--- title: "Fellow Travelers: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/tv/fellow-travelers/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/tv/fellow-travelers" critics_score: 67 critics_reviews: 9 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Fellow Travelers (2023): what the critics said Critics' score 67 from 9 reviews: 5 positive, 3 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics come down in favour, and the praise gathers almost entirely around the two leads. Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey are credited again and again with a chemistry that carries a relationship across four decades, and several reviews call the result moving, even devastating. The frank sex scenes draw approval too, for telling us something about the men rather than decorating the story. There is broad agreement that the series takes gay history seriously and covers ground television has mostly left alone. The reservations are about shape. Critics complain of a middle stretch that loses momentum, a muddled timeline and a history-lesson approach that crowds out the characters. The spread is wide, from the mid-80s down to the mid-30s. Vulture is the one outright negative, arguing the lesson swallows the people. Collider, more mixed, faults the series for romanticising a toxic relationship and sidelining Black, female and trans characters. The Hollywood Reporter, alone, picks out Allison Williams’s Lucy as the most compelling performance. ## Evening Standard — Paul Flynn Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2023. Flynn finds the series a moving, valuable journey through gay history, despite its glossy presentation taking time to break through. He praises the leads’ chemistry and the show’s account of histories denied to gay people. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/tvfilm/fellow-travelers-paramount-plus-review-jonathan-bailey-matt-bomer-b1114941.html) ## IndieWire — Ben Travers Rating B+. 27 October 2023. The review finds the series an affecting, if familiar, romance that sustains its emotional grip. It especially praises Jonathan Bailey and Matt Bomer’s palpable chemistry and nuanced performances. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/shows/fellow-travelers-review-showtime-series-matt-bomer-1234919552/) ## The AV Club — Max Gao Rating B+. 24 October 2023. The review finds the series a devastating, affecting love story, though its middle decades lose momentum. It praises Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey’s performances and their compelling portrayal of a relationship that evolves across four decades. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/fellow-travelers-tv-review-showtime-paramount-plus-1850945942) ## Variety — Aramide Tinubu Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2023. Tinubu finds the series largely exceptional, though one episode disrupts its pacing before the story recovers. She singles out Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey’s electric chemistry as the drama’s most moving strength. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2023/tv/reviews/fellow-travelers-review-jonathan-bailey-matt-bomer-1235762278/) ## The Guardian — Benjamin Lee Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 28 October 2023. Lee finds the series overstuffed and uneven, but ultimately worth following despite its soapiness and muddled timeline. He especially praises the graphic, plot-important sex scenes for adding depth to the central relationship. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/oct/28/fellow-travelers-show-review-matt-bomer-jonathan-bailey) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Daniel Fienberg Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2023. Fienberg finds the series uneven, with effective emotional moments weighed down by familiar, sometimes stodgy storytelling. He praises the performances and chemistry of Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey, while singling out Allison Williams’s portrayal of Lucy as especially compelling. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/fellow-travelers-review-matt-bomer-jonathan-bailey-1235623948/) ## Vulture — Jackson McHenry Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 27 October 2023. The review finds the series faltering overall, with its history-lesson approach crowding out its characters. It praises the sex scenes for being hot, lived-in, and revealing of the characters. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/fellow-travelers-review-showtime.html) ## Paste — Lacy Baugher Milas Rating 7.9. 23 October 2023. The critic finds the series imperfect but important, with a serious and often plodding approach to queer history. She singles out Jonathan Bailey’s vulnerable, forceful performance as its beating heart. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/showtime/fellow-travelers-review) ## Collider — Erick Massoto Rating 5/10. 27 October 2023. The critic finds the series enjoyable as a romance but ultimately inadequate in its treatment of its characters and historical context. He praises its depiction of the lasting effects of homophobia, while faulting it for romanticizing a toxic relationship and sidelining Black, female, transgender, queer, and intersex characters. [Read the review](https://collider.com/fellow-travelers-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/tv/fellow-travelers.md