Parenthood

NBC | PBS | Release Date: March 2, 2010
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
64
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 39 Critic Reviews
Positive:
23
Mixed:
14
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen
Season 1 Review: A decent but slightly pedestrian family drama that throws off a "Brothers & Sisters" vibe whenever its sibling characters are in the same room. Read full review
60
Kansas City StarAaron Barnhart
Season 1 Review: This one starts out at a frenetic clip, and even A-list talent is helpless in the face of the formulaic banter that such occasions demand. Only when the show slows down--midway through, does Parenthood suggest that it may have something worth watching. Read full review
60
Deseret NewsScott D. Pierce
Season 1 Review: It has a very good cast, and Katims has a great track record. But he doesn't seem to have quite figured this one out yet. Read full review
60
Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray
Season 1 Review: I've only seen two episodes and while I'm not yet ready to move in with the Bravermans, I'm at least curious to see what they're doing next. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineMatt Roush
Season 1 Review: The overstuffed pilot piles on a few too many weepy crises, many involving Adam’s young son (who may have Asperger’s syndrome), but the strong cast’s considerable charm breaks through. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley
Season 1 Review: Parenthood is liberally spiced with humor, and like all Ron Howard productions, it also has regular moments designed to make our hearts feel all toasty. But other parts aren't funny at all for the large Braverman family around which the show revolves. Read full review
60
Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert
Season 1 Review: Parenthood is a fairly promising ensemble dramedy that shows TV expanding beyond an emphasis on nuclear families to look at broader family systems reaching from ages 5 to 75. Read full review
50
People WeeklyTom Gliatto
Season 1 Review: This adaptation of the hit 1989 movie is emotionally ample, as any decent family drama should be, but the premiere feels like a dowdier cousin of shows already out there.
50
Slant MagazineAdam Keleman
Season 1 Review: With such a talented writer on board, Parenthood deserves a few more episodes to iron out some of its more trite, movie-of-the-week storylines, allowing its multifaceted characters, and all their routine tribulations, to organically manifest as life consequently unravels. Read full review
50
USA TodayRobert Bianco
Season 1 Review: Unfortunately, whenever the show wanders beyond Graham and Nelson to the generally bland characters around them, your mind may wander as well. Read full review
50
Boston HeraldMark A. Perigard
Season 1 Review: It’s a series that zips along in one direction, suddenly accelerates in another and veers out of control into a swamp of sugar and schmaltz. Read full review
40
PopMattersLesley SmithSep 26, 2013
Season 5 Review: The navel-gazing tenor doesn’t always obscure Parenthood‘s thought-provoking moments, which often also showcase clipped, witty scripting, and lucid acting. Read full review
40
Philadelphia InquirerJonathan Storm
Season 1 Review: On Parenthood, a top-notch cast of veteran actors struggles to wrestle a mountain of cliches into submission. Read full review
40
Washington PostHank Stuever
Season 1 Review: Packed with appealing actors (Peter Krause in the Martin role; Craig T. Nelson in Robards's paterfamilias role), this new Parenthood is boring, disorganized and weirdly missing the tender texture of its original source. Read full review
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