Truth Be Told (2015)
NBC | Release Date: October 16, 2015
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
26
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
0
Mixed:
5
Negative:
15

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
50
Uncle BarkyEd BarkOct 14, 2015
Season 1 Review: The principal cast members are appealing enough, providing perhaps some hope that the material will mature and measure up to them in future episodes. For now, though, it’s mostly hammer-over-the-head time. Read full review
50
NewsdayVerne GayOct 14, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth Be Told doesn't let its issues come from the characters. The issues are the characters. Maybe future episodes will flesh out these people, but they initially serve as stick figures on which to hang "outspoken" opinions seeming not necessarily their own. Read full review
40
Reason.comGlenn GarvinOct 18, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth Be Told is more of a "look at me, I'm not PC!" shout of self-regard. Read full review
40
Los Angeles Daily NewsRob LowmanOct 15, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth Be Told is probably not worth your time. While it tries to be edgy, most of its humor is fairly tame. Read full review
40
VarietyBrian LowryOct 14, 2015
Season 1 Review: The cast works pretty hard to sell the material, but it’s awfully thin, and tackles the topical aspects less aggressively than NBC’s summer sitcom “The Carmichael Show,” which earned a renewal. The main problem is that nothing here feels remotely organic. Read full review
33
Newark Star-LedgerVicki HymanOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: They're all likeable enough, but the set-ups are straight out of a dog-eared playbook. Read full review
30
Los Angeles TimesChris BartonOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: The first episode's reflexive need to be topical quickly feels more like running through a hot topic checklist than situations generated by actual characters. Read full review
30
The WrapDiane GordonOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: Unfortunately, the pilot is awkwardly written, so the cast doesn’t quite mesh. Read full review
25
USA TodayRobert BiancoOct 15, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth is pretty much laugh-free. Read full review
25
Boston HeraldMark A. PerigardOct 15, 2015
Season 1 Review: These couples are just the sort you’d dodge at the office or at a party, so why you’d want to unwind with them on your TV is NBC’s headache. Truth Be Told: Not much fun here. Read full review
25
Washington PostHank StueverOct 14, 2015
Season 1 Review: Setting aside the producers’ aspirationally post-racial pitch, Truth Be Told looks and moves very much like another ho-hum sitcom; there are a few laughs here and there, performed by a likable assemblage of actors--but the same could be said about almost any sitcom in any season. Even if you factor in some skin tone and conversational pitfalls, nothing here seems all that groundbreaking. Read full review
25
The A.V. ClubErik AdamsOct 14, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth Be Told dilutes the chemistry between Bell and Webb by forcing them to be best friends with Gosselaar and Lachey, who appear to be cast for looks first and comedic abilities second.... The gang’s wacky hijinks set up farcical convolutions, none of which can play out because these characters are always saying what’s on their mind. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandSep 23, 2015
Season 1 Review: The concept of the show actually isn’t bad, but the execution is wanting, and then some. Every conversation feels awkward and forced, and of course the supposed jokes just aren’t funny. Read full review
25
St. Louis Post-DispatchGail PenningtonSep 4, 2015
Season 1 Review: Black people and white people can be best friends, and that's the truth. Apparently, however, that friendship can't be funny, or so Truth Be Told easily convinces us. Read full review
20
We Got This CoveredMitchel BroussardOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth Be Told is the worst premiere of the fall, of many falls. Read full review
20
The New York TimesMike HaleOct 15, 2015
Season 1 Review: [Truth Be Told] reduces the conversation about diversity to an endless string of uncomfortable gags. Read full review
10
The Hollywood ReporterTim GoodmanOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth be told, this show is terrible. Read full review
10
Yahoo TVKen TuckerOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: Truth Be Told, is one of the lamest of the year, making bad jokes about current issues ranging from racially-charged language to whether John Mayer appeals only to white people. Read full review
10
The Salt Lake TribuneScott D. PierceOct 14, 2015
Season 1 Review: This show is just plain awful. A wasted half-hour of your life you'll never get back. Read full review
0
New York Magazine (Vulture)Margaret LyonsOct 16, 2015
Season 1 Review: Not a single scene feels authentic, even if we excuse the overexplanations we often see in comedy pilots. This show is not provocative. It is not a conversation-starter, it is not thoughtful, it is not sharp, it is not enlightening. Read full review
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