Critic Reviews

NBC hasn't had a show this impressive since the first season of Heroes. [6 Feb 2012, p.39]

[It's so] good you can't help wondering why no one thought of it before, a compelling mix of credible real-life melodrama with a fictionalized approximation of what it takes to get a Broadway show from the idea stage to opening night.

I've seen four episodes; they're all good.

Smash is a triumph.

The real joys of Smash are its performances and production numbers, some fantasized, others part of the bare bones auditioning process.

Smash elegantly and energetically draws you into the orbit of a dozen dreamers and schemers at various stages in their Great White Way careers, and, like a true pro, the show makes it all look easy.

Smash is excellent, a bar-raiser for broadcast networks.

The cast, from Katharine McPhee and Megan Hilty to Debra Messing and Angelica Huston, is superb. The subject matter is a carefully blended mix of artistic and accessible.

They're fully realized characters, not freakishly talented pawns, and their stories--and choices--reflect a real-life awareness I only wish "Glee" could muster.

Smash does a very satisfying job of merging the pleasures of "American Idol" and commercial Broadway, placing the "hummable melody" dead center and prioritizing fun over absolute authenticity.