Apple TV+ ’Palm Royale’ Season 2 Episode 5 Review - A Risky Table, a Wobbling Crown

Watching this episode, I felt pulled in two directions — part of me marvelled at how deftly the show continues unfolding its high-society satire, while another part kept whispering that a few cracks in the foundation are starting to show.

I appreciate that by this point, the stakes feel real for Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons. The world she’s trying to climb back into — after the scandals and betrayals of the early season — doesn’t just open its doors for her again. She has to fight. There’s a sense that every move counts. The writing embraces that tension: Maxine is no longer a fresh-faced upstart giddy with ambition; she’s more cautious, more aware. I liked how the season doesn’t let her glide back into comfort. There’s grit beneath the glamour now.

The episode leans on strong performances. The actor playing Maxine brings a nuanced weariness: you sense her longing for acceptance, but also her fear — with every glance, every pause, you can almost see her calculating whether this new path is worth the risk. The supporting cast around her — the women of high society, old friends and rivals alike — continue to hover in that ambiguous space between ally and adversary. The lines blur effortlessly. I found that tension compelling. Social maneuvering was never boring: small confidences, sharp smiles, veiled warnings.

From a production standpoint, the show remains sumptuous. The setting, the costuming, the world-building — everything feels meticulously curated. Palm Beach in 1969 holds all the allure and danger you’d expect. The glossy surfaces, the pastel dresses, the shimmering parties — they trap you, in the best way, in this glittery prison. The direction pays attention to subtle shifts: a lingering shot, a barely perceptible exchange of glances, or a party’s bright laughter cutting to a character’s quietly troubled face. Those details matter. They remind you this isn’t just a soap opera of wealth and gossip — it’s a story about ambition, survival, and identity.

This episode particularly underlines how fragile Maxine’s social standing has become. She’s not naive anymore; she’s aware that at any moment, she could be exposed, thrown out, forgotten. That sense of peril keeps the tension palpable. You root for her. You want her to make it. That emotional investment is earned by now.

But the episode isn’t flawless. At times, the plot feels overburdened — there are so many secrets, half-revealed lies, and shifting loyalties that it becomes a bit tangled. I found myself occasionally losing track of who wants what, or why certain characters remain invested in games they seem to despise. The dialogue can feel heavy-handed; sometimes, characters speak in exposition more than believable emotion. It’s as if the writers are juggling too many threads at once. That tension between spectacle and genuine emotional grounding sometimes skews toward spectacle.

Also, while Maxine’s growth is welcome, I missed a few earlier moments of spontaneity and wonder. There’s less of the wide-eyed optimism, more caution — and while that fits the arc, it also means we lose a bit of the freshness that made us root for her in the first place. Some of the supporting characters, once sharp and vivid, feel a little more muted, more predictable. The edges are smoothing out, and with that comes a slight flattening of personalities.

Another minor grievance: occasionally, the pacing feels uneven. Certain scenes drag — we linger just a fraction too long on cocktail preparations or idle chatter — while others, containing heavy revelations or emotional weight, rush by. That makes the emotional impact of certain moments less powerful than they perhaps should have been. It’s like the show wants to keep the social pageant alive, even when the plot demands urgency.

Still, despite those flaws, this episode delivers the kind of dramatic tension and social intrigue that remains the show’s strength. There are moments when the dialogue bites, when the power dynamics snap into place, and you remember why you’re invested. The glamour, the satire, the danger — they all come together here. You feel Maxine’s uncertainty, her yearning, her fear.

In the end, I closed the episode feeling uneasy and hopeful at once. Uneasy because I want to trust that Maxine can pull this off, and hopeful because I believe the show still has the ambition to explore the messy compromises and painful truths that accompany social climbing. I want to see whether this world will reward her, or swallow her whole.
Despite the occasional excess — in plotting, in pacing, in character focus — this episode of the show proves it still dares to challenge its own glittery surface. It reminds me that belonging is never easy, even when you think you’ve bought a ticket.

Final Score- [6/10]