The Idol Is Being Called The Worst Show Of The Year
Ed Power of The Telegraph has delivered a scathing review of The Idol finale and has gone on record calling this particular odyssey into the music industry the worst show of the year and a “potential turkey for the ages.” The Lily-Rose Depp and Abel Tesfaye (better known as The Weeknd) series had been previously criticized for its sexist overtones and risqué nature, but a much worse condemnation has been put out into the ether upon witnessing the finale: the show just isn’t very good.
The Idol is being hammered with negative reviews with critics already calling it the worst show of the year.
Power’s one-star review only seems to further bolster the abysmal 19 percent critical score that The Idol is currently boasting on Rotten Tomatoes, and as reviews continue to pour in, it’s evident that Power is not alone with his thoughts on this one.
The Idol centers around Lily-Rose Depp’s Jocelyn, a troubled pop star who wants to reclaim her place as the sexiest pop star in America after experiencing a nervous breakdown and canceling her tour.
In her efforts to climb her way back to the top, Jocelyn forms a relationship with Tedros (Tesafaye), who moves into her mansion with his entourage, and manipulates her with his erratic and domineering behavior, as well as his aggressive sexual advances.
The series is rife with sexually explicit scenes and has been lumped into the same category as 1995’s ill-fated erotic drama, Showgirls.
We knew going into watching The Idol that there were considerable odds stacked against the series from the beginning but watching it play out for the last five weeks has only proven to be an exercise of frustration for many viewers.
Given the explicit nature of the program, it’s safe to say that execution did not match intention, especially when you consider all of the heavy topics that director Sam Levinson (Euphoria) and Able Tesfaye worked into the series after a number of heavy-handed re-writes after Amy Seimetz’s sudden exit from the series.
The Idol is rife with sexually explicit scenes is being compared to 1995’s ill-fated erotic drama, Showgirls.
Though the series’ rewrites have been criticized for being misogynistic, uncomfortable, try-hard, and cringe, the prevailing sentiment surrounding The Idol is that it’s also boring. And this makes us wonder if The Idol at one point in time had promise under Seimetz’s direction or if it was doomed from the start.
If all of the already glaring criticisms weren’t enough, The Idol also lost points for being confusing and having too many loose ends after HBO decided to only air five episodes rather than the six that were originally intended while the show was being developed.
Other reviewers stated that The Idol also suffered from appalling dialogue, lack of character development, and storylines that dropped off with little resolution. In other words, even though the HBO series has only had a five-episode run so far, it’s safe to say that critics have already had enough.
What is the future of The Idol?
Maybe the passage of time will tell us a different story, but only if we view The Idol through a different Lens. We all remember how poorly Tommy Wiseau’s The Room performed upon its initial release, but if the past two decades have proven anything to us, it is that sometimes cringe ages well in regard to perceived entertainment value.
For now, however, the verdict is out on The Idol, and critics are glad it’s over.
