Trying

:

Season 1
  • Network: Apple TV
  • Series Premiere Date: May 1, 2020
Season #: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
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Critic Reviews

  1. Paste Magazine
    Reviewed by: Amy Amatangelo
    Apr 30, 2020
    90
    Couples on TV spend a lot of time talking about getting pregnant or get pregnant by surprise (see the aforementioned Catastrophe), but rarely does a series so honestly portray the devastation of infertility or the challenges and heartbreak of the adoption process. It’s great to have this much candor in a series that is still so highly entertaining.
  2. The Playlist
    Reviewed by: Andrew Crump
    Oct 5, 2020
    83
    “Trying” has an impish sense of humor, but it tops its comedy with a great heart.
  3. IndieWire
    Reviewed by: Steve Greene
    May 1, 2020
    83
    The first four episodes of this opening season definitely have their charms — Jason’s meet-up with an ex to try to heal some open emotional wounds has some unexpected push-pull moments — the back half is really where “Trying” settles into a groove.
  5. RogerEbert.com
    Reviewed by: Nick Allen
    May 1, 2020
    80
    From the very beginning, Smith and Spall have winning chemistry as a couple you want to root for, hang out with, and watch fumble through this process. ... The way in which “Trying” often successfully layers awkward and genuine makes it compelling.
  6. Decider
    Reviewed by: Joel Keller
    Jun 24, 2020
    70
    It feels that Trying is going to try (pun intended) to get the emotional wringer of the adoption process right instead of falling back on TV cliches about it. It also helps that Smith and Spall play a couple that are great together and you want to see get what they’ve been hoping for.
  7. The Guardian
    Reviewed by: Lucy Mangan
    May 1, 2020
    60
    As is so often the case, the opening episode isn’t its best – there is an over-reliance on the traditional dramatic tropes of the childless couple (making awkward jokes about fontanelles to new mothers and so on), but it quickly finds its feet. ... The genuinely loving, intimate banter between Nikki and Jason in their quieter moments too is one of the series’ greatest strengths.
  8. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Robyn Bahr
    Apr 30, 2020
    60
    At its best, Trying candidly lays bare the emotional filigree of failing to conceive a child and choosing to devote your life to a tiny stranger. At its worst, it yokes us to two unlikable people who grind you down with their endless neuroses.
  9. The Telegraph
    Reviewed by: Michael Hogan
    May 1, 2020
    40
    The zingy script is strongly performed but I spent too much of Trying being faintly irritated by the characters and the cynical way it’s all styled.