ABC | Release Date: September 17, 1996
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
72
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 25 Critic Reviews
Positive:
16
Mixed:
9
Negative:
0
100
USA TodayMatt RoushMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: As you watch the smart, sophisticated, sharply written and slickly directed Spin City strut its stuff, memories of Murphy Brown's early days may come to mind. Dominating a volatile, high-profile workplace and supported by a crackerjack cast, Fox demonstrates superb and crafty comic timing in a tailor-made role. [17 Sept 1996, p.1D]
100
Orlando SentinelHal BoedekerMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Spin City has a premise with potential, a superb supporting cast and a leading man of great appeal. The sophisticated series should be the fall's winner by a landslide. [17 Sept 1996, p.E1]
100
New York Daily NewsDavid BianculliMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Every few years, if we're lucky, a new sitcom arrives that is so effortlessly funny, its characters so perfectly realized, that it seems more like a third-season opener than a fresh-from-the-box pilot. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" was that way; so were "Taxi," "Cheers" and "Frasier," to name a few others...I may be overstating things, but I don't think I am, by placing tonight's Michael J. Fox showcase, ABC's Spin City, in the same league. [17 Sept 1996, p.70]
100
Chicago Sun-TimesLon GrahnkeMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Reunited with "Family Ties" creator Gary David Goldberg, movie star Michael J. Fox scores a landslide victory in his terrific TV comeback. [16 Sept 1996, p.35]
90
St. Louis Post-DispatchGail PenningtonMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: But most importantly, Spin City should be a hit because of Fox, who's never been more likable than he is here. [17 Sept 1996, p.6D]
90
Los Angeles TimesHoward RosenbergMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Spin City just happens to be very funny. [17 Sept 1996, p.F1]
90
Denver PostJoanne OstrowMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Based on both content and time slot - between "Home Improvement" and "NYPD Blue" - Spin City is potentially the breakout hit of the season. [17 Sept 1996]
90
Boston HeraldMonica CollinsMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: A devilishly discerning comedy. [17 Sept 1996, p.39]
88
San Diego Union-TribuneJohn FreemanMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: It's one of those premiere episodes that look and feel as if the best is yet to come. [17 Sept 1996, p.E1]
75
Miami HeraldRobin DoughertyMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Fox's return to prime-time TV finds him hitting his mark...What's more, the actor is surrounded by a likable cast. [17 Sept 1996, p.1C]
70
Washington PostTom ShalesMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Spin City is firing on all cylinders. It's a slick little contraption custom-built by professionals, and if it's not exactly full of surprises, at least it's roaringly competent. [17 Sept 1996, p.B01]
70
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRobert BiancoMar 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: Everything about City does not spin with equal balance. The pilot's plot (the mayor stumbles into a gay rights controversy) is so hackneyed and out-of-touch, it makes you wonder if the writers have been to New York in the last decade. But the spin doctors at Spin City insist the plot's creakiness is an aberration - and so many other things in the show go well, I'm inclined to believe them. [17 Sept 1996, p.D-4]