X
- 2019
- TV-MA
- Sundance
- 2019
- TV-MA
- Sundance
Summary Tom and Louise (Chris O'Dowd and Rosamund Pike) meet up in a pub to decide on what to say during their weekly marital therapy sessions in this 10-part short-form comedy series written by Nick Hornby.
Created By: Nick Hornby
- 2019
- TV-MA
- Sundance
- 2019
- TV-MA
- Sundance
State of the Union
Season 1 Premiere: May 6, 2019
79
7.6
Where to Watch
Summary Tom and Louise (Chris O'Dowd and Rosamund Pike) meet up in a pub to decide on what to say during their weekly marital therapy sessions in this 10-part short-form comedy series written by Nick Hornby.
Created By: Nick Hornby
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 17 Critic Reviews
79
88% Positive
15 Reviews
15 Reviews
12% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 17 Critic Reviews
79
88% Positive
15 Reviews
15 Reviews
12% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
They [Nick Hornby, Stephen Frears, Rosamund Pike and Chris O’Dowd] have created something close to a masterpiece (or 10). It seems like a double-marriage of true minds. The quartet make it look effortless, even artless, but every aspect, every frame, every word, every beat is a perfectly considered, crafted and curated thing that creates something even greater than the sum of its parts.
The season gets better as it goes along, and by the end, thanks especially to the appeal of stars Brendan Gleeson and Patricia Clarkson, it has a lot to recommend it — and nothing so much as how easy it is to coast past a stretch of so-so episodes when they’re only 10 minutes apiece.
The narrowness of the show helps it wear its drawing-room lightness well, and it is littered with tiny delights.
Even when the writing feels a little vague or forced, Pike and O’Dowd make the scenes work. ... It’s hard to be pessimistic, because both performances are so expressive, aware and alive.
The conversations that Tom and Louise have are generally funny, skipping around pop culture references ranging from Call the Midwife to the films of Preston Sturges to generational confusion about modern dating. They're also utterly lacerating, things they can't bring themselves to say to a stranger, but know they need to say out loud, even in a public place.
Ben Travers [B+]: I found most every episode to be as engaging, sharply written, and splendidly acted as Season 1.
Steve Greene [B-]: When Season 2 locks into an honest conversation about what they want from the future (instead of surface-level spats about things out of their control), Clarkson and Gleeson really take all of that swirling anxiety and channel it into special moments. I just wish it felt more like a natural progression for both of them.
It is unusual, in a dramatic sense, in that it feels slovenly and sticky when it is all about conflict, but vastly improves when the tension between Ellen and Scott dissipates. Once they begin to have more even-handed chats – about the nature of intimacy and sex; about what they expect from life, now that they have reached this point; and about what it means not only to be happy, but to pursue happiness – then it becomes endearing, and plays to everyone’s strengths.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 28 User Ratings
7.6
79% Positive
22 Ratings
22 Ratings
14% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
7% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 28 User Ratings
7.6
79% Positive
22 Ratings
22 Ratings
14% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
7% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Production Company:
- See-Saw Films
- SundanceTV
Initial Release Date: May 6, 2019
Number of seasons: 2 Seasons
Rating: TV-MA
Awards
Primetime Emmy Awards
• 4 Wins & 5 Nominations
Casting Society of America, USA
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Women's Image Network Awards
• 1 Nomination
