Transparent

:

Season 2
Season #: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
6.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 141 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 92 out of 141
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 141
  3. Negative: 35 out of 141
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User Reviews

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  1. laeknir45
    May 25, 2017
    1
    Interesting at times for exploring history and gender, but this show is mostly about extremely selfish people being incredibly awful to each other in the name of "growth" (which never turns out to be real character growth). Every once in a while, some of the characters do act tenderly toward each other, but those brief moments are swamped by cold manipulation, selfish motivation, evenInteresting at times for exploring history and gender, but this show is mostly about extremely selfish people being incredibly awful to each other in the name of "growth" (which never turns out to be real character growth). Every once in a while, some of the characters do act tenderly toward each other, but those brief moments are swamped by cold manipulation, selfish motivation, even pure narcissism.… Expand
  2. PoeticDumpling
    Dec 12, 2015
    10
    Outstanding series. I never want it to end - very binge-worthy. It is one of those special series that taps into very human moments beautifully (very different, but in the way that Rectify taps into truly human spaces without a whole lot of flash or constant action). I love the exploration of the epigenetics territory this season with the timeline. In episode 2 there are someOutstanding series. I never want it to end - very binge-worthy. It is one of those special series that taps into very human moments beautifully (very different, but in the way that Rectify taps into truly human spaces without a whole lot of flash or constant action). I love the exploration of the epigenetics territory this season with the timeline. In episode 2 there are some profoundly moving moments with Maura without any dialogue. She is an outsider, an observer forging a new path. The whole family is a fascinating dysfunction. I am on episode 5 and love it as much or more than S1.… Expand
  3. katezoe
    Dec 23, 2015
    10
    I loved Season 1 and Season is BRILLIANT! The development of this "modern family" takes the nuclear family to another dimension of understanding, unconditonal love and the world we live in. Outstanding performanes from the entire cast. Jill Soloway is amazing.
  4. tbescherer
    Dec 12, 2015
    10
    So outstanding! Every member of the Pfefferman extended family gives a masterful performance, the musical direction is stunning, the scripts accomplish so much in each episode but feel effortless. I feel like a richer person for having watched this show!
  5. Whadafug
    Dec 14, 2015
    5
    Quite simply, Transparent was a superb single run outing... and it should have been left there. With the impetus to keep the story going, the show has lost much of what gave it merit, and as it has removed itself further from the strong themes at the heart of season 1 it has blindly meandered into the dull world of boring family drama, its only saving grace being a man in a dress.
  6. donaldist
    Dec 20, 2015
    10
    "Transparent"'s most impressive quality is that it doesn't try to be a "transgender" show, zeroing in exclusively on the character of Maura. Maura's decision to transition is an inciting incident for her children to examine their lives, and the show reflects this by gradually focusing more and more on her offspring. The second season benefits from a wider scope, overall, defining Maura's"Transparent"'s most impressive quality is that it doesn't try to be a "transgender" show, zeroing in exclusively on the character of Maura. Maura's decision to transition is an inciting incident for her children to examine their lives, and the show reflects this by gradually focusing more and more on her offspring. The second season benefits from a wider scope, overall, defining Maura's ex-wife Shelly as more than a Jewish stereotype and exhibiting the best cross-decades thematic linking since "The Godfather Part II". It's quite simply one of the best shows on television (if it were on television).… Expand
  7. Ciro
    Dec 12, 2015
    10
    One of the best shows out there, with a very important social role. It is a pity it is only 10 episodes long, because waiting an entire year to se more is too much!
  8. Kaleeshi
    Dec 18, 2015
    1
    Comparing the 'professional' reviews to viewers' may have to do with what in the circle of the first is
    the 'in' thing to like. The firste season was great. This one is like web cam watching.
  9. smartt
    Dec 12, 2015
    6
    This isn't a terrible show but it's just above mediocre. The rave reviews are more likely due to the PC crowd and the subject matter that is the central point of the story and not really on the merit of the show alone.
  10. RichardGonci
    Dec 20, 2015
    6
    I so loved season one. I must admit to some disappointment with season two. That's not to say it's not still in a class by itself. It's just that the primary characters, excepting Jeffrey Tambor's exquisitely wrought lead role, are written in a very unsympathetic palette of near-psychotic "colors." I am not looking for some "Pollyanna-like" resolution to crazy family dynamics, but, gosh,I so loved season one. I must admit to some disappointment with season two. That's not to say it's not still in a class by itself. It's just that the primary characters, excepting Jeffrey Tambor's exquisitely wrought lead role, are written in a very unsympathetic palette of near-psychotic "colors." I am not looking for some "Pollyanna-like" resolution to crazy family dynamics, but, gosh, would it kill the show to make a few human connections go unbroken, or at least be reparable? Cherry Jones breathes remarkable life and nuance against the 2D figures with whom she interacts. Of course, she's also a brilliant actor. Like Jon Voight's character of Mickey Donovan in "Ray Donovan," she commands the screen when she occupies even a portion of it. So, for the flashes of brilliance that endure, I will not pan this show.… Expand
  11. moothemagiccow
    Dec 17, 2015
    4
    The show seems far more interested in doing what no one else is doing than providing any semblance of a coherent story.

    "This is never shown on tv" is basically every episode in Transparent season 2. You never see someone have a miscarriage. You never see people over 65 having sex. You never see nudist lesbian woodland music festivals. You never see post-mastectomy nudity. The    The show seems far more interested in doing what no one else is doing than providing any semblance of a coherent story.

    "This is never shown on tv" is basically every episode in Transparent season 2. You never see someone have a miscarriage. You never see people over 65 having sex. You never see nudist lesbian woodland music festivals. You never see post-mastectomy nudity.

    The trouble is, that novelty doesn't make it interesting on its own. It's like a shock jock yelling out the most taboo words and calling it comedy. A series has to have more than that going on, or else it devolves into a clip show, like America's Ugliest Home Videos.

    The story basically goes nowhere. It's just a hodgepodge of bad decisions by self-obsessed characters. Relationships begin and end on a whim. Supporting characters vanish after having whole episodes focusing on them. The only compelling story is the dramatic irony of watching the main character, Maura, fear coming out to her mother, while flashbacks show her mother as more sympathetic than Maura expected. And even that is anticlimactic.    … Expand
  12. 123456
    Jan 13, 2016
    4
    Well done to this show for not only eschewing convention and having taboo topics covered, but also avoiding cliches like consistent storylines and sympathetic characters. Every single character bounces between situations, or indeed non-situations, with little real consequence, uttering tired dialogue filled with "modern" slang, and generally being dislikeable. I understand the idea thatWell done to this show for not only eschewing convention and having taboo topics covered, but also avoiding cliches like consistent storylines and sympathetic characters. Every single character bounces between situations, or indeed non-situations, with little real consequence, uttering tired dialogue filled with "modern" slang, and generally being dislikeable. I understand the idea that "hey, just because I am trans doesn't mean I need to be likeable" but it's important, at least to me, to like at least some characters in the show.

    Series 1 everyone in the family was so believably making mistakes and living with the outcomes which surrounded this fascinating journey - the writing was fresh and direct and very funny. Series 2 and the humor has been left to a woman smacking her vagina and the mispronunciation of yaas queen, and the journey has reached its destination. There is very little to actually enjoy. As the cliche goes, it's better to travel than to arrive.    … Expand
  13. RogerE
    Feb 28, 2016
    10
    The second season of Transparent was just a good as the first. This modern day drama only gets better and bolder with every episode by taking on issues no one else is focusing on. The characters have genuinely evolved, although Tambor steals the spotlight with his performance as Maura Pfefferman. Jay Duplass and Gaby Hoffman also contribute fantastically to this season. I thoroughlyThe second season of Transparent was just a good as the first. This modern day drama only gets better and bolder with every episode by taking on issues no one else is focusing on. The characters have genuinely evolved, although Tambor steals the spotlight with his performance as Maura Pfefferman. Jay Duplass and Gaby Hoffman also contribute fantastically to this season. I thoroughly enjoyed following Transparent in season two and will continue doing so as the third season starts airing.… Expand
  14. jukebox99
    Feb 7, 2016
    9
    Outstanding Performance from the writers, one of the best shows out there, I have the dvd set for season 1 and I must say im liking the whole show alot more
  15. thwewjej
    Jul 11, 2020
    0
    woke lgbt+ propaganda unfunny cringy and weirdly enough very racist towards white people.

Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Best TV Season of 2015
92
#92 Most Discussed TV Season of 2015
55
#55 Most Shared TV Season of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 28
  3. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. The New Yorker
    Reviewed by: Emily Nussbaum
    Jan 5, 2016
    100
    A TV series that makes revolutionary art seem both irresistible and inevitable.
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  2. The Atlantic
    Reviewed by: Spencer Kornhaber
    Dec 14, 2015
    100
    Its characters use politics as a pretext for making ungenerous choices, and thereby risk undermining the credibility of those politics in general. This allows Transparent to be more bracing, more challenging, and more compelling than most any other show on TV.
    Read full review
  3. Vox.com
    Reviewed by: Emily VanDerWerff
    Dec 14, 2015
    100
    Transparent's second season is the best television of the year.... Season two was an improvement in every way, small and lovely and achingly resonant.
    Read full review
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