The Goodwin Games
FOX | Release Date: May 20, 2013
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
8
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
NewsdayDiane WertsMay 17, 2013
Season 1 Review: There's humor, there's heart, you'll laugh when you don't expect to. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyJeff JensenMay 15, 2013
Season 1 Review: The Goodwin Games will have to consistently match the cleverness and poignancy of its pilot to win in the long run. Coming from the creators of How I Met Your Mother, there's reason to hope. Read full review
70
SalonWilla PaskinMay 21, 2013
Season 1 Review: The first episode isn’t riotous (truly hilarious pilots are rarer than... even truly hilarious sitcoms), but it’s confident and charming and the characters seem fully formed. Read full review
70
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob OwenMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: True, it may be a little too high-concept, but it held my attention much better than plenty of other, much worse TV comedies. Read full review
70
The New York TimesNeil GenzlingerMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: The surprise is that at least from the peppy pilot, it’s possible that this might actually work reasonably well. Read full review
67
HitfixAlan SepinwallMay 21, 2013
Season 1 Review: It's sweet in spots (mainly in scenes involving Miller's ex-con man-child trying to reconnect with his daughter), and the idea has potential, even though this is a premise pilot that has to spend so much time introducing the siblings and the competition that none of it's fully realized. Read full review
67
Uncle BarkyEd BarkMay 16, 2013
Season 1 Review: Goodwin Games isn’t an Olympian comedy but it’s by no means an out-and-out clunker either. Read full review
60
PopMattersMarisa LaScalaMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: Instead of wink-winking at the audience about its own cleverness, The Goodwin Games mostly keeps things moving along at a snappy pace, with jokes as well. When the show gets too pleased with its own eccentricity, though, it becomes grating. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesMary McNamaraMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: Equal parts stupid and sweet, The Goodwin Games does not appear to be built for the long haul. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineMike LechevallierMay 16, 2013
Season 1 Review: The Goodwin Games isn't a sophisticated comedy by any means, and memorable quips are few and far between, but its overall lightheartedness manages to save it from becoming completely dull. Read full review
50
VarietyBrian LowryMay 15, 2013
Season 1 Review: It’s only too bad the writers (Carter Bays, Craig Thomas, Chris Harris) don’t start by grounding their charges with a little more humanity; instead, the trio proves so mismatched and exaggerated as to have a very long way to reach any sort of common ground. Read full review
40
Philadelphia InquirerDavid HiltbrandMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: The writing is clever and crisp at times, but there's little chemistry among the actors. And the premise is contrived and confining. Read full review
40
Boston GlobeMatthew GilbertMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: The Goodwin Games isn’t awful, really, but it might have made a better light-hearted movie than a weekly series. The concept is so limited, it gets very tiresome very fast. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsDavid HinckleyMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: It has funny moments. It’s just not a game we’re likely to want to keep watching. Read full review
40
TV Guide MagazineMatt RoushMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: The "games" in the pilot include a specially designed version of Trivial Pursuit where all the questions reveal aspects of this unhappy clan's back story. That's as clever as Goodwin gets, and except for Newton's daffy sparkle, there's no real incentive to play along. Read full review
38
RedEyeCurt WagnerMay 20, 2013
Season 1 Review: You're likely to understand Fox's hesitation with The Goodwin Games after seeing the premiere, which introduces the characters and the premise, but with only a few laughs. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandMay 16, 2013
Season 1 Review: [The] moderately appealing cast is wasted in a show about three children of a recently deceased rich guy who have to compete among themselves to become the sole heir to his $23 million estate. Read full review
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