After a long wait and a slew of controversy surrounding cast member Jeffrey Tambor, Netflix has released (the first half of) Arrested Development season five.
The question on everyone's lips is: is it any good?
We've rounded up a host of reviews from the critics, and the general consensus is that it's better than the much-derided season four (yay!) but not up to the standards of the classic first three seasons.
Consequence of Sound
"Hurwitz and co have failed to find a compelling twist on the dissolution of our democratic norms, making Arrested Development into a toothless delivery system of limousine-liberal sentiments about deplorables."
RogerEbert.com
"Overall, it's more coherent and consistent than season four (at least the seven episodes I've seen) even if it's not as inspired as the prime of the series. We need to start coming to terms with the realisation that it won't ever be quite that transcendent again, but this season is still often pretty funny."
SlashFilm
"What once seemed hysterical and innovative now seems stale. There's a malaise that's settled into the show, and the (very talented) cast all seem genuinely bored with their parts. Only Ron Howard, as the dependably funny narrator, sounds like he's having a good time."
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Den of Geek
"The biggest offender is probably that of poor editing and pacing. On network television, Arrested Development was forced into tightly contained 22-minute boxes that kept the storytelling and jokes quick. On Netflix, the show is able to spread out with episodes clocking anywhere between 25 to 30 minutes. Three to five added minutes of running time shouldn't necessarily be that big of a deal but they are incredibly noticeable here."
Vanity Fair
"It's such a relief. Arrested Development is fascinating even when it's not funny, but Season 5 is funny – not as funny as the show was in its heyday, but the magic is there, and more clearly visible than in Season 4."
Radio Times
"As a long-time fan, it's hard not to garner satisfaction from seeing the gang all back together – but I hope, for everyone's sake, that it's for the last time."
Collider
"Arrested Development was always at its best when it focused in on the weird world it created, and the same is true for the new season, especially when it comes to wordplay, miscommunication, and mistaken meanings. But those are few and far between this time around, in a season that feels like a mix of nostalgia and a desire to make us laugh at the same Bush-era jokes that exist in a completely different context under Trump."
The first batch of Arrested Development season five episodes are available now on Netflix.
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Joe Anderton is a freelance news writer at Digital Spy, having worked there since 2016. In his time, he's covered a host of live events and interviewed celebrities big and small. A big fan of TV and movies both mainstream and obscure, Joe also enjoys video games and in particular PlayStation. Joe currently does not use Twitter, but he only ever used it to tell people to watch the film Help! I'm a Fish.
