What's interesting about this show is the massive amount of pure acting talent on it's total roster. ( If you have Ed Harris and Anthony Hopkins, even for a short while, that's a major boon. Jeffrey Wright, Gustaf Skarsgaard, Peter Mullan, Fares Fares, Jonathan Tucker, there were some real hitters in this lineup)
There was creative freedom and big budget support from a prestige network for original programming.
The litmus point was always the writing. It just needed better writing.
Also you can't really build a show around Evan Rachel Wood. And the last time Tessa Thompson was tolerable was on Veronica Mars. Should have given the lead to Ariana DeBose instead.
It's always the most puzzling thing about Hollywood. Build your show around your best actors period. Why there is so much deviation from this principle, I'll never understand.