Versatile Kristen Wiig classes up 'Palm Royale,' a funny series set among the 1969 elite

“There’s an old saw here that goes: When you first come to Palm Beach, you think you’re the oldest and the richest, and then you realize, you’re the youngest and the poorest.” – Kristen Wiig’s Maxine Simmons in “Palm Royale.”

It takes all of Kristen Wiig’s magnificent arsenal of comedic and dramatic weapons to launch “Palm Royale” to the land of Worth Your Time Investment. In this 10-part series from Apple TV+ set in Palm Beach high society in 1969, Wiig delivers a virtuoso performance in a role that calls for physical shtick, near-manic mood swings, a song or two, a dance or two and a bounty of perfectly delivered line readings. Wiig can put a spin on a few words of dialogue with the best of ‘em, and she’s a master at playing characters who are sometimes painfully unaware of how they’re perceived.

Loosely based on Juliet McDaniel’s “Mr. and Mrs. American Pie,” with Abe Sylvia serving as writer, executive producer and showrunner, “Palm Royale” has a kind of “Mad Men With Women in the Leads” vibe mixed with a tad of “White Lotus,” and while a few of the middle episodes might test your patience as the storyline meanders this way and that, this is one great-looking and stylish period piece, popping with sunny colors and often hilariously accurate and quite ridiculous fashions and hairstyles of the time.

It also doesn’t hurt that in addition to Wiig, who serves as our narrator throughout “The Season” in Palm Beach, the marvelous cast includes Allison Janney, Laura Dern, Carol Burnett, Leslie Bibb and Ricky Martin. Almost everyone in “Palm Royale” is quite awful, to varying degrees, but they’re often terribly funny as well (and occasionally empathetic) even as they scheme and plot and double-cross and triple-cross each other while smiling their way through yet another charity soirée. They picture themselves as the crème de la crème of mannered society, but they’re mostly jackals in jewels.

After the almost obligatory in media res scene that won’t hold any meaning or context until deep into the series, we find Maxine literally scaling the wall of the posh and exclusive Palm Royale, where she tries desperately to pass herself off as the latest member of the smart set. But soon she is escorted off the premises by Ricky Martin’s Robert, who works as a bartender at the club but will eventually be revealed to be far more than just a “pool boy,” as some dismissively call him.

Maxine, a former beauty pageant contestant from Chattanooga, wants nothing more than to see her name in the “Shiny Sheet,” alongside such Palm Beach society icons as Allison Janney’s Evelyn, the de facto “Queen Bee” who rules the roost in town. Cut to Evelyn being honored as Volunteer of the Year for the ninth year in a row and exclaiming, “I am one humbled volunteer!” as she stands onstage in front of two golden candelabras while holding an elaborate silver tray marking the occasion and wearing a sash saying “1968 Volunteer of the Year.” Yes. Very humble indeed.

The legendary Carol Burnett plays Norma D’ellacourt, the grande dame of the upper class, who knows everyone’s secrets and has used that to her advantage for decades. Leslie Bibb is a rising society star who is married to the newly appointed ambassador to Luxembourg and is having an affair with the club tennis pro. Bruce Dern is the wily old cuss who is married to Evelyn, while Laura Dern’s Linda is a feminist activist, and yes, father and daughter have some great moments together.

Other key players in this swirling swamp of good manners and bad deeds include Josh Lucas as Maxine’s husband, Douglas, an airline pilot with big dreams of becoming a real estate mogul, and Kaia Gerber as a sweet manicurist who finds herself in a world of trouble, because just about everyone in this gossip-riddled, status-obsessed, shiny and superficial world eventually finds themselves in trouble.

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The cast is outstanding, with Kaia Gerber showing true promise and Ricky Martin taking what could have been a clichéd role and creating arguably the most sympathetic character in the series.

With news clips of Richard M. Nixon explaining why America must remain in Vietnam often playing in the background, “Palm Royale” slips in a healthy serving of social commentary, reminding us that this was a time when abortion was a crime (ahem), when young men who were not privileged were being shipped off to fight an untenable war, when women were expected to know their place. Maxine is absolutely aghast when it’s suggested she’s a feminist; to her, that’s a terrible label to wear, and she just wants to wear high fashion labels. Still, by the end of these 10 chapters, with “Palm Royale” clearly positioned to continue the story with a Season 2, Maxine has come to learn that the only person she can depend on is … Maxine.