Critic Reviews

Believe me when I say that Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr & Carolyn Bessette is the first truly captivating new show of 2026 and an instant addition to the list of shows you’ll want to watch and rewatch… just have a box of tissues at the ready.

Together, Pigeon and Kelly have fantastic chemistry. .... Yet, it’s not the central pair who deliver the show’s most captivating performances: it’s the women who surround John F. Kennedy Jr. who take the cake as this series’ most interesting players. .... Nothing about this series feels cheap.

Love Story strikes a balance between historical accuracy and creative liberty to offer a fresh perspective on events that many viewers remember all too vividly.

Overall, “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette” is a thoughtful show that centers on the sacrifice of long-term commitment, chemistry, incompatibility and the thunderous chaos of fame.

A full-fat romantic drama that embraces the genre’s most enchanting tropes — the rain-soaked kiss, the reformed rake, the tasteful displays of wealth — while grounding them in just enough streetwise reality to make the fantasy feel all the more tangible.

The series is a respectful, sincere and humanized portrayal of a couple who were loved and mourned by the whole of America.

A compellingly voyeuristic drama.

Somehow, despite a degree of current-day Kennedy fatigue, this FX series feels fresh and compelling.

That obsession with committing the tabloid version of the story to film is what most kneecaps "Love Story," and prevents a very good show from being a great one. It's easy to tell when the show pivots from thoughtful to artificial, from feeling to faux.

With only a few dips into crass sensationalism, this love story starring Paul Anthony Kelly and a standout star-is-born Sarah Pidgeon lets us share in John and Carolyn’s one brief shining moment and ache for what might have been.