It feels aimless in the early going—not uncharmingly so, but seemingly without a defined objective. To offer a carrot—that everything comes together in episode 6—is asking for a good deal of time and patience, but stick with it. The performances throughout are, at worst, mesmerizing.

Despite a sometimes self-sabotaging sense of its own mystery and occasionally glacial pacing, The Crowded Room’s slick ‘70s stylisation, timely themes, and a mercurial Tom Holland will certainly keep you watching.

It’s not that these topics aren’t handled with the care and sensitivity they deserve. They are. It’s just that they aren’t written particularly well, nor does the show really have anything new or interesting to say about them. It isn’t all bad news. Relative newcomers Sasha Lane (How To Blow Up A Pipeline) and Emma Laird (Mayor Of Kingstown) shine as Danny’s magnetic best friend-turned-accomplice and enigmatic love interest, respectively.

The Crowded Room pivots from gritty crime drama to something altogether sadder and more sentimental, with unfortunately mixed results.

The cast is strong. The basis of the story – which has been dramatised before, usually more explicitly in the horror genre – is compelling. But The Crowded Room is an unsatisfying blend of these components, which takes, at best, a curate’s egg, and scrambles it.

By being so oblique about Danny’s true nature, “The Crowded Room” is left with a vacuum where a hook should be, one it declines to fill with a compelling pitch. .... “The Crowded Room” squanders ample resources in its unsuccessful efforts.

It's hard to imagine a worse show.

I don't know if **** are high or what but this is a great tv series amazing story very complicated mystery top notch performance amazing set Pease it's like a beautiful dream which is a absolutely nightmare as well

Best TV series I've seen so far. When you mix a masterpiece like joker and the person of Tom Holland, you are doing fusion therapy and -spolier- It works!

The critics are wrong. This is an excellent show. Tom Holland is amazing and eerie!

The series is "inspired" by the book "The Minds of Billy Milligan.," but it takes radical departures from the REAL character, about whom there is considerable debate about whether he suffered from "Multiple Personality Disorder" now known as "Dissociative Identity Disorder" or was just a stone cold sociopath who likely murdered someone after fleeing the mental hospital in Oho. Anyone who remembers "The Three Faces of Eve" movie or the "Sybil" miniseries - both remarkable stories of another case, will appreciate how seductive these stories can be.

4/10 ATTN: I'm being ultra generous by giving such a high rating to this absolutely disappointing show, but I admire the effort somehow. This is definitely the most ambitious project I've watched recently, typifying what it means to bite off more than you can chew. Tom Holland is no doubt an acceptable actor of his generation, but taking on such a challenging role is simply a huge mistake on his account as this complex character requires a veteran performer with a diverse set of skills. On the other hand, the ludicrous production design incongruous with the era in question really put me off. One could probably ignore these flaws, but the most unforgivable aspect of the series was its awful writing. How can anyone (much less an experienced screenwriter) form such a shallow reading of a much-debated psychological condition?