Critical Condition: SMILF

SMILF | SoHo, 9.30 Thursdays

➢ “SMILF certainly has no shortage of ideas. The new comedy delves into a whole host of topics: the ways in which women are objectified, what it’s like to struggle with issues relating to food, how challenging the life of a single mom can be, how demoralising it can be to try to make it as an actress, and how difficult it can be to scrabble for a living in South Boston. What the show doesn’t consistently have in its first three episodes, however, is a sense of how to hone those stories, and make them both structurally sound and specific.” — Variety.

➢ “There is much to like in the pilot for Showtime’s latest dramedy, SMILF, which was created by, stars and is directed and produced by Frankie Shaw (Mr. Robot) …  But it’s the two subsequent episodes of SMILF that truly point to the series being special … Shaw is such a dynamic presence, oddly beautiful without being blow-dried and lacquered with makeup, believable in sweats and slides but also transcending them.” — The Hollywood Reporter.

➢ “Compare SMILF to TV’s other (excellent) single mom series, Pamela Adlon’s Better Things, and the shared custody, setting, and class difference stand out in Shaw’s show. Bridgette isn’t living paycheck-to-paycheck; she’s living without paychecks, or at least enough of them. She’s already fighting for every second of her time off, and the series doesn’t shy away from the persistent, daunting reality of that fight.” — IndieWire.

➢ “One of the best things about SMILF is the way it depicts female resilience in many different contexts. Women: They keep calm, they keep cutting their coupons, and they carry on … SMILF is not quite a great series yet. But in its initial trio of episodes, it’s obvious it has the potential to get there.” — New York magazine.

➢ “Like some past Showtime comedies (Happyish, Nurse Jackie), SMILF has an unsteady tone, swerving from emotional realism to quirkiness to slapstick raunch to abrupt fantasy sequences, in roughly descending order of what works best …What carries SMILF early on is Ms. Shaw’s voice, which, despite the serious undertones, is feisty and high-spirited.” — New York Times.