Derek
Channel 4 | Netflix | Release Date: January 30, 2013
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
63
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 19 Critic Reviews
Positive:
9
Mixed:
9
Negative:
1

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
NewsdayDiane WertsSep 11, 2013
Season 1 Review: It's hilarious, and sad, and ironic, and rich. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyJeff JensenSep 6, 2013
Season 1 Review: The dramedy's first season is alternately nuanced and maudlin, wise and sentimental. You can pick-pick-pick at it--too many metaphors, easy foils, and musical montages--but the whole is greater than the parts, and builds to a reflective, stirring conclusion that is mostly earned. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyKyle AndersonMay 28, 2014
Season 2 Review: The second season mostly upholds the first's tricky precedent, but the absence of regular Gervais associate Karl Pilkington means the yuks are a bit less hearty. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandSep 10, 2013
Season 1 Review: It may be the nicest show you'll ever see. Read full review
75
RedEyeCurt WagnerSep 9, 2013
Season 1 Review: Gervais has written, produced and directed a thoughtful and thought-provoking dramedy that celebrates everyday heroes and the power of kindness while attacking materialism and the way society often forgets people "just because they're old and poor and weak." Read full review
75
People WeeklyTom GliattoSep 6, 2013
Season 1 Review: Even if his acting feels like a sentimental stunt, Gervais wrote and directed the series with gentle skill. [16 Sep 2013, p.41]
70
Washington PostHank StueverMay 30, 2014
Season 2 Review: Derek is an honest and often charming endeavor. Read full review
70
SlateWilla PaskinSep 11, 2013
Season 1 Review: Derek is a fascinating, well-meaning mess, without being a particularly offensive one. Read full review
70
VarietyBrian LowrySep 9, 2013
Season 1 Review: In a way, Gervais himself is the weakest link in what’s otherwise a thoughtful, sometimes-moving seven-episode run. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterTim GoodmanSep 13, 2013
Season 1 Review: The existential aspects of Derek are its best traits (and yes, there will be a second season). The drama and comedy elements are more of a mixed bag. Read full review
60
New York Magazine (Vulture)Matt Zoller SeitzSep 12, 2013
Season 1 Review: Derek is engaging and sometimes very funny. Parts of it are ostentatiously sentimental, verging on gooey. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMatt RoushSep 12, 2013
Season 1 Review: The ever-present but unseen film crew adds a layer of patronizing self-consciousness to a series that is at its best when it relaxes into the slow rhythms of the Broad Hill nursing home, whose residents aren't nearly as hopeless and forlorn as they look. Read full review
60
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob OwenSep 12, 2013
Season 1 Review: There's an appeal to the gentle spirit of Derek but it would have a stronger pull if the plotting was less dull. Read full review
58
Washington PostHank StueverSep 15, 2013
Season 1 Review: It's more of a character sketch than a fully realized story. Read full review
50
New York PostMichael StarrOct 3, 2013
Season 1 Review: It [the (pseudo-documentary) cameras] was effective in The Office; here it’s just repetitive and annoying. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineChuck BowenSep 16, 2013
Season 1 Review: Gervais's efforts to adhere to a coming-of-age formula with a bit of regard for life as it's actually lived are admirable, but his vision is incomplete and often borders on smug. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesMary McNamaraSep 12, 2013
Season 1 Review: It is, by turns, hilarious and histrionic, illuminating and infuriating. Read full review
40
The New York TimesMike HaleSep 11, 2013
Season 1 Review: The mush outweighs the wit, with episodes ending on tides of sentiment. Read full review
25
The A.V. ClubPhil Dyess-NugentJun 4, 2014
Season 2 Review: An episode of The Office or Extras would be wasted on Derek; he’s completely happy when he’s watching an online video of little piggies and bunnies doing cute things. Derek has all the creative ambition of one of those videos, and Gervais has cast himself as the cutest bunny. Read full review
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