Covert Affairs
USA | Release Date: July 13, 2010
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
66
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews
Positive:
22
Mixed:
8
Negative:
3
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
83
Entertainment WeeklyStephan LeeJun 3, 2011
Season 2 Review: Annie Walker tackles a new case--but it feels like a distraction as the Ben mystery continues. [3/10 Jun 2011, p.109]
80
TV Guide MagazineMatt RoushJun 24, 2014
Season 5 Review: It looks like romance will have to wait, as her assignment takes a twist that should keep the agency on edge for most of the season. I'm in. Read full review
80
Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen GrayJul 16, 2013
Season 4 Review: Arthur (Peter Gallagher) and Joan Campbell (Kari Matchett), one of my favorite TV pairings, continue to provide tantalizing glimpses of a marriage complicated enough to deserve its own spin-off. Read full review
80
VarietyBrian Lowry
Season 1 Review: The pilot rumbles forward on crisp action and light-hearted humor, while hinting at higher stakes that offer room for narrative growth. While easily dismissed as another "Alias" (like Jennifer Garner, Perabo can do wonderful things to a simple skirt and heels), the show also makes clever use of Walker's newbie status. Read full review
80
The New York TimesAlessandra Stanley
Season 1 Review: Covert Affairs is fun and clever and Ms. Perabo has panache in the role. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterRandee Dawn
Season 1 Review: It's perfect summer television--just turn off the excess brain cells and let Agent Walker do the seduction, and the shooting, for you. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesMary McNamara
Season 1 Review: Covert Affairs may not have the revenge factor of "Burn Notice" or the bromantic banter of "White Collar," but it's fast-paced, fun and every bit as charming. Read full review
80
Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray
Season 1 Review: But it's Perabo, as an endearing overachiever who thinks on her well-shod feet, who makes Covert Affairs such an entertaining ride. Read full review
80
Zap2it (Inside the Box)Hanh Nguyen
Season 1 Review: With Covert Affairs, USA has added another slick and likable drama to its summer lineup. Read full review
80
SlateTroy Patterson
Season 1 Review: Covert Affairs is a zippy character study, and it puts Perabo's features to playful use in the earliest moments of the pilot, filling the screen with them in a context where they're begging to be studied. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalDorothy Rabinowitz
Season 1 Review: It promised, in short, steadily absorbing plots and skilled writing, and these the series has delivered ever since. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandJul 10, 2012
Season 3 Review: One of the many smart things about Covert Affairs is that the writers have always dangled Annie and Auggie's romantic possibilities before us, but without detracting from the international intrigue that remains the show's primary focus. Read full review
75
People WeeklyTom GliattoJul 18, 2011
Season 2 Review: In season 2 this fluffy spy caper about gorgeous CIA operative Annie Walker is starting to deliver on the seductive fun promised by Piper Perabo's sly, flirtatious smile in the opening credits. [25 Jul 2011, p.40]
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandJun 7, 2011
Season 2 Review: Don't try too hard to make sense of it: Covert Affairs is simply--and simple--fun. Read full review
75
USA TodayRobert BiancoJun 6, 2011
Season 2 Review: [The premiere is] another well-told story that gives us a bit more insight into the pair while the season's two interconnected running story lines spool out behind them. Read full review
75
USA TodayRobert Bianco
Season 1 Review: Still, in keeping with USA's sunnier outlook, this is a far lighter show than Alias: less complicated, less morally complex, less deep and, while fun, just simply "less." Read full review
70
The Huffington PostMaureen RyanJul 16, 2013
Season 4 Review: This amiable, entertaining show isn't trying to change the world or strain the boundaries of scripted television, and that's just fine. Read full review
70
Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert
Season 1 Review: The mood is bright and whimsical--easy to take and just as easy to forget. Read full review
70
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen
Season 1 Review: Pretty much every character and character trait will be old-hat to regular TV viewers but director Tim Matheson makes the pilot episode hang together pretty well. Read full review
70
Washington PostHank Stuever
Season 1 Review: Covert Affairs (could there be any title that sounds more like being stuck at the airport with nothing to read?) at least does us the favor of introducing storylines that transcend the usual case files. Read full review
67
Boston HeraldMark A. Perigard
Season 1 Review: If the show can strike a balance between chuckles and capers, Covert Affairs won't be a secret. It will be USA Network's biggest hit. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesPaige Wiser
Season 1 Review: The series is fun, slick and fast, but cheesier than it needs to be. Read full review
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