User Reviews

Intelligent , insightful , character-driven comedy. Reno 911 veteran Neicy Nash plays a down-to-earth nurse who just started a new job at an elderly skilled nursing wing of a hospital. Alex Borstein (MadTV's "Mrs Swan") is brilliant as her romantically and professionally insecure mentor. And then there's Lori Metcalf, sinking her teeth into a juicy comic role deserving of her talents. She plays a high strung doctor who feels slighted at having to spend part of her work week assigned to the ward. On the bright side, it does give her access to many feces samples, which she collects obsessively, to be used in her ground-breaking poop-categorizing research study. The script is brilliant, chock full of outrageously funny lines that slip by if you don't pay close attention, but also smartly slowing down for a few moments of genuine emotion (Nash is especially nifty in these.) The laughs come so fast and frequent that you're not quite sure how serious to take the dramatic passages. But that tension is handled deftly, both in the writing and the performances. I've only seen the first two episodes, and I am counting the minutes til episode 3. This is going to be a fun ride.

If you are looking for Glitz and Glam, forget it.

If you appreciate the absurdity of every day living, you have found your home.

I adore Nurse Jackie, as the former poster noted that she liked, however if you can polish off that sheen you might find something that at least looks like real life here.

Easy to make exciting traumatic moments; it's a bit harder to convey the strength of emotion that stretches out when someone takes more than an episode to die.

I am believer of reality vs. fiction, and as quirky "Getting On" is, it is heads and shoulders above Nurse Jackie in realism. What a fantastic balance "Getting On" has struck.

It has a quiet "emergency"!

I rarely contribute reviews. I felt compelled to add to the (mere!) 11 reviews posted.

This show is such a gem. It is genuinely funny, the cast is spot-on stellar, and it has a a heartfelt center (without being sentimental). Niecy Nash is a stand-out. She steels many of her scenes. I only know Alex Borstein from MadTV and family guy; she surprises here with really great acting chops. Her dead-pan delivery takes the humor up a level. Laurie Metcald is a hoot as the neurotic doctor. Her characterization is eerily cemented in reality (unfortunately).

I can't recommend this enough. I hope it gets a strong following and continues for a few more seasons.

Amazing show. Realistic and nothing is more absurd, romantic, hilarious, painful and beautiful than reality. We dont have to go to hyperreality where everything is fake and robotic and generic in such a way that it creeps me out.Thats the reason shows like 'modern family, 'greys anatomy', 'House' and the list goes on and on , have way too many seasons, and gems like these get cancelled way too quick, same happened with 'party down' for example or 'hello ladies' Great shows, and amazing shows that just cant make it past a one season or two.

This simple yet intricate show is for the ones that are able to be human and feel. The ones that have a humane level of sense of humour and aren't passive idiots that want to be entertained in the most lazy way...spoonfed.

I keep watching the cancelled gems over and over. And because they are gems.. you can do that.

I'm watching this series again and i still don't understand why this series did not continue - so funny and all characters are played by choice actors. I'm hoping for a reboot. My favorite character is still June Squibb as the crazy bi-polar patient Varla.

I find myself identifying with the 'oldsters' in the show as much as anything. There are some genuine insights, both from the staff of the hospital dealing with the seniors and from the seniors themselves, looking out from the inside.

The show is well cast and the characters are becoming more developed as time passes; the seasons are short for this program and that limits the screen time the writers can devote to the characters, but even so they are becoming more real with each episode.

The writing is spare and deft. The jokes are subtle, rather than belabored; sometimes you have to think fast.

Dry and witty with the occasional belly laugh and some tender, wistful moments - I suppose it is a dark comedy, but semisweet rather than bitter. Give it a fair trial.

Say what you like about "Getting On," it's not afraid to color outside the lines. Whether we end up liking the solid coal-black crayon smear that results is still up in the air, one of the reasons I hesitate to review any TV show barely a third of the way through Season 1.

There are no truly likable characters on this show. It doesn't make it that easy on us. Instead, it challenges us to find the humanity and the heart inside a team of geriatric care workers at a hospital that even sounds bottom-tier by its name. It's a behavior focused show: you can visibly see the hackles rising as the staff continually alternates between tip-toeing around and blatantly offending one another. Everyone has an agenda and none are very opaque.

It's been years since I worked in an office environment but this show makes me not miss it a bit. It's actually a bit too overwrought with angst, but then that's kind of taken into account when you learn that this particular ward is kind of like an Island of Misfit Toys --- virtually no one here is here by their own choice, except most notably Dawn (Alex Borstein, the voice of Family Guy's Lois Griffin without the RI accent), whose desperation is actually very touching. Most of us have met a Dawn or worked with one --- fanatical about her job because she has nothing else to focus on, reeling from personal disappointments, self-conscious to the point of cringe-inducement. Her self esteem is so low that, when confronted with a new male head nurse who is carting around some serious gay-repression baggage, she throws herself at him in the midst of being berated by him, hauls him to a bar, then goes down on him. As I said, this show isn't pandering to anyone. They don't seem to want your approval...they're almost seeking to repel it.

The always fine Laurie Metcalf plays an ambition-crazed medical director, whose self-opinion isn't any better than Dawn's, and Mel Rodriguez plays overbearing head nurse Patsy with enough fanatical PC self-righteousness to incite thousands of Ditto-heads to take assault weapons to their sets.

This leaves Niecy Nash as junior nurse Didi, for sympathy and pathos, though even her character can be amazingly dense and self-sabotaging. Nash plays her well, though, with an unaffected realism that may eventually make her the ace card in this series, if it can stay on the air long enough.

Personally, I don't want another Nurse Jackie. I don't want another St. Elsewhere or another E/R. All of those shows became very formulaic very quickly, after strong starts. They either ran out of ideas or just wanted to secure a long run by pandering to the lowest inoffensive denominator. Perhaps by going in the opposite direction, Getting On will keep us turning on. Time will tell.

I do know one thing though...my wife, who has worked in similar medical environments before couldn't stand the show. "It's too real," she told me. "I felt like I just got off a double shift at work in 30 minutes." So, health-care professionals, be forewarned.

Just when I thought that HBO was beyond help, they finally get one right by largely leaving things alone. Having watched and thoroughly enjoyed many episodes of the British original with the wonderful Jo Brand ( one of the series creators and executive producers )in the lead role, I was very impressed by how much HBO has captured the spirit and quirkiness of this series. I think HBO has wisely kept the starkness of what the patient experience is, and perhaps given the show more room to fly by making it a teeny bit more gritty in terms of language and mature content. At first I was a little baffled by the American casting, but at only four episodes in they've done a great job of setting the stage without yet exhausting the overwhelming idiotic bureaucracy the staff alternately endure and wield like a weapon. So I'll give the show time to grow and capture the flip side - the patient interaction and the audience's need to connect with and root for the one mostly sane staffer.

While it does start rocky in the fist season mainly the first three episodes, getting on is actually a great dark comedy about nurses would highly recommend.

All around, excellent. The writing and the amazing Laurie Metcalf, Alex Borstein, Mel Rodriguez and Niecy Nash combine their talents to make this this dark, often hilarious HBO comedy succeed. It takes place in a dysfunctional seniors ward at a big city hospital. The supporting cast is also great (look for Ann Guilbert and June Squibb as two of the many beleaguered patients). Molly Shannon and Jean Smart also make funny cameos.

I'm not sure why this series, which was adapted from an English program, only ran three seasons. Too bad. We wanted more.

I've just listened to an NPR Fresh Air interview with Mark Olsen and Will Scheffer, who were constantly referred to throughout as the "creators" of Getting On. They happily accepted this accolade and proceeded, with truly nauseating sincerity, to explain how the stories in the series were based on their experiences caring for their respective elderly mothers, which, we're given to understand, is why it's all so real, so poignant, so personal. Curious then that 95% of the US adaptation of Getting On is identical - and I'm talking line for line, if not quite word for word - to the UK original, created by the wonderful Jo Brand. The 5% that's different is where the US version blunts the humour, misses the point, or merely adds lame phoney-sounding sitcom punchlines to otherwise achingly funny-sad scenes. Maybe Olsen and Scheffer had identical experiences to Brand, and maybe they just forgot to write it down first. Or maybe they actually believe they've added something of value to Brand's work. Or maybe they're just ****s.

I loved this series and can't believe the talented cast of characters they've assembled in one place. Some scenes made me laugh out loud white others made me tear up. A very well written script and a great cast brought it to life.

Completely.

Lots of character in this show, and for an arguably morbid theme, it was brilliantly delivered.

Haven't seen the British version that this was an adaptation of but just a job well done all round.

This show is simply spectacular. The acting and the writing are outstanding. I wish there were more seasons, but am thankful for the 18 episodes they have blessed us with. I strongly suggest you check out this show.

This is one of the best comedy shows I've seen in forever! The acting is great and I just can't get enough of it! It's such a shame a great show like this was short-lived. I highly recommend this show if you are into comedy shows that don't have laugh tracks.

I never heard of the show and decided to give it a try. Hideously hilarious . I was not expecting to literally laugh out loud -Given such a pasty and drab setting. Alex, Niecy, and Laurie have a great chemistry. Omg and the patients lmao. The connections amongst these characters transition from ep to ep.

Looking forward to season 4

I'm a fan of the main actors in this US version, but compared to the original UK show, it falls a bit flat. For example, Vicki Pepperdine's character is self-absorbed to an extent that makes you cringe in the UK show, while Laurie Metcalf plays her comparable character over the top in the US version. Perhaps the producers feel that American audience can't appreciate a deft touch and need to have things hammered into them a bit more.

This reminds me of Rake, another case where an American network tried to imitate a brilliant foreign comedy. In Getting On and in Rake, instead of taking the IDEA of the original and tweaking it according to the strengths of the US cast, they copy the stories almost verbatim, change a few references, and plug in different actors. The actors are quality, but it definitely doesn't work as well as the original ...

This show brings out an experimental comedy with smart writing, great cast of characters, and best of all, no cheap laughs. While it may take a couple of viewing, you just new a acquired taste for this show.

If you're the type of person that's into health-care you love the show Getting On. This show brings on so many emotions into 30 minutes. This show also packs A great cast of actors as well. Niecy Nash is a new nurse just coming into a wing of the hospital for extended-care patients (elderly people). Alex Borstein is the senior nurse dealing with some of the crazy people on the ward. Then finally the Head nurse starring Laurie Metcalf.

Getting On, on HBO, has strong language, other than that, deserve a shot to become a great show.

For those that say this show is terrible just remember another show called "it always sunny in Philly" it started out different, and became a phenomenal show. Mark my words. This show will get better.

This show is a hit and it is clever and subtle enough for you to laugh and learn at the same time. The actors do a great job and the main doctor, Laurie Metcalf, is pure funny in a way that makes you unsure whether to laugh or go hmm. I love her comedic movement and timing. This show is a sleeper hit and outdoes other shows on HBO. Clever writing disguised as simple lines of conversation always gets me laughing because it doesn't dumb down the audience and makes us feel as if we are in on the inside joke. The cast is fine tuned and believable in their roles. I hop this show gets the credit it deserves. Adapted from a British comedy it is a touch above.

I found this show so randomly by seeing one scene on socials, so I googled it and decided to give it a try. Plus I never watch this type of series... And then I was thrilled, it's so easy for watching, so casual, acting is so good, it's kind of relatable as they are showing lives of 'normal' people who are working same job every day and it's showing their struggles, their small happy moments, their bonding and fights. I didn't have any expectations and idea was to watch something to kill the time, and I ended up laughing so much and the only bad thing is that they canceled the show too soon. One of the best comedy shows I watched definitely. I saw Laurie Metcalf for the first time and she did an amazing job, facial expressions, the way she walks, talks, makes akward jokes, everything was brilliant. High recommendations if you wanna enjoy casual, short and very very entertaining show.

Why oh why would they cancel such a great show is beyond me!!! I'm not surprised, they're constantly cutting shows on the fly, never giving them time to develop a little bit'n