Brothers & Sisters
ABC | Release Date: September 24, 2006
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
51
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 28 Critic Reviews
Positive:
9
Mixed:
12
Negative:
7

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
Baltimore SunDavid Zurawik
Season 1 Review: A network series potentially good enough to be on HBO. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalDorothy Rabinowitz
Season 1 Review: There are precious few signs of trouble or uncertainty in the polished, instantaneously seductive finished product on display in its first episode. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyJessica ShawOct 25, 2010
Season 5 Review: The much-needed fast-forwarding of this family sudser continues to help the characters who'd become so tedious by the end of last season. [9 Oct 2010, p.69]
75
San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman
Season 1 Review: The promise of grown up storytelling is alluring. This is a series to watch to see if it grows. Read full review
75
Detroit Free PressMike Duffy
Season 1 Review: With fun, familiar faces like Field, Flockhart and Griffiths on board, attending a family reunion with the Walkers every Sunday could be a lively, entertaining way to end the weekend. Read full review
75
New York PostLinda Stasi
Season 1 Review: Once "Brothers & Sisters" gets started, it works, and it works well. Read full review
75
USA TodayRobert Bianco
Season 1 Review: TV desperately needs a straightforward drama that explores family dynamics without some imposed gimmick, and Brothers & Sisters could just be the show to fill that bill. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)John Leonard
Season 1 Review: Despite cast changes, rewrites, and producer musical chairs, this brainy soap checks in with promise. Read full review
70
Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan
Season 1 Review: Meeting the Walker clan and getting a glimpse at their personal lives... is like being led to a table of tantalizing appetizers. Even as you take a sample of these introductory delights, you’re wondering whether the main course will live up to your expectations. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMatt Roush
Season 1 Review: On the glossy surface, it’s an earnestly predictable but impeccably produced soap opera. [13 Sep 2006] Read full review
60
The New York TimesAlessandra Stanley
Season 1 Review: Ms. Flockhart... is not convincing as a woman of conviction. And that is too bad, because “Brothers and Sisters” has wit and grace. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyGillian Flynn
Season 1 Review: The pilot was reshot, and it shows--the timing lurches and scenes grind into each other. [22 Sep 2006, p.90]
50
New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley
Season 1 Review: "Brothers & Sisters" establishes itself as little more than a family gathering you should have no interest in attending. Their dialogue sounds real, but not much of it sounds interesting. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesPaul Brownfield
Season 1 Review: The pilot has a "Steel Magnolias" feel to it: Too many stars, too many faces, too many names, a cornucopia of character business. Read full review
50
NewsdayVerne Gay
Season 1 Review: The good news is that "Brothers & Sisters" isn't even remotely a disaster. The bad news is that it isn't even remotely a success either. Read full review
50
Orlando SentinelHal Boedeker
Season 1 Review: What should be a juicy family soap opera -- the family in question owns a food company -- comes off as a blah banquet. Read full review
50
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen
Season 1 Review: "Brothers & Sisters" may find a way to streamline its storytelling and allow viewers to more easily sort out the huge cast of characters (there are at least 10 series regulars), or it may remain an unwieldy mess. Time will tell. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterBarry Garron
Season 1 Review: "Brothers & Sisters"... has all the traditional themes of unhappy marriage, unmet parental expectations, unexpected financial chicanery and (possibly) unfaithfulness. It deals with them convincingly, though not with any great depth or insight. Read full review
40
Newark Star-LedgerAlan Sepinwall
Season 1 Review: A work in progress. Read full review
40
Seattle Post-IntelligencerMelanie McFarland
Season 1 Review: File this under "We'll See." Read full review
40
Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray
Season 1 Review: Based on the first episode... we're talking predictable prime-time soap. Read full review
38
People WeeklyTom Gliatto
Season 1 Review: The show wants to mix in big themes (politics, money) with a family soap opera, but it just feels bloated and vague. [25 Sep 2006, p.43]
38
Chicago Sun-TimesDoug Elfman
Season 1 Review: A clutter of clunky dialogue that sucks the life out of [Flockhart] and other usually skilled actors. Read full review
30
VarietyBrian Lowry
Season 1 Review: The show seems as if it desperately yearns to be a worthy companion to "Housewives" but lacks the requisite bite, despite political references meant to feel edgy that prove mostly banal. Read full review
30
TimeJames Poniewozik
Season 1 Review: It's the sort of talky tedious drama that is far less intelligent than it clearly thinks it is. Read full review
20
San Jose Mercury News/Contra Costa TimesCharlie McCollum
Season 1 Review: An incoherent, almost unwatchable mess. Read full review
20
Washington PostTom Shales
Season 1 Review: If you're looking for the deep emotional truths that the creators of ABC's would-be heart-tugger imagine they're after, well, pro wrestling might be a good choice. Read full review
10
Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert
Season 1 Review: Not a single note in the premiere of "Brothers & Sisters" rings true. Read full review
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