soon changes.

National Phenomenon

People who knew nothing about volleyball are now addicted to the show. Everyone is talking about it. Reddit communities spring up for people to discuss every detail. They argue about referee’s calls, serving strategy and the best way to travel from Brazil to China on a limited budget. The show captures everyone’s imagination. Beaches across America are suddenly crowded with new volleyball players. Town hall meetings at small cities in the Midwest are swamped with people demanding beach volleyball facilities in their public parks. Preschool teachers complain that little girls are diving into sandboxes and yelling, “I’m the flying squirrel.” The usually empty stands at FIVB matches around the world are suddenly full of new fans thanks to Netflix’s international reach.

Later Episodes

Towards the end of the season April and Alix become truly dominant. America loves a winner and they are now the most popular characters on the show. Kerri and Brooke consistently battle through high stress qualifiers and cement themselves as the second place team. They are truly inspirational. How could a three time gold medalist keep working this hard and endure the impossible travel schedule.

The writers allow some international teams time on the screen. There is the unstoppable Norwegien men that we are supposed to hate, but can’t help but love. The same is true of the Canadian women. They train in California and have a knack for beating America’s best in the biggest matches. But the focus of the show is on the Americans. You get the feeling that it is all being set up for the Norwegians and Canadians to play against one of these American teams in the Tokyo gold medal matches, but that will be part of season two’s story.

Season Finale

The first season ends in Chetumal, Mexico. Kerri and Brooke needed to open up some space in the standings over Sarah and Kelley to smooth the road ahead. But they lose a heartbreaking three-setter in the quarter finals to Australia. Then Sarah and Kelley have the chance to advance to the final four and perhaps overtake Kerri and Brooke in the rankings, but they lose an extremely close match to Brazil. April and Alix didn’t play in Mexico, choosing to start their off season early. They have a huge lead and certainly can’t be caught. Kerri and Brooke’s grip on the final Olympic spot is not nearly as secure. There are still at least three teams that can claim it. A perfect cliff hanger to end the season on.

The season finale brings a gold medal to Jake and Taylor. It is the first world tour gold of their partnership and it portends good things to come in season two. Tri and Trevor are also on the podium with bronze medals around their necks. This is the most successful tournament of the year for the men. It’s a script writers dream. The two teams are in first and second place in the American race as the season closes. As they step down from the podium the camera focuses on some friendly trash talking between the Crabb brothers but suddenly cuts to Phil and Nick training in Florida. Olympic hunger is in their eyes. The screen goes dark. We see the words ‘Three teams, two place’, and season one is over.

Jake Gibb and Taylor Crabb top the Chetumal podium in the exciting finale to season 1 of my imaginary Netflix docuseries. Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb take the Bronze. Photo by FIVB.

Season two is set to be released in March and I can’t wait. Since we can’t really watch this series together, do the next best thing and start following the Beach Volley Blog. You can subscribe for updates or bookmark it on your browser. You can also find us on Twitter and Instagram. Keep checking back for the thrilling conclusion to America’s Sandy Road to Tokyo.

