User Reviews

In Maniac, a paranoid schizophrenic and a depressed woman join a very weird experimental program designed to cure mental illness for good using drugs and computers. This cure involves living through various fantasy scenarios, which reminded me a little of Dollhouse, although it's actually based - incredibly loosely (Vulture has an article on how loosely if you're curious) - on a mediocre Norwegian comedy.

The story is intriguing. The acting is excellent, particularly Emma Stone, who is as brilliant as always, and Sally Field, who seems to be really enjoying her turn as, among others, a celebrity shrink.

Besides the crazy drugs and the multiple lives, Maniac is notable for its strange alternate reality. The series takes place in a world with incredible technology but also computers that seem to be from the 90s. It's as though the filmmakers wanted to make a futuristic series as it would have been made in 1992. The world of Maniac is similar to ours yet different, with oddities like rental friends.

Strange, funny, imaginative, and affecting, this is brilliant, must-watch television.

I'm in the camp that considers this a criminally underrated series. I don't know how this one slipped by me, as I've seen most of the internet at this point but I never heard a thing about it when it was released.

My wife, on the other hand, found this show very dull and uninteresting until the last few episodes. I was hooked from the very beginning.

The universe that's been imagined here is pretty quirky. Imagine if the allies lost the war and there was never a splurge in technological growth aimed for the consumer market. Computers are still using green screens and dot matrix printers, although advances in programming are still ahead of where we are today.

Owen (Jonah Hill) is a schizophrenic who's been abused and taken advantage of by his family. He tries to keep his distance from his family but lacks the stability to support himself without their help.

Annie (Emma Stone, who puts in an incredible performance) is dealing with her own childhood trauma, where she had to play the emotional role of mother to her little sister, but remains and emotionally stunted adult. After more trauma in her adult life, she no longer knows how to be a functional human being.

Justin Theroux as Dr. James K Mantleray takes a smaller part, mostly appearing in the second half of the series, but creates a character so off kilter that every line he delivers is hysterical.

Sally Field as Dr. Mantleray's estranged mother (and as the artificial intelligence GRTA which serves as the operating system for these dream like experiences) delivers a lot of heart and more hilarity.

This is mostly a drama. There's a good amount of comedy. There are sci-fi elements. But at the end this is a story about people moving on and learning to leave their pain behind. For those who get emotionally invested in stories like these, the last few episodes hit pretty hard. The writing through some of the "confrontational" scenes is pretty spectacular.

The entire cast delivers but Emma Stone really takes it to another level in this series. The sets feel cohesive and keep you immersed in this alternative universe. I enjoyed the soundtrack so much that I've started listening to it on my downtime.

I'll remember this one for a long time. I plan to watch it again. Highly recommended.

I started watching this series without having any clue what it was going to be about. I didn't read any reviews, just saw the high ratings, and gave it a shot. The first episodes were a bit confusing and I was wondering where it would go. Once I got further into the story the more I liked it. It's just the weirdness that makes it attractive. And weird is the least you could say to describe this show. The cast is good as well, with Emma Stone and Justin Theroux as the two best actors in this series. If you like strange stories this might be for you. I wouldn't call it amazing and the best thing ever like some other reviewers wrote but it's worth watching.

Literally just so good. Woke my sister up to tell her i love her. Called my mom. Drank some water. Some of my acne cleared up. I'm so happy that this show exists. Damn.

In Maniac, we are presented with another version of reality to our own - one in which the concepts of the future born of 1980's science fiction became the reality of the present. And this offbeat setting is the stage upon which we are told a story about relationships - about their hardships, their heartbreaks, their inevitable sorrows, but, ultimately, also the strength they lend us, and the importance of these human connections as we all do our best to make our way through the uniquely strange experience of life. Maniac is a story about friendship, about family - about the connections we have to one another. It's a story about love. And one that we all should hear.

Originally watched first released just wasn't reviewing much then and now absolutely loving Maniac again. I'm blown away this wasn't nominated it's a damn shame it wasn't! Crystal smooth writing that I crave so much that it makes me feel at peace and the ambient music throughout is a tranquil delight. Jonah Hill is electrifying especially since this came out a little while after his weight loss transformation! Brilliant story about a sophisticated program that tests a group of people in which stays intriguing and captivating!

Literally, unbelievable...mostly because it's so bizarre...u know those shows and movies with endings that make no sense? Well this is the opposite...nothing really makes sense till the end. So well done, from the acting to the tiny alternate world details...I was glued and watched all 10 episodes in one sitting...yea I know I dont have a life and I love it that way. Anyhow, just watch it, through all the weird bizarro stuff and asking ureself why ure watching...just watch it all and enjoy...WOW!!!

The whole series is nothing more than some disjointed happenings strung together with a lame excuse. Can't believe how reviewers can give this a 10. These reviewers remind you of the pretentious, so-called experts that applaud a piece of garbage as "modern art". Don't waste your time looking for anything meaningful here.

In all these 8 or 10 part American TV dramas, there's always one episode that you can skip without missing anything important. In this series there are 4 of them. (They are episodes 4, 5, 7 and 8.)

If you skip these episodes, the series is a solid 9. If you don't take my advice, the series is a 6.

Everything else you need to know has been covered in other reviews.

I have to say that I was pretty curious because of the incredible good ratings so I started the show. Some of the comments are correct, the show is quite stretchy sometimes and is definitely not a 10/10. But the brilliant visuals, the great atmosphere, the super cool soundtrack and the completely amazing cast Jonah Hill and Emma Stone make it absolutely worthwhile to watch. If you start it, PLEASE stay with the show until the end as it is essential to understand the entire plot. Good show Netflix, I'd like to see more of that!

Started with really great character development and the the second half just didn't do it for me. The acting is great and it's visually beautiful to watch. It was 3 episodes to long. Looking forward to what the director does next.

All flash. Like so much now it's not entertainment so much as a platform for people to talk about entertainment. But there's not much there except the MacGuffin weirdness of the show. The next problem is that even though it runs 7.5 hrs it's mostly windup. The first several episodes are prep prep prep and more prep. Don't ask what's going on because it's irrelevant. It's just staging. The last problem is that each ep is a little longer than it needs to be. Each scene is a little longer than it needs to be. Their series intro is a cold open that again, runs a couple of minutes more than it should.

The retro future Blade Runner visuals are nice. It really does have a PK Dick the future is dirty cracked and crappy feel to it. But not as paranoid, just extreme clinical depression. Quite cheery in a weird way.

On the whole it's a Meh. You'll probably like it if you're not interested in a plot arc or a coherent story or anything like a beginning middle or end or a resolution that makes sense. But that's fine because it's art. Or something.

Psychology, anthropology, linguistics and information technology wrapped into an amazingly well-acted Sci-Fi story. At times I was confused, surprised, mystified and yet the plot was so incredibly well woven and presented. I can think of nothing better I have seen in years and watching this was time well spent.

Soo good! It had kind of a "inception"/"eternal sunshine of the spotless mind" vibe going on...

Something out of the ordinary!

I binge watched this series today, and felt the need to leave a comment about it. At first I couldn't pinpoint what exactly I really enjoyed about the show... the thing that set it apart from other shows. I realized, though, it was because it lacked an agenda. There is no political, sexual, racial (etc, etc) agenda in this series, so you can watch it without feeling as if people are trying to shove their opinion down your throat. It's subtle in it's humor, but had me laughing out loud, tearing up, and grinning at the end. It's over-the-top in all the right places, without being overwhelmingly goofy or campy.

Honestly, I just enjoyed being able to sit down and watch a heartfelt story without being antagonized by agendas. The acting was also spot on, and the character building was amazing.

Brilliantly crafted show. The atmosphere of the series pulls you into its intriguing, eccentric retro-futuristic world. The acting is exquisite and the characters are thoroughly developed. The series is innovative, original, intelligently funny but also emotional, in a few words, it is of a high quality in every aspect of its production!

I can't understand why some people have given this 10/10. It's unwatchable. Think you have to be on the pharmaceutical trial that the show is based on to follow it.

Visually looks great, but a complete waste of Emma Stone and Jonah Hill. What were they thinking?

Well, first, Emma Stone and Jonah Hill really are a great team. The supporting actors were exceptionally good with no flaws at all.

This series takes you to places in the world, and some places that do not seem from this world, with an amazing eye for the detail. Great cinema on the small screen.

Most important, this series plays with the simple button and light electronics of the past, because it does not need any fancy special effects. It's just amazing by itself.

Please give us more of this plain amazing acting where you don't need any strechers inbetween.

Well done, well done!

There's gold here, but it's buried in a purposely convoluted story that, as much as you want to give it the be of the doubt, fails. It's an example of a filmmaking team thinking they can do whatever they feel and it's relevant. In this case it's not and the story oftentimes feels pretentious. Too bad since everyone is clearly working hard to make this a success.

Wow. It is difficult to do justice to this genre bending, absurd sci-fi/comedy/thriller/drama in a review. So much happens in multiple character arcs that each episode is like opening a new Christmas present. Unlike most Hollywood/Netflix efforts, no short cut is taken for dramatic effect. Every character, even when partially developed, are welcome respites from dreary reality.

Jonah Hill and Emma Stone reprise so many roles, that it is difficult to keep them straight sometimes. Best to just roll with the punches and enjoy each little adventure on their own. 80's nostalgia is sprinkled throughout an alternate universe, with homages to Japanese cinema, the Muppets, and 2001.

Binged it in three nights, and will re-watch it again next week. I can comfortably say this rests in the pantheon of classics like Shawshank and Napoleon Dynamite.

Oh I just don't get it? Thank god. It tries WAY WAY too hard. Hipster trash. Justin is semi funny at times but come ON.

There's now way this is a 10/10 series. I so wanted to like it. To be fair I'm only on episode 8 however, I don't really care to finish it out. I keep thinking oh it's going to get good but with only 2 episodes left even if it gets really good it's not worth putting the time into the first 8 episodes.