Genius by Stephen Hawking

:

Season 1
  • Network: PBS
  • Series Premiere Date: Jun 4, 2016
User Score
5.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 5
  3. Negative: 2 out of 5
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User Reviews

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  1. MissMarbles
    Jun 17, 2016
    3
    Ithe was sorely disappointed in this series. I had expected that because Stephen Hawking was associated with it, it would be his take on the latest discoveries in physics and cosmology. Instead, it taught very basic information in a patronizing way, leaving me wondering if it was perhaps aimed at elementary school children. And it was patronizing ight from the introduction, where HawkingIthe was sorely disappointed in this series. I had expected that because Stephen Hawking was associated with it, it would be his take on the latest discoveries in physics and cosmology. Instead, it taught very basic information in a patronizing way, leaving me wondering if it was perhaps aimed at elementary school children. And it was patronizing ight from the introduction, where Hawking says he wanted to let "ordinary" people discover important principles of the universe. Excuse me.... "ordinary"? How does he define that?

    When one episode showed the group of "ordinary" people being presented with a racecar on a track, I thought, "Doppler red shift." And indeed, the big "discovery" these people made, the Doppler effect, took quite a bit of time on the show and was something I had learned about back when I took basic astronomy in college in 1967.In fact, I'm hard-pressed to think of one thing this show presented that I haven't already heard elsewhere. If this series was intended to spark a fascination with physics and astronomy, all I can say is Carl Sagan's "Cosmos" did it a LOT better, and without treating adults like idiots.

    I don't often doze off during a science show, but this one is a great fix for insomnia.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
67

Generally favorable reviews - based on 4 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Melissa Maerz
    May 18, 2016
    50
    The pilot is a slog. ... Watching them drive around in a Back in the Future-style DeLorean is a cute way to illustrate how space-time works, but the lessons are basic high school physics. [20 May 2016, p.55]
  2. Newsday
    Reviewed by: Verne Gay
    May 18, 2016
    83
    Genius can be gimmicky, while those eternal questions about time travel and alien life forms are ultimately beyond the power of TV (or sand piles) to answer. But the value of this series lies in the attempt, which is ambitious and edifying.
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  3. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: David Wiegand
    May 18, 2016
    75
    The six-part series not only makes science accessible, but it’s also fun to watch.
    Read full review
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