Big Love

:

Season 5
  • Network: HBO
  • Series Premiere Date: Mar 12, 2006
Season #: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Metascore
85

Universal acclaim - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
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Critic Reviews

  1. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Mary McNamara
    Feb 3, 2011
    100
    In early episodes, Big Love quickly reclaims its astonishing ability to balance the insightful and the absurd, hilarity and heartbreak and the personal with the political. The hours race by and already the final season seems far too short.
  2. Wall Street Journal
    Reviewed by: Nancy DeWolf Smith
    Feb 3, 2011
    100
    One welcome aspect of all this is that some of the plot threads which became so distracting last season, threatening to tip Big Love into crazy-flatulent "L.A. Law" territory, seem to be gone. There is more than enough left, along with consistently brilliant acting all over, to keep the show as mesmerizing as it ever was.
  3. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Linda Stasi
    Feb 3, 2011
    100
    Will Big Love go out with a big bang? If the final season's opener is any indication, the answer is a big "yes."
  5. Newsday
    Reviewed by: Verne Gay
    Feb 3, 2011
    91
    Of course there are dozens of loose ends in need of tying, but you do get the sense that some will actually get tied, and in a satisfying way.
  6. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ken Tucker
    Feb 3, 2011
    83
    By concentrating on what it means to practice polygamy in the 21st century, the series again comes close to achieving its goal of defining what it means to be a family.
  7. Time
    Reviewed by: James Poniewozik
    Feb 3, 2011
    80
    The first two new episodes are better focused and often affecting but don't quite cohere, possibly in part because of the mop-up work left after the whirlwind of season four. The third episode sent to critics, however, is one of the strongest the show has done in a while, possibly since the excellent third season.
  8. Slant Magazine
    Reviewed by: J.C. Frenan
    Feb 3, 2011
    75
    As a result, what began as a quasi-voyeuristic family drama about polygamists trying to find a place for themselves as suburban, middle-class American citizens has transformed into an allegory of the growing place of libertarianism in mainstream politics.
  9. Hitfix
    Reviewed by: Alan Sepinwall
    Feb 3, 2011
    50
    Season five is a definite improvement on season four, but only to a point. There aren't as many different stories rattling around, but the show's still so crowded that it has to bounce from scene to scene, subplot to subplot, so quickly that very little gets a chance to breathe.

Awards & Rankings

10
#10 Best TV Season of 2011
95
#95 Most Discussed TV Season of 2011
99
#99 Most Shared TV Season of 2011

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 33 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 19 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 33
  3. Negative: 7 out of 33
  1. JennetP
    Feb 9, 2011
    5
    I must respectfully disagree with critics who find this season a return to form. To me, it continues--even accelerates--the decline thatI must respectfully disagree with critics who find this season a return to form. To me, it continues--even accelerates--the decline that began with the death of Roman (Harry Dean Stanton). I don't know whether it was Roman the character or Stanton the actor who inspired the writers for the first three seasons, but, once he was gone, the show seemed to lose its way, clutching at topical storylines, some truly preposterous, and putting the characters through ridiculous changes. The exception was the flirtation between the youngest wife and the oldest son, much closer to her age than her husband, which was spot on and handled well. Season five finds the family, improbably, dealing with the aftermath of a monumentally ill-timed "coming out," and everyone seems to be handling the stress by indulging in selfish acting out and equally narcissistic blather. I'll admit, I channel-surfed out of there when Barb and her mother started berating each other over old grievances during a public forum, something neither character would ever, ever do. And all of this is too bad, because one of the show's earlier strengths was the delicate balance between the "big love" of its title and the petty disputes and rivalries that perturb it.… Full Review »
  2. antonini
    Mar 8, 2011
    9
    I was more comfortable when they were all sneaking around, avoiding the limelight. This season is a little tough to watch because Bill in aI was more comfortable when they were all sneaking around, avoiding the limelight. This season is a little tough to watch because Bill in a real sense endangers his whole family with his "mission" without giving full weight to the impact on the three wives. So, I guess, the believablilty factor has dropped for me, making it more difficult to like. First we have gay marriage, now the implication is plural marriage for America.… Full Review »
  3. Noahcs
    Feb 14, 2011
    0
    This show should have ended after season two. For there to be a fifth season, makes me sick. They have dried up all the good story lines andThis show should have ended after season two. For there to be a fifth season, makes me sick. They have dried up all the good story lines and the plot twists continue to go downhill. Thankfully, this is the last season.… Full Review »
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