“The Morning Show” could start badly.
The drama starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon and Steve Carell as broadcast reporters working on a “Today” show-like ensemble – with Carrell’s character being boxed for allegations of sexual misconduct to the Matt Lauer and Charlie Rose – is the most publicized original series coming to Apple TV + on Friday. Yet many early reviews of the first three episodes are pretty… bad.
And it’s disturbing, especially since each episode of “The Morning Show” costs Apple AAPL,
more than $ 15 million to be won, according to a Financial Times report – it’s more expensive than an episode of “Game of Thrones”. T from HBO,
bloody medieval drama ran between $ 6 million and $ 8 million per episode until its last two seasons, when some payments started to exceed the $ 15 million mark.
Double variety “The Morning Show” a “confusing, under-thought, and disappointing streaming dud.” Critics have hinted that the show tries to tackle too many provocative topics, including the #MeToo movement, the morning show’s boys’ club, and what the media coverage should and shouldn’t be.
“’The Morning Show’, trying to sell every aspect of its story without committing to telling a single one, is surprisingly short,” summed up Variety’s Daniel D’Addario. “And, worst of all, there isn’t a worthy human in sight.”
TV Line rated it a C + and called it “Sorkin lite preached and confused,” referring to Aaron Sorkin, the creator of the Emmy Award-winning NBC CMCSA,
series “The West Wing” and HBO series “The Newsroom”, which awarded star Jeff Daniels an Emmy for Best Leading Actor.
Rolling Stone said the series “goes up but does not shine” despite an all-star cast. Although he noted that the show “isn’t that great” and praised the performances of Billy Crudup, Witherspoon and Aniston, reviewer Alan Sepinwall complained that the show is a “well-polished hum”.
The Hollywood Reporter slammed him down as a “broadcast snooze,” but added that it had potential. While the first two episodes see the series “struggling and floundering to find its focus, tone, and attitude towards its main characters,” Episode 3 hints at a “more satisfying and confident” show down the line.
“Did the Apple behemoths really enter the crowded original TV market to become the latest author of ‘It’s Finally Getting Better!’ patience test? Asked critic Daniel Feinberg.
But “The Morning Show” already has fans in its corner. AV Club gave it a rave review, calling it “winner”, “cunning” and “timely”, while saying it’s “great fun”. But writer Alex McLevy admitted it “takes a long time to get started” and that the plot is “sprawling and too long”.
Apple TV +, the latest player in a streaming war whose fighters include Netflix NFLX,
Hulu, Amazon AMZN,
DIS Disney,
and others, will go live Friday for $ 4.99 per month. Customers who have recently purchased an iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, or iPod Touch receive a free one-year subscription.
Read more:Now that “Seinfeld” is coming to Netflix, how does it stack up against Amazon, Apple, HBO, Hulu, and Disney?
Other upcoming original series to Apple’s service include “See,” starring “Aquaman “‘s Jason Momoa living in a world where humans have lost their sight; “Dickinson”, with Hailee Steinfeld playing a young Emily Dickinson; and the space racing miniseries “For All Mankind”. Some of their early reviews are also mixed.
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