The Arrangement Series Premiere Review: Does Kyle and Megan’s Bargain Interest You?

Everyone talks about how fleeting Hollywood marriages can be. I’m pretty sure the initial idea for E! Network’s newest scripted series The Arrangement came out of the not so funny joke, “Most arranged marriages last longer.” The ties that will bind this particular romance together are more impressive and threatening than just love. In this town money, fame, reputation, and power are much more important than any regular love story. Which is why blending them together is just like creating those low-calorie smoothies: it’s nutritious if done well, but the fruit still gets chopped up into tiny little pieces.

Megan Morrison isn’t having the greatest time lately. She’s feeling very much like what she is: a struggling actress working through Los Angeles as a waitress, who was also just cheated on by her boyfriend. Kyle West is Hollywood’s biggest thing with the world at his feet, even when he’s conflicted about his personal life. That kind of conflict is dangerous, especially according to Terence Anderson, the head of the Institute of the Higher Mind. This is why he came up with the 3 Moral Imperatives, questions he, his wife Deanna, and Kyle believe filter out the bad people as well as the bad actors for Kyle to work with.

All Kyle wants is someone real, and in walks Megan. Her vulnerability during her audition is very real, mostly because she is hungover after finding out her boyfriend was cheating on her. Kyle is enchanted, so he takes her on a first date around Los Angeles which eventually turns into a private plane ride to Mexico. Following the worst 24 hours of her life, Megan has the best 24 hours of her life. If only she knew what was coming.

Back home Terence is freaking out internally. I say internally because Terence is the picture of composure, a persona he maintains especially well with recruits to his institute. Terence is wary of Megan’s past, particularly a missing four month period after her mother died. As it turns out, Terence has been pulling the strings on Kyle’s life for years. He’s arranged for certain women to be involved in Kyle’s life, and after Kyle’s ex-fiancee walked away from him at the altar, Terence can’t afford to let Kyle’s brand be put at risk. Case in point, as soon as Kyle’s handsy therapist gets too attached, Terence has her discreetly moved to a…facility. Interpret that how you will.

Megan is stunned when her one night with Kyle results in an $10 million arranged marriage offer. The good news is that Megan has the appropriately shocked reaction most people would have. Then she actually starts to consider it. Different players in Kyle and Megan’s life have different opinions. Megan’s agent Leslie urges her to consider it, her attorney best friend warns her of the risks, and Terence realizes he probably has no choice in the matter. That last part doesn’t really count though since Terence and Deanna are going to be pulling the strings for a long time to come. By the time the contract is signed Kyle and Megan are caught up in the whirlwind notion that everything from this point forward is going to be great. Yeah, who really believes that?

Will Kyle and Megan actually fall in love, or are the external people in their lives destined to pull the strings on their budding romance, and their arrangement, apart?