The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
HBO | BBC | Release Date: March 15, 2009
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 27 Critic Reviews
Positive:
21
Mixed:
4
Negative:
2

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
50
PopMattersCynthia Fuchs
Season 1 Review: The series doesn’t mean to dig deeply into contemporary African social problems or politics, instead, it offers up middlebrow mysteries that can be solved in an episode’s time, a heroine who is keenly observant and positively feminine, a vague sort of half-step forward from Nancy Drew or Jessica Fletcher. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan
Season 1 Review: What comes across as charmingly spare on the page frequently ends up lacking complexity on the screen. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman
Season 1 Review: Ultimately, everybody's affable in this series. There are no sharp right angles, no emotional elbows. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterAndrew Wallenstein
Season 1 Review: While the premise begs a broader comedic treatment, the series is a leisurely paced drama with light jokes that mostly play on its characters' convoluted rendering of the English language. Read full review
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