The Rehearsal

:

Season 1
  • Network: HBO
  • Series Premiere Date: Jul 15, 2022
Season #: 2, 1
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 56 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 42 out of 56
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 56
  3. Negative: 10 out of 56

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User Reviews

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  1. geewah
    Sep 11, 2022
    6
    The first couple of episodes in this series start with so much promise before it slips into a rather dull and self-obsessive character study by it's end. A wasted opportunity to make something truly fantastic.
  2. EdwardGant
    Jul 16, 2022
    10
    I actually signed up here after just seeing episode 1 of THE REHEARSAL, simply because I want to get the word out. I already loved NATHAN FOR YOU but this is next-level. This episode was funny, profound, heart-breaking and, most importantly in current times, deeply humane. It may also be groundbreaking. It's not at all necessary to have seen NATHAN FOR YOU to appreciate this but II actually signed up here after just seeing episode 1 of THE REHEARSAL, simply because I want to get the word out. I already loved NATHAN FOR YOU but this is next-level. This episode was funny, profound, heart-breaking and, most importantly in current times, deeply humane. It may also be groundbreaking. It's not at all necessary to have seen NATHAN FOR YOU to appreciate this but I recommend it, if only to get accustomed to Fielder's fictional on-screen persona. I always thought Fielder was a major talent but now I think he may be a genius and it's great to see HBO giving him the resources he needs to realise his vision on a suitably absurd scale. I can't wait to see where this series goes next.… Expand
  3. cjhandley
    Jul 16, 2022
    10
    This show is shaping up to be the greatest show in the history of television.
  4. jzathajenius
    Jul 19, 2022
    4
    (Review based on the first episode)

    Nathan For You never really grabbed me, and I suspect if you loved that show you're going to love The Rehearsal too. Conversely, if you didn't click with NFY, this is going to be pretty underwhelming, as it was for me. Interestingly, I ADORE 'How to with John Wilson'... I think that's such a clever and sincere study of the awkwardness and weirdness of    (Review based on the first episode)

    Nathan For You never really grabbed me, and I suspect if you loved that show you're going to love The Rehearsal too. Conversely, if you didn't click with NFY, this is going to be pretty underwhelming, as it was for me. Interestingly, I ADORE 'How to with John Wilson'... I think that's such a clever and sincere study of the awkwardness and weirdness of humanity, and you can definitely feel Nathan's fingerprints all over that show.

    The premise is ok, like its a very Reality TV style gimmick. The execution is just.....eh. Didnt laugh. Didnt cry. Kinda wished it was shorter. It all felt far too staged too, like very little of it felt authentic or organic.

    If its your thing, cool. Just wasnt for me.    … Expand
  5. NavyBean
    Jul 16, 2022
    10
    Weird. Profound. Wonderful. I have watched it 5x in 20 hours. I cannot get enough of it. Nathan is a GD genius.
  6. FelicityFenwick
    Jul 16, 2022
    9
    That first episode is insane! Loved it.... Fired up to see where it goes from here.
  7. drunksh1t
    Jul 17, 2022
    10
    this first episode starts kinda slow but beside that 9.9. THIS is post-modern comedy. It is time to transcend chappelle and john stewart humor.
  8. OlivierPiel
    Jul 25, 2022
    3
    Art is totally pointless. But it is is beautiful. Nathan just forgot the second part.
    This show is very NYish, neurotic, navel gazing, self-deprecating, Jewish, very Faustian just as in Woody Allen, Seinfeld etc...but with such abysmally low stakes, and without the humour ...plus a disgusting waste of money, it rings of bad taste (for a French viewer like myself): It's like watching a    Art is totally pointless. But it is is beautiful. Nathan just forgot the second part.
    This show is very NYish, neurotic, navel gazing, self-deprecating, Jewish, very Faustian just as in Woody Allen, Seinfeld etc...but with such abysmally low stakes, and without the humour ...plus a disgusting waste of money, it rings of bad taste (for a French viewer like myself): It's like watching a whole NASA team of nerds trying to open an oyster with a high-precision laser so that no one gets hurt.    … Expand
  9. MickVV
    Aug 23, 2022
    1
    Starts well enough in the first few episodes but by the end the pointless waste of the whole enterprise is evident. As satire it's blandly repetitive and too often humorless. As introspection it's ultimately vacuous and never moving. At its core, it's a work of almost pure bad faith.
  10. Axilrod
    Jul 18, 2022
    10
    Wow, amazing follow up to Nathan For You. Essentially he took the rehearsal scene from Finding Frances and got an HBO budget and ran with it. The lengths he's willing to go to are just astounding. There is more depth there than in Nathan for You, and while it still has hilarious moments it definitely makes you feel a wider range of emotions. And I think it's easier to empathize with aWow, amazing follow up to Nathan For You. Essentially he took the rehearsal scene from Finding Frances and got an HBO budget and ran with it. The lengths he's willing to go to are just astounding. There is more depth there than in Nathan for You, and while it still has hilarious moments it definitely makes you feel a wider range of emotions. And I think it's easier to empathize with a person dealing with a personal problem than someone getting help with a business. Really interesting window into human behavior. Nathan will go down as one of the all-time comedy greats. Cant wait to see the rest of the season.… Expand
  11. Everwilko
    Jul 16, 2022
    10
    Nathan shows again his genius in this particular show ! The follow-up of Nathan For You (more precisely it latest mood episode) bring humor, drama and stress situation to another level. Please watch it.
  12. werecar2
    Jul 19, 2022
    10
    I was doubtful as the trailer was a bit confusing, but my family watched this last night and it was just incredible. Unique plot, sympathetic characters and unlike anything you have seen on TV before. After watching it I immediately set the DVR to record every episode. Highly recommend.
  13. ousta
    Jul 17, 2022
    1
    underwhelming first episode. really lacking of depth and empathy, the baseline of the lie is weak and really exageratted to an extent that spending all this money into making the show happen seems like a waste of money. lets hope for better next episodes
  14. carlossolrac
    Sep 20, 2022
    10
    Meta on meta plus meta. Nathan Fielder is a genius. I love his work. You must watch this and enjoy it. I love you.
  15. anotheropinion1
    Jul 19, 2022
    10
    This is it folks, peak cringe. It's glorious

    First episode was good, concept is amazing.
  16. samoan62
    Dec 15, 2022
    9
    Episode one of this show is hands down the funniest thing I've seen on TV in years. I was dying laughing the whole time. The other episodes are still good, but some aren't great. The first episode just sets the bar a bit too high for the rest. Still enjoyed the whole thing and highly recommend!
  17. moth3
    Sep 26, 2022
    4
    Incredibly entertaining narcisstic nonsense. I appreciate how Fielder is forcing his bros/fans to self-examine themselves. I hope he continues to take them further down the rabbit hole in season 2. It's jolly good fun to watch them squirm over on reddit.
  18. CarlElmore
    Jan 23, 2023
    10
    This whole show is a bunch of "what the **** moments that make you question your sanity.

Awards & Rankings

23
#23 Best TV Season of 2022
34
#34 Most Discussed TV Season of 2022

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
86

Universal acclaim - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 23
  3. Negative: 1 out of 23
  1. The New Yorker
    Reviewed by: Richard Brody
    Aug 9, 2022
    30
    In voice-over, Nathan expresses an odd bewilderment about his power to “create feelings for other people’s rehearsals” but not for himself. It’s a bewilderment that reflects the intellectual and emotional blankness at the center of “The Rehearsal.” ... His cleverness masks the hollowness of his schemes. No digression, no incidentals, no loose ends can intrude on Fielder’s taut, compact, self-contained sketches. He looks the Look at the people he films, but doesn’t seem to see them.
    Read full review
  2. The Atlantic
    Reviewed by: Shirley Li
    Jul 27, 2022
    95
    Through it all, you’re not entirely sure of what you’re seeing, but what you’re seeing is so oddly addictive, you can’t help but continue looking.
    Read full review
  3. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Kathryn VanArendonk
    Jul 19, 2022
    100
    It is meant to disorient the viewer, and it works. ... Most important, it feels true. It is true enough that as the rehearsals play out, as more and more twists and M.C. Escher–esque turns are introduced into the rehearsal process, your body registers them as true and responds accordingly. You cannot help but want to cringe because it’s so byzantine and so simultaneously emotionally naked. Like it or not, that sensation of bodily distress is the feeling of Fielder’s rehearsals succeeding.
    Read full review
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