OR

Email Address

Password

Forgot password?

Carnival Row

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 28 Critic Reviews

See All

58

USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 168 Ratings

See All

7.4

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

7.4	Your Score
7.4	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 168 Ratings

Would you like to write a review?

There is a 75 character minimum for reviews. If your review contains spoilers, please check the Spoiler box. Please do not use ALL CAPS. There is no linking or other HTML allowed. Your review may be edited for content. 0/5000

Check box if your review contains spoilers

Play Sound

Please enter your birth date to watch this video:

You are not allowed to view this material at this time.

Carnival Row: Refugees Of Carnival Row

Now Playing: Carnival Row: Refugees Of Carnival Row

Carnival Row

Series Details & Credits

Prime Video | Amazon Prime Video | Release Date: August 30, 2019

Summary: Set in a neo-Victorian city where supernatural war refugees have settled, Detective Rycroft Philostrate (Orlando Bloom) reconnects with faerie Vignette Stonemoss (Cara Delevingn) and investigates a number of murders in the fantasy drama.

Genre(s): Drama, Fantasy, Suspense

Recent Episodes

tbd
S2:E10. Carnival Row
Air Date: March 16, 2023
tbd
S2:E9. Battle Lines
Air Date: March 16, 2023
tbd
S2:E8. Facta Non Verba
Air Date: March 9, 2023

See all Seasons and Episodes

Metascore

58

Positive:

10

Mixed:

17

Negative:

1

Critic Reviews

80

The Independent Ed Power

Jan 3, 2020

Season 1 Review: The world Carnival Row creates is handsomely realised and sufficiently different from Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings etc to feel like its own unique corner of the fantasy universe. Read full review

75

Uncle Barky Ed Bark

Aug 30, 2019

Season 1 Review: Carnival Row, whether airborne or down-to-earth gritty, keeps flexing the power of its oft-breathtaking visuals. The worlds it creates are the greater sums of its whole while the messages it sends can be a little two telegraphed. Read full review

70

RogerEbert.com Allison Shoemaker

Aug 27, 2019

Season 1 Review: Like many a silly novel, it is a shambles, but an enjoyable one, and as long as you’re up for some full-throated groans (Tourmaline Larou?!) you’ll be rewarded with a long, messy, and satisfying distraction. Read full review

50

The A.V. Club

Danette Chavez

Aug 28, 2019

Season 1 Review: As it stands, season one offers an outline for the type of show Carnival Row wants to be—mixed genres and all—instead of the Thrones successor Amazon is banking on with an early renewal. Read full review

50

IGN

Samantha Nelson

Jun 1, 2023

Season 2 Review: Bland intrigue, a lack of mystery, and too little time spent with its best characters has sapped this show’s magic and left only dour drama behind. Read full review

50

Slant Magazine

Hayden Mears

Feb 15, 2023

Season 2 Review: The creative team smartly kept the show’s universe manageable with tightly interwoven arcs, but the second season doesn’t retain that focus. Thus, the most promising character arcs grind to confounding halts, leaving key conflicts unresolved and ultimately failing to justify the inclusion of these subplots at all. Read full review

30

Time

Judy Berman

Aug 28, 2019

Season 1 Review: What is by turns a Jack the Ripper riff, an Austen-style comedy of manners and a dark political thriller (starring the great Jared Harris), with a Dickensian street gang and a fairy brothel thrown in for kicks. These story lines rarely intersect with one another or with the show’s themes of anti-imperialism and tolerance in a way that justifies the collage of references. And hacky dialogue (“Oh, come now, woman!”) doesn’t help. Read full review

SEE ALL 28 REVIEWS

Write a Review

7.4

User Reviews

10

Chriszapf

Oct 25, 2019

Seriously can't wait for more. I was immediately hooked into this world and and really like the fact that you had to pay attention throughout the series to get all the connections between the characters and also like their development.

5 of 8 users found this helpful53

10

DerekSanders

Sep 3, 2019

A great show with excellent special effects. If you like steam punk and fantasy genres, then you'll likely enjoy this.

7 of 13 users found this helpful76

10

Amarnra

Sep 12, 2019

I loved Carnival Row. The atmosphere and narrative was well created and left me wanting to know more after every episode. Some interesting twists and turns went a long way to make the watch quite gripping the entire way through. The only thing which was uninspiring was the horror and shockI loved Carnival Row. The atmosphere and narrative was well created and left me wanting to know more after every episode. Some interesting twists and turns went a long way to make the watch quite gripping the entire way through. The only thing which was uninspiring was the horror and shock value, which I feel wasn't warranted. It's interesting to note that two of three visible negative reviews cite "forced" or an "overdose" of political correctness. I didn't find that as the case at all. Yes there is a diversity of colours, but the emphasis is on the difference between fae and human, in a world where humans have found a new "other" with which to focus their fear and hatred. I count only a handful of references to humanities unity. I think that the diversity is something which rests in the background, and only truly visible to those who appear view such things as enemies hiding in the shadows, an invasive political correctness maliciously poisoning their TV watching experience and turning good media against them. I think it quite funny, that the views displayed here reflect a commentary which is quite apparent in the show, demonstrated through the fae/human divide. All in all, an excellent watch.… Expand

20 of 25 users found this helpful205

9

KeithsTake

Aug 26, 2020

Excellent, especially for an inaugural season. Cinematic, great story, great acting and is an interesting take on fantasy that compels viewers to make parallels with reality.

3 of 5 users found this helpful32

7

Rwgp922

Sep 17, 2019

Pros: Intesting detective story that tackles politics and racism dressed up by a fantasy world Orlando Bloom Mature with violence and sex scenes Cons: CGI ranges from okay to bad Too many sub plots that dont add to the main plot
Some cheesy dialogue and bad acting Overall: recommend watchingPros: Intesting detective story that tackles politics and racism dressed up by a fantasy world Orlando Bloom Mature with violence and sex scenes Cons: CGI ranges from okay to bad Too many sub plots that dont add to the main plot
Some cheesy dialogue and bad acting Overall: recommend watching as I always wanted to know what was going to happen next. Hope the show gets a bigger budget for season 2 for better CGI… Expand

5 of 8 users found this helpful53

4

papadrew7

Sep 20, 2019

This show failed to create a world for the viewer to understand what the hell is going on. The show starts out showing a group called “the pact” that is conquering the fae and their lands. We are never told who the pact is and why they are waging war against the fae and “the burgue”. Nor areThis show failed to create a world for the viewer to understand what the hell is going on. The show starts out showing a group called “the pact” that is conquering the fae and their lands. We are never told who the pact is and why they are waging war against the fae and “the burgue”. Nor are we told who the puck are or why they are so looked down upon in this make believe world yet it is constantly talked about how the puck are undesirable. Also the pacing is just bad. The show should have started with the first episode being the fourth, the only really good episode of the show. That would have at least given motivation to why certain characters hate each other. Look I barely got through this show and I would not recommend for you to watch it. There is much better stuff on tv than this.… Expand

2 of 14 users found this helpful212

0

mikomido

May 16, 2021

This is all blatant Leftist Propaganda, by Hollywood. In particular this is in support for Open Borders propaganda.

1 of 12 users found this helpful111

SEE ALL 54 REVIEWS

More From Metacritic

What to Watch Right Now on Paramount+

Find a list of the best recent and upcoming film and TV titles added to...

What to Watch Right Now on Amazon's Prime Video

Get a list of the best movie and TV titles recently added (and coming...

What to Watch Right Now on Netflix

Get a list of the best movie and TV titles recently added (and coming...

What to Watch Right Now on Hulu

Get a list of the best movie and TV titles recently added (and coming...

Current TV Shows

By MetascoreBy User Score

1 92 The Pitt: Season 2

2 90 The Celebrity Traitors UK: Season 1

3 87 Hacks: Season 5

4 87 Industry: Season 4

5 87 Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal:...

6 85 The Beatles Anthology

7 85 The Traitors [UK]: Season 4

8 85 Bait: Season 1

9 84 Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!

10 83 Lord of the Flies

11 83 Riot Women: Season 1

12 83 For All Mankind: Season 5

13 81 The Muppet Show (2026)

14 80 Outlander (2014): Season 8

15 80 The Other Bennet Sister: Season 1

16 80 The Mighty Nein: Season 1

17 80 The Comeback: Season 3

18 80 The American Revolution

19 80 One Piece (2023): Season 2

20 80 Dark Winds: Season 4

SEE ALL

Seasons & Episodes

58

Series Overview
Season 2

56
- Season 2 Overview
  Air Date: February 17, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E10. Carnival Row
  Air Date: March 16, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E9. Battle Lines
  Air Date: March 16, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E8. Facta Non Verba
  Air Date: March 9, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E7. Kindred
  Air Date: March 9, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E6. Original Sins
  Air Date: March 2, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E5. Reckoning
  Air Date: March 2, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E4. An Unkindness of Ravens
  Air Date: February 23, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E3. The Martyr's Hand
  Air Date: February 23, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E2. New Dawn
  Air Date: February 16, 2023
- tbd
  S2:E1. Fight or Flight
  Air Date: February 16, 2023
Season 1

58
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: August 30, 2019