Critic Reviews
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Gadd proves he’s not a one-trick pony (or reindeer), but “Half Man” never entirely takes flight.
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The acting is first-class even when this Richard Gadd series shifts catastrophically from shock value to misery porn and murder.
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Half Man is both more ambitious and less accomplished than Baby Reindeer.
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A show designed to sit in the gray of moral complexity, the central dynamic is compelling — though some incohesive narrative choices stop Half Man from reaching its full potential.
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I came out moved—devastated, really—but ambivalent about whether its payoff had been worth the pain.
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A slight and transparent tale of closeted torment and co-dependent craziness.
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Despite some strong writing and the undeniable energy between the two central performers, “Half Man” loses itself, succumbing to a tired necessity to evoke pain without justifying it. It’s misery for the sake of misery.
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Half Man is most provocatively compelling when it paints in shades of gray, when Ruben and Niall are young and their instincts are unclear to each other and to themselves. But as the miniseries exits adolescence, Half Man feels increasingly afraid of the messiness it initially embraced, and increasingly didactic.
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Not only does “Half Man” end without attaining the same level of lived complexity as Gadd’s past work, but its conclusion also ensures the only way to read their story is as an allegory. They’re half-men who add up to even less.
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Gadd has a knack for creating appealing, recognizably human side characters. But they can’t make up for the lack of substance at the center of “Half Man.” .... It’s probably not a good sign when the only people you care about in a show are the ones your hero mistreats.
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I can respect the lines Gadd is drawing between nature and nurture, destiny and self-determination, trauma and healing. I just can’t say I found the unveiling of those truths to be especially enjoyable or revelatory.
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Half Man is a weaker piece of work but, once again, it leaves a nasty taste.
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It feels like a show in search of meaning, a plot looking for a story – and, frankly, it’s a huge misfire.