Black-ish

:

Season 1
  • Network: ABC
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 24, 2014
Season #: 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
6.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 99 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 57 out of 99
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 99
  3. Negative: 26 out of 99
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User Reviews

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  1. dotfail
    Oct 1, 2014
    0
    Predictable, hackneyed, and often just plain stupid. The only thing worth watching here is Laurence Fishburne and he has very little screen time. I watched the first two shows and I am giving up. Too bad... it's a great idea but very poorly executed.
  2. Rogerdob
    Sep 26, 2014
    1
    The lead character is one of the most annoying ones on TV...he is unhappy and a little bit mean to his family and people around him. It is hard to like him and to feel any need to watch him every week. I feel sorry for his family, who seem happy and have to put up with his constant negativity. The show's first episode was highly narrated which is a sure sign that there are problems inThe lead character is one of the most annoying ones on TV...he is unhappy and a little bit mean to his family and people around him. It is hard to like him and to feel any need to watch him every week. I feel sorry for his family, who seem happy and have to put up with his constant negativity. The show's first episode was highly narrated which is a sure sign that there are problems in writing the show.… Expand
  3. 123456
    Jan 6, 2015
    2
    Predictable and lacking originality, but most of all lacking humour. The pinpoint focus on race quickly becomes tiresome, especially when it is fired-up by obnoxious or ignorant white faces like Fresh Prince was doing 20+ years ago. The main character, despite obviously being successful in his chosen career, is suddenly hit with a racial identity crisis. Hey, rich people got problems too,Predictable and lacking originality, but most of all lacking humour. The pinpoint focus on race quickly becomes tiresome, especially when it is fired-up by obnoxious or ignorant white faces like Fresh Prince was doing 20+ years ago. The main character, despite obviously being successful in his chosen career, is suddenly hit with a racial identity crisis. Hey, rich people got problems too, right? The whole concept seems trite and condescending to the audience, and at least 10 years out of date. But worst of all the jokes are slow and and can be seen a mile off, with about 3 actual laughs per episode. Give it a miss.… Expand
  4. 4eyedviking
    Sep 26, 2014
    1
    This show is a walking contradiction. What his employers are doing to him at work is the same thing he's doing to his kids at home. The only people who will enjoy this show are the people who can't see the hypocrisy that the show is based. It's dressed up trash. Basically what I'm trying to say is, you can put a crack whore in $1000.00 dress, but she's still a crack whore.
  5. JBM
    Oct 4, 2014
    0
    It is rare to find any show that so quickly makes you dislike it. I am not sure if this show was trying to "educate" us on the plight of very successful black families but if so, save it. The one thing this show was not doing was entertaining me. Come on people, nobody spikes every comment of everyday life with a reference to how black they are. This show tops out at boring and mixes inIt is rare to find any show that so quickly makes you dislike it. I am not sure if this show was trying to "educate" us on the plight of very successful black families but if so, save it. The one thing this show was not doing was entertaining me. Come on people, nobody spikes every comment of everyday life with a reference to how black they are. This show tops out at boring and mixes in insulting and racist. Worst of all it is the one thing you cannot be as a sitcom and that is that it is not funny. If this show was to be the next Modern Family, it failed miserably.… Expand
  6. HDeezy
    Oct 12, 2015
    2
    The positive reviews for this show seem to stem from a generation of people eager to accept ANYTHING with black people involved.
    The writing is completely lacking in originality and devoid of humor, it swings from one stereotypical "black joke" to the next, with no comedy driven by character interaction, so in it's own circle of hypocrisy the show itself is offensive and racist. The only    The positive reviews for this show seem to stem from a generation of people eager to accept ANYTHING with black people involved.
    The writing is completely lacking in originality and devoid of humor, it swings from one stereotypical "black joke" to the next, with no comedy driven by character interaction, so in it's own circle of hypocrisy the show itself is offensive and racist. The only positive thing to say about this show is that the cast are all entirely capable of believable performances.
    Honestly I could only recommend this show to white hipsters who are filled with glee at the sight of any black actor or actress gracing their screen.
    That's not to take away from the fact that Anthony Anderson is a very talented man with excellent comedic timing, and genuine acting ability.    … Expand
  7. chasfh
    Nov 20, 2014
    3
    The show is a good idea in concept, but is very poor in execution. There is a lot of rich material they could mine if they would just use a scalpel instead of a sledgehammer.

    The premise is fine, but the scripts are hackneyed and the jokes very on the nose. The plots are weak and serve only to highlight what the lead character Dre believes is his ongoing struggle to balance his    The show is a good idea in concept, but is very poor in execution. There is a lot of rich material they could mine if they would just use a scalpel instead of a sledgehammer.

    The premise is fine, but the scripts are hackneyed and the jokes very on the nose. The plots are weak and serve only to highlight what the lead character Dre believes is his ongoing struggle to balance his bourgeois adult success with his childhood cultural roots that can only be described as "keepin' it real". Every episode turns on this premise, and that has quickly become tiresome. Equally tiresome is the cartoonish way in which the white characters are presented, as idiots either striving cluelessly to act black, or being so over the top in their whiteness that they become mere caricatures rather than people. Maybe that's well-deserved payback decades in the making, but broad stereotyping was not funny then, and it's just as not funny now.

    The performances by the parents are uneven, and of the children, only the eldest daughter knows anything about timing, emphasis and modulation, and she's only average. The others are stiff ad wooden, and deliver their lines as though they are reading them off a teleprompter the first time they ever see them. You might give them a pass because they're children, but compare them against the (even younger) girl who plays Lily on Modern Family, and the kids on black-ish come up very wanting.

    I would express some hope that the show can iron out these considerable kinks and evolve into producing more realistic plots with more natural performances appropriate to the situation. But given that Larry Wilmore is the executive producer, and that everything he does outside of the Daily Show is itself far too earnest and far too on the nose, I guess I'll have this cut this one loose. Maybe I'll sample it in Season 2, should it make it that far, to see whether it has improved. I'm not holding out much hope for that.    … Expand
  8. EdwardWalsh
    Jan 7, 2015
    1
    Let me tell you something about Blackish. First off, If i were a billionaire, or had a staggering cash sum, the first thing on my list of priorities would be to finance and invest on a whole new spectrum of upcoming T.V awards so I may label Blackish, as perhaps the most Chessy-dipped, corny, cake fluffed piece of work to ever hit national Television. God, i can't even begin to fathom howLet me tell you something about Blackish. First off, If i were a billionaire, or had a staggering cash sum, the first thing on my list of priorities would be to finance and invest on a whole new spectrum of upcoming T.V awards so I may label Blackish, as perhaps the most Chessy-dipped, corny, cake fluffed piece of work to ever hit national Television. God, i can't even begin to fathom how much I hate this show. I mean the jokes (The God Awful Jokes!) slide so profusely off the tongues of the god awful actors that star in it. The kids, wow the kids, let me tell you, the kids... that's another story. The kids are on another level. Hearing them talk will fill the ripples of your brain with heavy cheesy liquid and turn your blood to corny powder dust. The jokes come straight from the Automatic Corny-O Cheesy Machine that lies on the top of Atrocious Joke Mountain. If i didn't mention before, the acting competes with 2nd grade elementary plays. This show is something else. Really, it is. Im giving it a one because the older child has a cool room wallpaper.… Expand
  9. chikaboom
    Oct 18, 2018
    0
    the show is awful. characters are typical hollywood BS creations. the doctor mother - who is NEVER at work -or ever involved in her work. LOL the too hip idiotic grandmother---who is also ..."so street wise." the racist grandfather - who keeps making comments about things that are "white sh**" Can you even imagine show about a white family saying things were "black sh**?" totallythe show is awful. characters are typical hollywood BS creations. the doctor mother - who is NEVER at work -or ever involved in her work. LOL the too hip idiotic grandmother---who is also ..."so street wise." the racist grandfather - who keeps making comments about things that are "white sh**" Can you even imagine show about a white family saying things were "black sh**?" totally obnoxious. and of course the doctor mommy (really not believable) who calls her 20 year old son "my baby". Oh...maybe that's why he is never growing up. Show -sucks. acting sucks. grade D… Expand
  10. Wingmaniff
    Feb 2, 2019
    0
    I find this show racist and offensive! This show just continues to breed racism

Awards & Rankings

39
#39 Best TV Season of 2014
54
#54 Most Discussed TV Season of 2014
46
#46 Most Shared TV Season of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 31 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
  1. The New Yorker
    Reviewed by: Emily Nussbaum
    Mar 2, 2015
    80
    The series has transformed from hokey formula into one of the goofiest, most reliably enjoyable comedies around.
    Read full review
  2. The Daily Beast
    Reviewed by: Kevin Fallon
    Oct 1, 2014
    80
    The show is, first and foremost, incredibly well written, with astute observations about pop culture, particularly as it relates to ethnic identity.
    Read full review
  3. People Weekly
    Reviewed by: Janine Rayford Rubenstein
    Sep 24, 2014
    63
    In all, black-ish is Everybody Hates Chris meets Modern Family, but not quite as funny as either. Well, not yet, at least.
    Read full review
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