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CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION | ||
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Positive:
13
Mixed:
14
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews
Season 1 Review:
In its imperfect stab at capturing the ’70s, the show never stops resembling a bad costume party, as if HBO held a fire sale after its extravagantly doomed record-label drama “Vinyl” was canceled and “I’m Dying Up Here” bought up the entire stock. It seems HBO threw in “Vinyl’s” structural and tonal problems free of charge.
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Season 1 Review:
The drama has a lot going for it, with a strong ensemble of actors. ... There are many people we're supposed to care about, whose lives are not particularly happy, but none has enough screen time to make them sufficiently sympathetic. Too often, they come off as personality types rather than specific people. .... And then the entire ensemble is somewhat overwhelmed by the show's bold, frenzied filming style.
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Season 1 Review:
The laughs, as you can imagine, are few and far between -- what with that death hanging over the comics, who come off as some of the unhappiest, bitter and jealous people ever. ... [Michael Angarano and Clark Duke] play two penniless and naive comics from Boston who come to L.A. seeking fame and fortune. They are funny. I wanted to see more them (and their story) and less of everyone else.
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IndieWireMay 7, 2018
Season 2 Review:
I’m Dying Up Here is stuck on a dead stage, trying out any material it can and failing to pursue the few parts that deserve further exploration. Between a few moving dramatic moments (Ralph, played by Erik Griffin, is underutilized), a few too many crass jokes about women (Clark Duke’s Ron, who performs on “Soul Train,” is really out of place this year), and a few too many familiar story beats, it’s time to pull the cord on this cold mic.
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IndieWireJun 2, 2017
Season 1 Review:
A majority of the characters are either unlikable or uninteresting, and the show’s attempts at relevancy lack a fresh edge. For as much as it wants to parallel the present with candid stories on sexism, racism, and more material covered by the era’s edgiest comics, “I’m Dying Up Here” still feels stuck in the past.
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Season 1 Review:
If all of the characters were as 14-karat authentic as Goldie, I'm Dying Up Here might have had a fighting chance. Instead, even with Jim Carrey on board as an executive producer and Tom Dreesen along for the erratic ride as technical consultant, this Showtime newcomer only intermittently finds its rhythm and hits its stride as compelling drama.
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Season 1 Review:
As drama, the show is inert. After watching four episodes, I realized I’d been watching constant variations of the same narrative arc: Comedian campaigns to get stage time at Goldie’s. Pause for subplots about other comics’ personal lives. Back to Goldie’s for a performance, during which the comedian either “kills” or bombs, after which he or she is just as miserable as when the episode began.
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RogerEbert.comJun 1, 2017
Season 1 Review:
It’s sporadically entertaining and interesting, but cut up by wild tonal shifts, bad editing, and some worse writing. It doesn’t help that the whole thing looks like a bad comedy sketch, complete with gauzy lensing and exaggerated costumes designed to scream ‘70s. Too little of it feels lived-in or genuine.
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TV Guide MagazineMay 25, 2017
Season 1 Review:
Almost everyone's miserable on this Strip. I'm Dying Up Here would feel more alive if it had a sharper focus. [29 May - 11 Jun 2017, p.13]
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