The verdict is out for Netflix’s The Accident. While it has managed to gain some fans, audiences are not happy with it in general, with some even laughing at the general premise. The Ready Steady Cut Community had plenty to say about the show, highlighting a unique tragedy.
Critically, The Accident is not getting a good rap from critics. Six critics have submitted their final reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, contributing to a rotten score already.
Pramit Chatterjee from Digital Mafia Talkies said, “At worst, The Accident should’ve been a movie, and at best, it shouldn’t have existed at all.” While here at Ready Steady Cut, we reviewed and said, “It’s very serious. The actors do a good job of communicating that seriousness in very intense performances. But I can’t imagine a world where an inflatable floating off into the sky will not be hysterical to me.”
However, there are a couple of critics who are positive—LaNeysha Campbell from But Why Tho? said this about the show: “The Accident is a thrilling exploration of the darker sides of guilt and grief and how those emotions, when not handled properly, can ripple through and destroy a community.”
Audiences are not impressed with The Accident
Our community on Reddit had plenty to say about The Accident, but the sentiment toward the TV show was overwhelmingly negative. There are many complaints about the execution and handling of the accident scene itself, which is unintentionally hilarious.
The “Funny” Accident Scene
I shouldn’t find this funny at all, but it appears many audiences found the pivotal scene in the entire show to be laughable, which is not what the creators probably intended:
“Wow the accident scene may unwillingly be the funniest scene ever – Aware-Leading-1213”
And skyerippa responded with:
“LMFAO it was so ridiculous.
First of all everyone acting like raging wind is normal and just casually talking through it.
Then when the bounce house started going up why didn’t the adults all grab it and pull it down LOL.
At the very least tell all the kids to jump off don’t just stand there screaming incoherently while they float away lmfao.
How did 3 kids die?!?!? They were barely in the air.”
However, one user, Potatosmom94, pointed out that the accident you see in the TV show has happened in real life, and five children died in Australia. They shared with us a video for context:
We actually looked into this, and it turns out there have been many fatal bouncy castle incidents in the past.
I have to side with the consensus here that this scene should not be funny at all, but the portrayal was so badly done that viewers could not help but chuckle at its mere absurdity. Maybe the creators will have some regret about how they executed this. Even the critic who reviewed it here mentioned how he felt bad for finding the whole thing funny by saying, “Four interconnected families are torn apart, driven to extremes of guilt, greed, and sometimes violence. So, it brings me no pleasure to admit that I found the entire premise absolutely hilarious.”
Generally Unlikeable Characters
I think critics and audiences can agree that The Accident is an interesting premise, but it’s far too bogged down in its delivery. As CharlotteLeBauff pointed out, there’s not one likable character:
“Not one likable character except maybe the father of the little girl. Everyone else is so annoying and obnoxious. Especially the journalist woman. The only one I cared about was the dog. Luckily, the dog was unharmed. Which was my only fear knowing how Netflix likes to kill off dogs in its shows.”
Of course, there’s the exception of the dog. If a dog died in this TV show, I believe all Hell would have broken loose.
And many others agreed with Charlotte:
“Agree with others, everyone is so unlikeable and then blame each other although they are all trash. Still couldn’t stop watching because the drama was just so addictive. The worst people for me were David, the journalist and Paula’s mother – Street_Report7154”
“The journalist is so annoying. I hate that she’s the stereotypical annoying character who does the basic “wait! Explain it to me! What are you talking about?! Wait!”
No offense but where are my ladies who would already be out the door and hauling ass if you sensed danger because of a DUMB man?!?? – RubyRubyG”
“I’m on episode 7. felt like it was okay for the first couple episodes. Then just became cringy with the over acting, insane drama violence for no reason every 3 minutes being hard to follow.
Still might just finish the whole thing tho…. Lol – RealisticForce6117”
Overall, viewers just felt like the entire series was a mess. A tragedy being unintentionally comedic and unserious, with a group of unlikable characters, did not give this Netflix show a fighting chance.
However, we must add we did have one person on X who was a little angry at our views:
Was it hilarious when 6 kids in Tasmania died in these circumstances 3 years ago?
— Mark P (@MarkP7186012653)
I think Mark has missed the point here: no one is saying that the tragedy is funny. It’s merely execution. In similar real-life events, I imagine it was a horrific day for everyone involved.
What did you think of the Netflix show? Do you agree with the general audience and critical consensus? We’d love to know your views below.
