---
title: "Motherland: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/motherland-2017/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/tv/motherland-2017"
critics_score: 60
critics_reviews: 7
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."
---

# Motherland (2017): what the critics said

Critics' score 60 from 7 reviews: 4 positive, 0 mixed, 3 negative.

Most critics come down in favour of Motherland, though not by a wide margin. The praise clusters on its accuracy: the reviews agree it captures the panic and vertigo of early parenthood closely enough to be uncomfortable, and several treat that discomfort as the point. The cynicism is the other thing admired, with the school-gate politics, the performative alpha mothers and the slacker mum Liz singled out, and the children kept firmly as props rather than cute distractions. Its refusal of sentiment is repeatedly held up against softer family sitcoms.

The spread is wide rather than narrow, with nobody sitting in the middle. The dissenters, all American, find the same qualities exhausting: The Hollywood Reporter calls it forced and frantic, IndieWire finds the chaos taxing rather than funny, and Paste faults a clueless, unlikeable lead and misses the warmth of Catastrophe. The British reviews are the warm ones, which may say something about who recognises these mothers.

## The i Paper — Sarah Carson

Rating ★★★★. 7 October 2019. 

The series captures the vivid stress of parenting so accurately it can be hard to watch, but its spiky, cynical observations of school-gate dynamics and performative mums remain sharp and superb.

[Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/motherland-series-2-review-bbc-stress-difficult-to-watch-348002)

## Vulture — Matt Zoller Seitz

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 10 May 2018. 

The critic praises the series for capturing the vertigo-inducing days of early parenthood with energy, audacity, and style, calling it an impressive and fun show.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2018/05/motherland-review.html)

## Radio Times — David Butcher

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 

The chaotic, clear-eyed sitcom returns with its familiar middle-class parenting trials; its trump card is a vein of cynicism best embodied by slacker-mum Liz, and the new alpha-mother creates beautifully observed wrongness.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-n6pztg/motherland-season-2/?episode=b-04ny7t)

## The Guardian

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 4 November 2017. 

The critic praises the series for its unsparing, funny take on the chaos of motherhood and working parents, contrasting it favorably with sentimental sitcoms. Children are treated as props rather than cute characters, and the adult characters' unlikeability is seen as exhilarating.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/nov/04/motherland-vision-child-rearing-panic-inducingly-scary)

## IndieWire — Ben Travers

Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 9 May 2018. 

The critic finds the series an accurate but taxing glimpse at motherhood that creates more unbearable chaos than empathy or humor from its never-ending toils.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/shows/sharon-horgan-motherland-review-mothers-day-1201962277/)

## The Hollywood Reporter — Tim Goodman

Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 8 May 2018. 

The series misses the comedy mother lode because it is too forced and frantic, relying on heightened, predictable parenting clichés and unlikeable characters despite some funny parts and strong performances.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/motherland-review-1109240/)

## Paste — Amy Amatangelo

Rating 6.9. 10 May 2018. 

The critic finds the show relatable in its depiction of harried motherhood and one-liners but faults the protagonist for being overly clueless and unlikeable, lacking the heart of similar series like Catastrophe.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/motherland/motherland-sharon-horgan-sundance-now-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/motherland-2017.md