Instinct
CBS | Release Date: March 18, 2018
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
53
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews
Positive:
1
Mixed:
11
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
70
VarietySonia SaraiyaMar 7, 2018
Season 1 Review: Though the cases themselves are often convoluted beyond reason, the character stories outside the cases mesh together very well. It’s actually interesting to see how Lizzie and Dylan’s relationship might evolve, even and especially if there is no romantic undertone to it. Instinct isn’t exactly a reinvention of the form, but it’s solid, fun mystery storytelling. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterTim GoodmanMar 16, 2018
Season 1 Review: The appeal of Instinct isn't so much in the predictable movements therein, but in Cumming himself. It's a winning combination, if you like these kinds of shows. ... It's helpful that Novakovic is also quite likable as the feisty dynamo detective. Read full review
58
Boston HeraldMark A. PerigardMar 15, 2018
Season 1 Review: If only Instinct had a little more going for itself, it might be worth making room on your DVR. Read full review
58
Colorado Springs GazetteTerry TerronesMar 15, 2018
Season 1 Review: Cumming is believable as a college professor, but not so much as a spy. Read full review
50
Cleveland Plain DealerMark DawidziakMar 19, 2018
Season 1 Review: It's all pleasant enough fare, but here we have a lead performance that demands better than fair. Read full review
50
New York PostRobert RorkeMar 16, 2018
Season 1 Review: If you’re looking for an update of “Murder, She Wrote,” then “Instinct” might be the show for you. Read full review
50
Uncle BarkyEd BarkMar 16, 2018
Season 1 Review: The premise may not sound shopworn. But CBS’ Instinct otherwise is extraordinarily ordinary at best as a midseason replacement for the failed Wisdom of the Crowd. Read full review
50
NewsdayVerne GayMar 16, 2018
Season 1 Review: By-the-numbers procedural with a pair of appealing leads. Otherwise, by-the-book bland. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJohn AndersonMar 15, 2018
Season 1 Review: Mr. Cumming is not quite sure who his character is. Nor is he given a heartbeat to settle into something. ... Ms. Novakovic, it should be said, is wonderful. Lizzie is a fully formed entity. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandMar 13, 2018
Season 1 Review: In spite of its overall lack of imagination, Instinct has promise, but more important, it has Alan Cumming. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Matt Zoller SeitzMar 9, 2018
Season 1 Review: The series, which is adapted from James Patterson’s book Murder Games, is an otherwise standard-issue CBS crime series, violent but not too gruesome, mildly eccentric but not too weird, about a charismatic, rule-breaking man solving crimes with his by-the-book female partner (Bojana Novakovic’s Detective Lizzie Needham). Read full review
40
Washington PostHank StueverMar 16, 2018
Season 1 Review: It’s unabashedly rote. ... Attempts to mask Instinct’s shortcomings with Cumming’s dapper, devilish manner don’t help all that much. Read full review
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