Party Down
Starz | Release Date: March 20, 2009
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
78
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 51 Critic Reviews
Positive:
42
Mixed:
9
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley
Season 1 Review: The warning bell is that since the team begins as caricatures, the show could become a string of situation jokes. There's room for growth, though, as they say, and the creators wisely mixed up the cast. Read full review
60
SlateTroy Patterson
Season 2 Review: Party Down, which is funny, would seem even funnier if it were not so heavily indebted to the funniest TV shows of recent years. It's also problematic that the show is so highly inconsistent. Read full review
58
IndieWireBen TraversFeb 16, 2023
Season 3 Review: Season 3 extends or recreates arcs from the past, hoping that familiarity will breed a rose-colored fondness. Read full review
50
Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray
Season 1 Review: Tone--and we're talking cringe humor here--only takes you so far, and those looking for "Mars"-like subtlety should look elsewhere. But those who miss Veronica and company might want to tune in for the reunions alone. Read full review
50
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen
Season 1 Review: Party Down can't decide if it wants to be smart-funny or dumb-funny. Maybe if it does, the party will truly begin. Read full review
50
Boston HeraldMark A. Perigard
Season 2 Review: Party Down, about a group of aspiring Hollywood types working as caterers, returns for a second season of stale jokes. Read full review
40
VarietyDaniel D'AddarioFeb 16, 2023
Season 3 Review: In order for its story to work, the characters have to be where we left them, which is not what almost any of them wanted. But it comes to feel dour, tonally unbalanced — a party one cannot wait to leave. Read full review
40
The New York TimesGinia Bellafante
Season 1 Review: A comedy about the ignominy of life as a member of a catering wait staff, Party Down is a great idea inadequately enlivened by desperation. Read full review
40
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
Season 1 Review: There's no shortage of comedy with a semi-improvised flair trafficking in detached irony, but by the end of three catered affairs, I felt every bit as bored and blase about life as Henry. Read full review
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