When it comes to the Resident Evil franchises forays into film and television, they’ve never been good. But while the Milla Jovovich-led films saw box office success despite poor to middling reviews, the same cannot be said of the new show on Netflix.
The series has the lowest audience score on Rotten Tomatoes of any Netflix Original to date, which at the time of writing sits at just 26%. Things are marginally better on the critic’s side of things with a score of 50%.
There is the possibility of review bombing due to possible political and racist reasons (the four main actors are all people of colour playing characters that were formerly white). I found a few phrases repeated like that the show is “aimed at sending political messages and not entertainment,” a couple of times so scores may be skewed slightly but overwhelmingly the reason why the show is getting such a bad reception is simply because it isn’t good.
Critics in general praised the show for its faithfulness to the games, but criticised the uninspired writing, narrative inconsistencies, slow pace, and Young Adult cliches.
There was a lot of criticism towards the cast (with the exception of Lance Reddick) audience reviews like Aaaron J called the lead characters “unlikeable” and even the “villains are unlikeable, but not for the reasons you want to not like them.” He also criticised the narrative calling it confusing if you haven’t played the games before.
Resident Evil borrows a lot from the Young Adult genre which seems to be what people are upset about the most. Some say that this swing is “set up to intentionally annoy older fans and confuse newer ones,” adding that they’re “not even sure who this is for?”
Allen B put it quite well, “…what they seem to be doing lately is making shows that try to cross age and taste boundaries. Unfortunately, this makes for shows that do not appeal to either audience. In this case, they tried to mix tween, horror and action/adventure. It didn’t quite work.”
Anyway, I found this hilarious edit online that seems to sum up most people’s problem with the show. Enjoy!
Resident Evil takes place fourteen years after the deadly T-virus caused a global apocalypse. Jade Wesker fights for survival in a world overrun by infected zombie-like creatures while being haunted by her past, her father, and what happened to her sister, Billie.
The series is currently available on Netflix.
For more, check out everything we know about Stranger Things season 5 and the potential spin-off.
2023 Saudi Arabian GP: Cracks in Red Bull’s Armour but No One to Challenge Them
It wasn’t a perfect weekend for Red Bull at the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP, but there simply wasn’t anyone able to challenge them anyway.
Live La Dolce Vita With the Ferrari Roma Spider
Ferrari have released the Roma Spider, a convertible version of the Roma Coupe that’s perfect for living la dolce vita.
You Can Now Buy Robert de Niro’s Malibu Mansion from ‘Heat’ for $32m
The Malibu mansion featured in the hit film ‘Heat’ is now up for sale.
Girard-Perregaux and Aston Martin Launch the First Ceramic Laureato
For the first time, Girard-Perregaux’s Laureato line has a ceramic option made in collaboration with Aston Martin.
Is the Ferrari Criticism Fair? Vasseur Doesn’t Think So
Ferrari team principal, Frederic Vasseur, is perplexed as to why the team is receiving such criticism after only one race.
“Lockout Laws” for Amsterdam to Come into Effect in Mid-May
Amsterdam are implementing laws similar to Sydney’s former lockout laws in a bid to reduce “nuisance” tourists.
