Critic Reviews

Trying has the power to bring a tear to the driest eye without warning, and that’s the case again in season five. .... Purely as old-fashioned comedy, every episode is so awfully good.

Couples on TV spend a lot of time talking about getting pregnant or get pregnant by surprise (see the aforementioned Catastrophe), but rarely does a series so honestly portray the devastation of infertility or the challenges and heartbreak of the adoption process. It’s great to have this much candor in a series that is still so highly entertaining.

Trying's pointed writing and winsome ensemble are an instant reminder of why this series is so addictive. By way of its six-year time jump, the show ambitiously alters its plots without ever losing steam.

The kind of season that will have you laughing one minute and quietly tearing up the next, tugging at your heartstrings in the gentle, non-showy way that the show has always done best. Five seasons in, Trying remains one of the best-written, best-acted, and most emotionally rewarding comedies on television.

The first four episodes of this opening season definitely have their charms — Jason’s meet-up with an ex to try to heal some open emotional wounds has some unexpected push-pull moments — the back half is really where “Trying” settles into a groove.

“Trying” has an impish sense of humor, but it tops its comedy with a great heart.

“Trying” isn’t afraid to use a few choice coincidences now and again, but once things get past the small contrivances of the premiere, the show makes the most of the opportunities to dig into those personal hurdles facing the estranged Freddy (Oliver Chris) and Erica (Ophelia Lovibond), Nikki’s sister Karen (Sian Brooke), and any of the show’s would-be grandparents.

From the very beginning, Smith and Spall have winning chemistry as a couple you want to root for, hang out with, and watch fumble through this process. ... The way in which “Trying” often successfully layers awkward and genuine makes it compelling.

Eminently watchable. Annoying, funny, treacly, poignant; it’s all here.

“Trying” Season 5 feels like the hard-won reward after a decade of arduous parenting decisions.