Tokyo Vice; You Won’t Believe This; Wednesday

“It’s a curious series — thoughtful and vividly detailed, but not without cliché and, by its mid-point, decidedly long-winded as its plot strands took in loan sharks and an American club hostess (Rachel Keller). Yet the meandering sprawl is what makes the drama so immersive.”
James Jackson, The Times

“The series kicked off with a double bill and I’m glad it did, because after the first hour I was ready to write it off completely. But the action picked up after a break for the News at 10.10pm, though most viewers will surely have given up in disappointment and gone to bed.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“The trouble is, it’s quite hard to care. Nobody spins the sort of elaborate yarn that would, in retrospect, be a breathtaking display of chutzpah once it’s revealed to have been total bilge – that is, the kind of thing that makes Would I Lie to You? such a lark. The liars are disincentivised by the prize money: the way to win is to keep your head down, not say anything silly and seem more blandly plausible than the other fibbers.”
Jack Seale, The Guardian

“Still raw around the edges, the format is unnecessarily complicated, but its biggest problem is a lack of imagination. The true stories stood out, because they were quirky and comical, while the lies, by contrast, seemed boringly plausible.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“It loses something by not setting Wednesday against normality, as the films did, and by having a more fissured version of the Addams clan. The love and unity of the family against the world was always one of the great pleasures, in whatever incarnation you met them. But it has enough wit, charm and propulsive energy for that not to matter as much as it might have.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“With her lank pigtails, pallid cheeks and jutting jaw, this Wednesday 2.0 is a dead ringer for pop star Billie Eilish. That gloomy charisma is a driving force in an enjoyably pulpy series that mixes teen drama, ‘dark academia’ sleuthing and classic Hollywood horror. Tim Burton buffs will love it and it is encouraging to see the director on the rebound after a succession of flops.”
Ed Power, The Telegraph