• Network: Netflix
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 21, 2022
Season #: 3, 2, 1
User Score
6.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 63 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 39 out of 63
  2. Negative: 17 out of 63
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User Reviews

  1. Sep 30, 2022
    8
    Very subtle and well made psychological exploration of a highly troubled murderer. Good casting. Slow paced. No gore.
  2. Sep 24, 2022
    8
    Surprised the critics rate so low. I find the series very engaging and more than a little horrifying.
  3. Sep 25, 2022
    10
    The best work of Ryan Murphy for Netflix, wow. Love it. Evan Peters is amazing, Niecy Nash too.
  4. Sep 24, 2022
    10
    Evan Peters nails it.
    I have to admit that I am a fan already of this actor, but the plot and how the story of this really troubled killer is told from all angles felt quite entertaining to watch!
  5. Sep 29, 2022
    10
    Not for the faint hearted. The subject matter is extremely disturbing, but the filmmakers did a great job with presenting this horrible true story. I actually didn't know previously how badly the police failed, it was really illuminating. The acting all around was incredible as was the cinematography. If you can handle extreme content definitely check it out.
  6. Oct 3, 2022
    8
    Engrossingly dark series, with great acting and good directing that makes for an interesting watch.
  7. Oct 9, 2022
    10
    Fantastically entertaining, well acted, and very thought provoking. I especially enjoy how the series shows influences and probable reasons behind Dahmer's actions... he was obviously more complex than just a "psychopath" as some claim. Don't listen to critics review bombing this. Just watch it.
Metascore
46

Mixed or average reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 9
  2. Negative: 2 out of 9
  1. Reviewed by: Jessica Winter
    Oct 28, 2022
    50
    It’s quite possible that “Dahmer”—despite brilliant performances from Nash, Peters, and the great Richard Jenkins as Dahmer’s father, Lionel—has no real justification for its own existence. If it does, it might lie in the stubborn but elusive promise underlying most true crime: that the perpetrator and his acts can be, to some extent, “explained.” ... The miniseries struggles with this relative lack of explanatory evidence for Dahmer’s depravity, and so it comes up with its own, sticking close to home. It dials up the crazy on Joyce.
  2. Reviewed by: Jen Chaney
    Sep 26, 2022
    40
    Dahmer has a habit of announcing what kind of show it wants to be instead of actually being that show. ... I can only hope creators will realize there is a way to tell these kinds of stories with more sensitivity and care rather than mere gestures toward sensitivity and care. In the sixth episode, Dahmer does exactly that, but it doesn’t maintain that approach for the entirety of its season. ... It’s admirable that Dahmer wants to honor the victims’ lives and celebrate who Hughes was as a person. But that effort can’t be a complete success in a show that also insists on literally reducing Hughes to a piece of meat.
  3. Reviewed by: Richard Lawson
    Sep 23, 2022
    30
    The show comes close to earning its wallow when it turns to focus on Glenda and others, when it shakes its head angrily at the disregard of the Milwaukee police. But far too much of the show is spent standing over Dahmer’s shoulder, watching him in action. It becomes hard to see the show as anything more than lascivious.