HBO’s ‘Looking’: What are the critics saying?

HBO’s Looking made its stateside debut on Sunday (January 19), and the series has received general acclaim from critics.

The series stars Glee actor Jonathan Groff, Frankie J. Alvarez and Murray Bartlett as Patrick, Agustín and Dom, three gay friends living in San Francisco.

Attitude’s Andrew Fraser has already given his take on the new show, describing it as “an impeccable, often-alluring depiction of gay life”.

“If it doesn’t speak to you as a gay man in 2014, we can only assume you live on Mars, or in Middlesbrough,” he added.

Meanwhile, Variety’s Brian Lowry admitted that it would be easy to “mischaracterise” the show as another Queer as Folk. He went on to praise the show for establishing its own “voice” early on in the opening episodes.

However, some critics have given the new series – which counts Weekend’s Andrew Haigh among its executive producers – a slightly more lukewarm response.

Matt Roush of TV Guide said: “Never as heightened or melodramatic as Queer as Folk (British and Showtime versions), Looking also isn’t terribly distinctive and is only sporadically engaging.”

The New York Times writer Alessandra Stanley agreed with the points raised by Roush, admitting that she found the show to be “a little boring”.

Entertainment Weekly’s Jeff Jenson, however, was excited by the potential the show has based on Sunday’s opener.

“Looking‘s naturalism, resonant sexual themes, and winsome performances lead to wise, appealing entertainment that can get even better and more real the deeper the show digs into its characters,” he said.

James Poniewozik from Time magazine liked that the sexuality of the characters “isn’t part of some high-concept premise” or “presented as revolutionary” as in shows like The New Normal and Queer as Folk.

He continued: “It’s just an authentic part of who these characters are, how they live, and where they live. Its stories are informed by the fact that its characters are gay, but not dictated by it.”

Looking premieres in the UK on Sky Atlantic on Monday, January 27 at 10.35pm.

> Click here to read the full review of Looking by Attitude‘s Andrew Fraser