Avenue 5

There seem to be some reviews here panning this show for not being true sci-fi. It's not sci-fi, it was never sci-fi, it's social satire. A terrific cast working well together from scene one, although it is true there isn't a lot of warmth or likeable characters. Life has very few of those, either. A couple, maybe. I might know one of them. Not me, but I know one.

The target here is the incompetence of so-called leaders and their inane systems running society and how society seems just fine with that. In real life, people are apparently are not bothered when politicians and captains of industry without skills or knowledge or empathy or investment in the future of humanity send the world crashing sideways into oblivion. But in this show the public are immediately upset that their holiday has gone dangerously wrong. In this sense, Avenue 5 is taking an artistic liberty.

The writing is not as sharp as it could be. Time has been spent instead setting up a much more involved scenario than, say Veep or In The Thick Of It. All we need to know for those shows was that manipulative jerks run the show in London and Washington. For this, the creators are trying to set up a larger theme. Will it work, will it not, I don't know. But the bones are there for better things, and I trust the cast and writers to know where they are going. Based on their track record of past shows I trust them more than I trust us, the viewers.

The pilot is wild and offbeat which isn't for everyone but perfect for me! I love unorthodox things, Avenue 5 is a delight! I loved Veep which started off meh at first and got so much better give this a chance everyone; if not there's so many other excellent shows out available to delve into. Hugh Laurie is legendary in anything, I'm intrigued regardless of the negativity.

So many people seem to think that if they don't like something, then it must be bad. That is not true. Something can be good and, at the same time, not enjoyable for everybody. I don't like the music of Mariah Carey. That doesn't make her a bad singer. I'm not interested in boxing, so I didn't care for "Raging Bull." That doesn't make it a bad movie, it just wasn't for me.

If you don't like dark humor, you won't like this show. That doesn't make it bad, it's just not for you. I've read reviews in which the humor has been called "forced" and "not witty." I'm wondering if these people actually watched the same show that I watched, because I find the humor to be a good mix of wit and slapstick.

It seems that some people also get extremely angry when a show isn't what they expected it to be. It's not "The Orville," it's not "Spaceballs," and it's not "Veep." I read someone complain about the character actors. Why? If you want an actor to play a certain type of character, why not cast someone who's good at it?

Ignore the bad reviews. If you haven't seen it, give it a try. If you like it, great! If you don't, then it's just not meant for you. You don't have to come here and give it one star and rant, thus potentially ruining it for those of us who do enjoy it.

I think that a lot of the bad reviews here are from people that are... well, slow.

The humor here is dry and quick. It's easy to miss if you're used to being hand-fed comedy or need a laugh track to tell you when something's funny. Think Hitchhikers Guide mixed with some Monty Python.

It's not often I actually laugh out loud at a show. This one has me doing that every episode. HBO has already renewed it for a 2nd season. Can't wait!!

Reading a lot of the 1 to 4 star reviews and its nice to see we're all human. And I respectfully disagree. I LOVED the dry humor and absurdity in the show. I grew up watching Black Adder and its funny to see how Hughs character in Avenue is slowely becoming Rowan Atkinsons character in Ba. If you like sarcarsm, absurdity (ba is and old example. Something comparable these days would be the movie Dont Look Up) and dry humor. You're going to love the show.

Gave it an 8 because the eps should be longer. Almost seems rushed. Should have taken more time for some character development. Maybe something cheesy like (very short) flashbacks of their lives. Would have matched the setting. IMO.