Parenthood

TimeJames Poniewozik

Parenthood shows a funny, affecting, distinctive voice that you'll want to keep listening to.

Zap2it (Inside the Box)Rick Porter

Its first two episodes do give the show a very strong foundation on which to build.

Entertainment WeeklyKen Tucker

Parenthood isn't better than "Modern Family," but it's different--it's its own creation, thanks to the deft touch and careful characterizations developed by executive producer Jason Katims and his writers.

New York PostLinda Stasi

While everyone is terrific, Tierney brought it to another level. Graham's Sarah is more frenetic than the low-key Tierney's version, but kudos to Graham for stepping in and making Sarah her own. Solid stuff all around.

Chicago Sun-TimesPaige Wiser

Parenthood strikes all the right notes, although it's not yet can't-miss television. It's sweet and funny and heartbreaking, and relatable to the point of cliche.

NewsdayVerne Gay

Tere's real promise in Parenthood. In time, we may all genuinely care whether Crosby and Sarah find themselves, or at least grow up.

San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman

It does the near impossible for any extended-family drama: It manages to be poignant and funny without becoming ridiculously soapy and larded with cliches.

The New York TimesAlessandra Stanley

The Bravermans are more interesting than the sum of their plights. The actors sparkle, even in muted form, but the Berkeley they inhabit feels a lot like upscale Brentwood, minus the Lexus sports cars and nanny cams.

Hollywood ReporterRandee Dawn

Parenthood, like the experience itself, is an evolving tale, and one worth watching.

VarietyBrian Lowry

All those plot threads could be beneficial in sustaining the series on a serialized basis, but Parenthood's multifaceted vision of family risks feeling too precious in places.

Newark Star-LedgerAlan Sepinwall

Like the movie that inspired it, Parenthood isn’t an instant classic, but it’s smart and warm and knowing, and it casts its net so wide that at least part of it should connect with you.

Los Angeles TimesMary McNamara

Though filled with far more tender and often tear-jerking moments than actual laughs, the first hour of Parenthood seems a solid and steady enough vehicle for such a brilliant cast.

San Jose Mercury News/Contra Costa TimesChuck Barney

What it lacks thus far are the laugh-out-loud oments that made the movie such a joy....That's not to say Parenthood isn't worth a look. Graham, the adorable "Gilmore Girls" alum, rocks the heck out of every scene she's in.

Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan

Even when the show gets a bit melodramatic or overwrought, however, Parenthood's good intentions radiate throughout its many story lines. But do good intentions make for reliably compelling family drama? That depends on your tolerance for its frequent tonal shifts and occasional manic intervals.

Deseret NewsScott D. Pierce

It has a very good cast, and Katims has a great track record. But he doesn't seem to have quite figured this one out yet.

Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen

A decent but slightly pedestrian family drama that throws off a "Brothers & Sisters" vibe whenever its sibling characters are in the same room.

Kansas City StarAaron Barnhart

This one starts out at a frenetic clip, and even A-list talent is helpless in the face of the formulaic banter that such occasions demand. Only when the show slows down--midway through, does Parenthood suggest that it may have something worth watching.

Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray

I've only seen two episodes and while I'm not yet ready to move in with the Bravermans, I'm at least curious to see what they're doing next.

TV GuideMatt Roush

The overstuffed pilot piles on a few too many weepy crises, many involving Adam’s young son (who may have Asperger’s syndrome), but the strong cast’s considerable charm breaks through.

New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley

Parenthood is liberally spiced with humor, and like all Ron Howard productions, it also has regular moments designed to make our hearts feel all toasty. But other parts aren't funny at all for the large Braverman family around which the show revolves.

Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert

Parenthood is a fairly promising ensemble dramedy that shows TV expanding beyond an emphasis on nuclear families to look at broader family systems reaching from ages 5 to 75.

People WeeklyTom Gliatto

This adaptation of the hit 1989 movie is emotionally ample, as any decent family drama should be, but the premiere feels like a dowdier cousin of shows already out there.

Slant MagazineAdam Keleman

With such a talented writer on board, Parenthood deserves a few more episodes to iron out some of its more trite, movie-of-the-week storylines, allowing its multifaceted characters, and all their routine tribulations, to organically manifest as life consequently unravels.

USA TodayRobert Bianco

Unfortunately, whenever the show wanders beyond Graham and Nelson to the generally bland characters around them, your mind may wander as well.

Boston HeraldMark A. Perigard

It’s a series that zips along in one direction, suddenly accelerates in another and veers out of control into a swamp of sugar and schmaltz.

Washington PostHank Stuever

Packed with appealing actors (Peter Krause in the Martin role; Craig T. Nelson in Robards's paterfamilias role), this new Parenthood is boring, disorganized and weirdly missing the tender texture of its original source.

Philadelphia InquirerJonathan Storm

On Parenthood, a top-notch cast of veteran actors struggles to wrestle a mountain of cliches into submission.

PopMattersDaynah Burnett

Even though Parenthood‘s parents are all making completely misguided choices, the series doesn’t consider these as a means to education, through which the adults might reach that kind of self-awareness. That lack of consideration is the series’ most unfortunate waste of a promising storyline, one that could have imbued this second version with something refreshing or even revelatory.

Miami HeraldGlenn Garvin

Watching this dismal intragenerational cluster of families is sort of like seeing a Roots for the cannibal gangs in The Road.