The confessionals are also more descriptive than reactive, allowing for a documentary-style narrative to build. There’s still drama and intimate insight. ... Gone are sillier subplots: the days of E! producers filling time with Khloé and Scott pulling pranks on momager Kris are no more. That said, there are still witty asides.
It's not quite as unique stylistically as Keeping Up, but it's a good, captivating, and easy watch - which is only going to get more fascinating as we delve into the behind the scenes of some of the biggest headlines of the past 12 months.
Is it a radical departure from their previous show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians on E!, which ended last year? Least spoilery spoiler alert ever: It is not.
The Kardashians have transcended the need for the show, and there’s nothing in the two episodes of the new series made available for review that convinces me otherwise. ... But while it may not offer anything new or especially revelatory, the new series will satisfy fans of the original show who are perfectly content watching the sisters sit in each other’s pristine kitchens in full glam, picking at comically large salads and gossiping about Scott Disick’s latest 21-year-old girlfriend.
As a series about the contemporary lives of Kim Kardashian and family, this is about as well-made and incisive as one could expect; take that however it means to you. But as an argument for the continued dominance of the Kardashians in our culture, it finds itself with little novel to say.
The new show is plagued by an aggressive ennui. ... For longtime fans of the Kardashians, or even the casual spectator, The Kardashians might be a disappointment. The family that is famous for being famous and for shamelessly sharing themselves has refined, toned and polished their brand to an uncanny degree. Nothing here shocks, surprises or titillates.
As always, the Kardashians' lives don't unfold with a great sense of urgency, devoting the first two episodes to the preparations for Kim's "SNL" stint, while eliciting fairly obvious exchanges like her marveling, "This will be live. Live."