Red Band Society

:

Season 1
  • Network: FOX
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 17, 2014
Metascore
58

Mixed or average reviews - based on 36 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 36
  3. Negative: 4 out of 36
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Critic Reviews

  1. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Robert Lloyd
    Sep 17, 2014
    60
    If it plays havoc with the realities of medical practice, well, so did "House." And to glamorize, sanitize and romanticize illness is, after all, an old Hollywood tradition; and this is a show with a target audience for whom even death, in soft enough focus, can constitute a sort of wish fulfillment.
  2. TV Guide Magazine
    Reviewed by: Matt Roush
    Sep 17, 2014
    60
    The fault in Red Band Society isn't in the stars, but in the over-writing.
  3. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Alessandra Stanley
    Sep 16, 2014
    60
    Red Band Society has a tone that is both sassy and sorrowful, a carefully calculated balance of humor and sentiment. The pilot episode, however, leans too heavily on emotional tugs.
  5. Time
    Reviewed by: James Poniewozik
    Sep 16, 2014
    60
    Promisingly, the pilot of Red Band (like Glee‘s) has a ton of voice, but its tone wobbles wildly as it overcorrects away from sentimentality and then straight into it.
  6. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
    Reviewed by: Rob Owen
    Sep 16, 2014
    60
    "Glee" benefitted from the novelty of its musical performance and high-camp humor. Red Band Society has almost no unique attributes, which renders it an OK but not outstanding teen soap.
  7. Newsday
    Reviewed by: Verne Gay
    Sep 15, 2014
    58
    This is an extremely tough balancing act or--back to the musical analogy--this is a show where the notes have to play exactly right. They don't here.
  8. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: David Hinckley
    Sep 17, 2014
    50
    The cast works well together. They just have to fight some implausible setups and jarring shifts from clever and poignant to sappy and slapstick. ... Even assuming the show can keep the cast sick enough to be in the hospital, but so not sick it just gets sad, it may be hard to sustain this story over a full season.
  9. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: David Wiegand
    Sep 15, 2014
    50
    The writing is loaded with cheap sentimentality, and dripping with saline poignancy, as you might expect. The likability of the young cast members almost counterbalances the schmaltz.
  10. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Robert Rorke
    Sep 10, 2014
    50
    [Octavia Spencer is] cast as the one-note, wise-cracking Nurse Jackson--who works alongside Dr. Jack McAndrew (David Annable)--her talents are largely wasted in a role that’s seriously underwritten.... The feelgood message of this show is so relentlessly upbeat--like the music that nearly drowns out every scene.
  11. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Sonia Saraiya
    Sep 15, 2014
    42
    The premiere tries to do too much with too little, and even though the cast gives it their all, Red Band Society never finds the right note.
  12. The Detroit News
    Reviewed by: Tom Long
    Sep 12, 2014
    42
    Cliches bounce off one another in a slick combination of gallows humor, inspirational bonding, deep thoughts and maudlin moments.
  13. The Huffington Post
    Reviewed by: Maureen Ryan
    Sep 17, 2014
    40
    To really hook into this drama, you have to care about the kids and their fates, but to me, they all remained predictable types throughout, and the show did a poor job of showcasing the terrific Octavia Spencer.
  14. PopMatters
    Reviewed by: Cynthia Fuchs
    Sep 17, 2014
    40
    While you want to love the mere existence of Octavia Spencer on TV every week, the show works awfully hard to make this hard.
  15. Variety
    Reviewed by: Brian Lowry
    Sep 16, 2014
    40
    The premiere feels less inspired than cynical--a project where the motivation seems not so much inspired by creativity as by demographics, and the potential to reel in a younger audience.
  16. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: David Hiltbrand
    Sep 16, 2014
    40
    Red Band Society (the name comes from their hospital bracelets) aims for the poignancy of the runaway teen bestseller The Fault in Our Stars, but the TV project is too transparent in the way it goes about tugging on your sympathies.
  17. The New Yorker
    Reviewed by: Emily Nussbaum
    Sep 9, 2014
    40
    The show mines a primal adolescent fantasy: that sickness might be a form of glamour, making a person special and deeper than other humans. Everyone thinks that when you go to the hospital life stops,” Coma Boy intones. “But it’s just the opposite: life starts.” Whether you find this conceit offensive or escapist will depend on your mood. For me, the crassness outweighed any charm.

Awards & Rankings

68
#68 Most Discussed TV Season of 2014

User Reviews

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User Score
7.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 78 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 58 out of 78
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 78
  3. Negative: 10 out of 78
  1. OpinionatedGuy
    Sep 18, 2014
    8
    To call this show "the cancer version of Glee without the musical" or the "TV version of The Fault in Our Stars" is not how you shouldTo call this show "the cancer version of Glee without the musical" or the "TV version of The Fault in Our Stars" is not how you should describe this show. Yes, this could be Fox’s new Glee but it stands out alone without the stigma of being one.

    I would like to start this review with what’s wrong with the first episode. The setting of the hospital felt weird and unrealistic. It’s weird to see patients wearing the clothes in the show as if they never had a disease at all. Aren’t they supposed to wear their PJs or those hospital clothes? I find this part quite troubling. Also, is it actually possible to decorate your rented hospital room as if you’re in a college dorm? I don’t think most hospitals would allow this. If otherwise, that’s pretty cool but if this doesn’t happen on most hospitals, then it’s not realistic to me as far as I know.

    Another downside to this episode is that the adult characters seemed to be uninteresting. Even if the funny, witty Nurse Jackson, played by Oscar winner Octavia Spencer is not interesting enough to know her backstory.

    What really stole the show are the teenage characters which they have to carry the show and they did it wonderfully. They’re very likable and as a teenager writing this review seemed to be biased but hey, I like them! While they’re not the realistic portrayals of an average teenager, they’re not the unrealistic portrayals of an average teenager either. The way they think has a point and it makes sense and it’s something that comes from an average teenager, it’s just that it can be chessy and melodramatic at times. But nonetheless, this makes them likable for me to watch.

    While I do like them, it seemed like the most cliched character in the show was Kara. She is that cheerleader with a lot of problems that she uses her mean attitude to make herself better and I felt like I have seen that in another teenager book/movie/show. But her conflict is just enough to pass on how cliched the character is. I want to see the character develop and reflect on the things she has done.

    The character I relate to the most was Charlie. I think he is the most realistic character in the show. His thoughts are the ones that are realistic without being melodramatic. My concern for this character is how they will develop this character even though he has a coma. Will he wake up in the middle of the show? Time will tell.

    The teenage cast of the show played their roles well. It’s just enough to make me believe that they’re playing their characters as themselves, not just a bunch of teenage actors acting their characters.

    The tone of comedy and drama are balanced perfectly in this episode. It doesn’t take itself too seriously and has its fair share of light hearted moments.

    Lastly, the plot sure knows how to set up the storylines coming for some of the characters especially Kara, Charlie and Jordi.

    I hope this show grows a little bit more with many upcoming episodes along the way but this first episode of Red Band Society sold me to keep tuning in for more.    … Full Review »
  2. Hollywoodsucks
    Oct 26, 2014
    0
    Horrible show. The sappy dialogue, overtly obvious characters and constant stream of inaccuracies make for a giant horse pill of a show to tryHorrible show. The sappy dialogue, overtly obvious characters and constant stream of inaccuracies make for a giant horse pill of a show to try and swallow. If I was playing a drinking game where I took a drink every time there was something wrong in the show, I would have alcohol poisoning within the first ten minutes of the show! As a nurse, I am offended by the writers' idea of a hospital and the people in it. writing about something as serious as fatal illness and the healthcare it requires is risky because it's inevitable that mistakes will be made. In this show's case it seems they went out of there way to get everything wrong and then add a little extra wrongness in for added spice. If this show survives the season I will lose the last shred of respect I hold for tv storytelling.… Full Review »
  3. nutellaisgreat
    Oct 2, 2014
    0
    If you've had cancer or seen someone have cancer then you know that red band society is stupid and lying. People who have cancer are sicklyIf you've had cancer or seen someone have cancer then you know that red band society is stupid and lying. People who have cancer are sickly and throw up. Instead of spending money and time on a stupid lying tv show that is so untruthful and false spend it on researching how to cure cancer. end this show now.… Full Review »
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