Mayor Nick Wasicsko took office in 1987 during Yonkers' worst crisis. When federal courts ordered public housing be built in the white, middle class side of town, it divided the city in a bitter battle fueled by fear, racism, murder and politics.

The true story of Nick Wasicsko who successfully ran for Mayor of the New York city of Yonkers in 1987. He took over in the middle of a crisis - the city was being forced by court order to build low- cost housing in middle-class suburbs, a decision the city council strongly rejected.

You really have two stories here, and the two aren't connected enough to make an engaging and coherent series.

On the one hand you have the plight of people on the poorer end of the economic scale, and the promise of cheap housing in a decent neighbourhood. Even when they get it, their struggles aren't over. This part of the story was reasonably interesting, though disjointed and sometimes very superficial, sentimental and manipulative.

On the other hand you have the Nick Wasicsko story. This is just pure city-level politics, and dull. He is painted as the saviour of the poor people, but, just from watching the series, you see he was much more an ambitious political opportunist than a man with a burning desire to help the poor. He even ran on the platform that the city wouldn't build the low-cost houses!

Oscar Isaac does put in a great performance as Wasicsko, however. Good supporting cast which includes Winona Ryder, Alfred Molina, James Belushi and Catherine Keener.