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[Oddduck]

GLOW tells the fictional story of Ruth Wilder (Brie), an out-of-work, struggling actress in 1980s Los Angeles who finds one last chance for stardom when she's thrust into the glitter and spandex world of women's wrestling.

Release date: Netflix on June 23rd  (Friday)

Who are the showrunners?

GLOW is created by Liz Flahive (Homeland, Nurse Jackie) and Carly Mensch (Nurse Jackie, Orange Is The New Black, Weeds). Orange Is the New Black creator Jenji Kohan and Tara Herrmann are executive producers.

Number of episodes:  Ten episodes

Spoilers: For two weeks, you must spoiler tag your posts/discussions, while also labeling your post with the episode you are discussing (i.e. episode 5:

Spoiler

IT'S ME AUSTIN! IT WAS ME ALL ALONG!

)

Links:

• Netflix page
  [*]Official trailer

Cast:

Alison Brie as Ruth,
Betty Gilpin as Debbie,
Marc Maron as Sam Sylvia
Ellen Wong as Jenny
Britt Baron as Justine
Sunita Mani as Arthie
Sydelle Noel as Cherry Bang
Britney Young as Carmen Wade
Jackie Tohn as Melrose
Kate Nash as Rhonda,
Gayle Rankin as Sheila the She Wolf
Kia Stevens as Tamee
Chris Lowell as Sebastian "Bash" Howard,
Rebekkah Johnson as Dawn,
Kimmy Gatewood as Stacey,

WHAT ARE THE CRITICS SAYING?

Entertainment Weekly -  Grade: A  (10 out of 10)

Part sports drama, part showbiz satire, part birth-of-the-modern-woman allegory — all heartbreaking glitter-blasted humanity — Netflix's GLOW is unlike any show I've ever seen. I love it so much; it made me laugh, cry, think, and pump my fists in the air screaming, ”YESYESYES!"

Variety - 9 out of 10

It's an honest show that is satisfyingly, surprisingly intimate. And — refreshingly — it eschews building up its women as sexualized totems, in order to observe how those women might pursue that process themselves. It's a smart move; ”GLOW" is a smart show. It's precisely weighty enough, without the bloat and spotty pacing that characterizes other streaming shows. There's an interesting disorientation to the editing and pacing that keeps the audience on its toes, and the neon lights and bright lycra make for easy, fun viewing coupled with quality storytelling.

The Hollywood Reporter - 8 out of 10

GLOW is sometimes funny, sometimes emotional and anchored by a strong, ego-free performance by Alison Brie, improving across the full 10-episode first season sent to critics..

New York Times - 9 out of 10

GLOW is blessedly its own thing. It's nostalgic, but it's more than the sum of its soundtrack and hair spray. Its ratty mid-80s Los Angeles of motels and skate punks feels specific and lived in. Like last summer's Netflix breakout, ”Stranger Things," GLOW is a hulking creature sewn together from pop-cultural scraps, but when it steps into the ring, it reveals itself as a true original.

Washington Post - 8 out of 10

”GLOW" pulses with all sorts of potential talking points about gender, friendships between women and public perception of stereotypes, but rather than bogging itself down in prolonged messaging, it is consistently committed to a brisk pace and a lightness that reflects its subject matter.

Los Angeles Times - 8 out of 10

Some characters get more screen time than others, but none are shallow; all get to tell you at least a little bit about who they are, without making too obvious a point of it.

The Guardian

I haven't seen a US show as smart, grimy, snappy and ludicrous in a long time. It is everything I want right now with a big, lurid cherry on top. If GLOW isn't the best fun you have in front of a screen this year, I'll give you 10 bucks.

IGN  - 9.0 out of 10

GLOW is fundamentally fun and effortlessly engaging, following a troupe of lost performers who find family and friendship through an art form that, in most other situations, they'd never consider trying. Alison Brie, Betty Gilpin, and Marc Maron triumphantly triple-team this series as anchors in performance, but pawns to production - just like with any good wrestling show. The money is in the chase, and GLOW honors this.

IndieWire - Grade: A -

To call it a feel-good hit would be a bit reductive and presumptive, but "GLOW" deserves all the love and respect thrust upon it. Sit back, turn it up, and enjoy.

UPROXX (Alan Sepinwall) - 8 out of 10

GLOW takes its time teaching its characters, and its audience, the tricks of the wrestling trade. But that's okay, because it gets the far more entertaining part of the field--the soap opera, and the over-the-top commitment everyone makes to it--right. It's an absolute pleasure.

USA Today - 7.5 out of 10

But GLOW succeeds almost entirely because of the affinity the writers clearly have for wrestling as a form of entertainment. The show revels in every move, every over-the-top costume, every fake shriek of pain. And even for a viewer who's  never understood wrestling's appeal, it's hard not to get caught up in the spirit of it all. The show is at its best when it leans into its hammy, overly-hairsprayed roots and just has some genuine fun.

San Francisco Chronicle - 7.5 out of 10

The performances are superb, especially those of Maron, Young, Brie and Gilpin, all of whom do justice to mostly exceptional scripts. That said, the show doesn't really find its footing until the third episode.

Deadline 

Like the sleight-of-hand moves that anyone who's ever watched WrestleMania knows so well, the Alison Brie- and Marc Maron-led ensemble delivers big-picture pile-drivers on gender roles, Hollywood sexism, reinvention in the City of Angels and finding yourself in ways you never expected.

Both Brie and Maron are excellent.

Rolling Stone

The show quickly develops into a rich period-piece, using actual wrestling history and culture as the staging ground for stories about ladies of varying shapes, sizes, colors, and social backgrounds.

Marc Maron gives the best performance of his career.

AV Club - Grade: B+

GLOW needs no persuading to take wrestling seriously. And if it struggles to get some of its larger points across, well, so did the original Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling. But it's a totally winning, totally unique series, a battle royale of styles and tones that deliveries victories to characters who can really use them.

TV Line - Grade: B+

Fans of Orange Is the New Black will find themselves on familiar ground with GLOW - and that's a very good thing.

RogerEbert.com - 8 out of 10

Brie and Maron are great, but what's increasingly rewarding about the show is how much they cede to the rest of the ensemble. GLOW takes a bit of time to find its footing, but it becomes incredibly easy to watch as it develops its rhythm around episode four and one really gets to know the characters.

Tampa Bay Times

GLOW is a smart show. It fits nicely alongside other feminist series, prestige comedies and acclaimed dramas. It's weirdly wonderful, held together by ultra-sticky hairspray, Quiet Riot's Come On Feel the Noise and superb storytelling.

Colorado Springs Gazette - 10 out of 10

Unique, humorous and with touches of warmth, this series might just be the sitcom of the summer.

The Oregonian - 9 out of 10

You don't need to be a fan of pro wrestling to love "GLOW," the terrific new Netflix series starring Alison Brie ("Community," "Mad Men.") In fact, even if you hate pro wrestling, and are absolutely thrilled not to remember the "Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling" '80s TV series that inspired "GLOW," this is a show that cuts through the Peak TV clutter like a glittery body slam. GLOW is both blessedly original and delightfully nostalgic. It's a superb showcase for an ensemble cast that couldn't be better. Brie, in particular, is a revelation.

Lincoln Journal Star - Grade: A (10 out of 10)

Brie and Maron really drive the show. Their scenes together provide much of the laughs. Their comedy expertise comes through in a show that's already landed on my best-of-summer list.

Collider - 6 out of 10

GLOW works (or doesn't work) in a 1:1 ratio with how things are working out in its story. When the characters are disorganized and the cable show is a mess, so is GLOW. Once the characters find their personas as wrestlers, they start to have them for viewers. And once the performances begin, GLOW starts to get very good.

We Got This Covered - 10 out of 10

There's an infectious sense of joy embedded deep into GLOW's DNA. Despite its high-minded moral core (women asserting the power of their own bodies and carving out a place of strength), GLOW never feels remotely preachy. On top of all that, GLOW is funny. Really goddamn funny.

Nerdist - 4 out of 5

This is the kind of show you'll have a blast watching, and is also compelling enough that you will likely binge the whole thing a weekend. And isn't that the mark of a truly great Netflix series?

VICE

It's a breath of fresh air, one that's light and lively to go along with the summer season. It's the antidote to this last Orange Is The New Black season which found itself circling around, struggling to find comedy, and diving deeper into tortuous episodes. On the contrary, GLOW is like the younger, eager cousin who has already figured out its tone and navigates it effortlessly. The entire season goes by too quickly (it's built for a binge-watch, and the one break I took was an excruciating wait), but it ends on a note that literally had me clapping. I finished it yesterday; I can't wait to watch it again tomorrow.

411Mania - 9 out of 10

The series never drags and the characters remain a ball to watch throughout. While there may have been good reason to be initially skeptical about whether a series based on the creation of GLOW could work, the cast and crew proved all the doubts wrong by delivering one of the best new shows of the year. Netflix has another absolute gem on their hands with GLOW, a dramedy that succeeds by taking its campy subject matter seriously in exactly the right way.

FILMINK

But that would all be for nothing if GLOW wasn't also a hell of a lot of fun, packed with crackling, arch dialogue, a fine line in self-deprecation, and a weird kind of Andy Rooney ”let's put on a show!" gumption. Honestly, there's nothing else quite like it out there at the moment.

Slant Magazine - 2.5 out of 4

But even more so than Orange Is the New Black, GLOW struggles with its sheer number of characters; in having to introduce so many wrestlers in only 10 episodes, some of them feel underdeveloped. Still, GLOW remains an entertaining watch because of its earnest adherence to the conventions of the underdog sports drama, a genre that traffics in satisfyingly predictable upsets, curmudgeonly yet caring coaches (or in this case, directors), and high-energy training montages.

Salon Magazine - 9 out of 10

As the title implies, GLOW wins top ranking by serving up a sensational story that's brilliant for summer, but timeless as well. Wrestling may be fake, but the relationships these characters forge throughout the story ring true.

Forbes

GLOW could have and should have been much more than what it is. Based on the first five episodes of the series, it's just not a fun story to binge. Is it important? Maybe. Is it anything more than Orange is the New Black with wrestlers? Not really. It's the same toy in a new package. Fans of Orange will enjoy it. Fans of wrestling will appreciate their passion finally getting some Hollywood spotlight... but all of that will fade quickly if the characters with actually compelling stories aren't given the love they deserve in seasons that are sure to be on the way.

PROMOTIONAL PHOTOS

Special thanks to Kaladin for the thread title suggestion.

 

[British Monsoon]

Looking forward to this! A little disappointed they don't appear to be using the original GLOW characters for the wrestlers, though. Needs more Colonel Ninotchka

 

[Norwegian Rudo]

Looking forward to this! A little disappointed they don't appear to be using the original GLOW characters for the wrestlers, though. Needs more Colonel Ninotchka

They only have the right to use the actual name, nothing else. But the main character ends up as

Spoiler

the Russian villain.

 

[Messofanego]

Glad to hear it's reviewing so well, can't wait.

 

[Oddduck]

Some director info.

Tristram Shapeero directed an episode of this show. He directed 24 episodes of Community -- Alison Brie's previous show.

Wendy Stanzler also directed one of Glow's ten episodes. She directed 13 episodes of FX's critically acclaimed show "You're the Worst".

 

[GK86]

Great OT!

Really looking forward to this.

 

[TetraGenesis]

Can't wait!

Does anyone else that played Persona 5 think Alison Brie looks like Kawakami in this?

 

[PoorChoices]

Looking forward to it. Also hyped that Awesome Kong/Kharma is in it. She was probably my favorite lady wrestler.

OP missed a great opportunity about the spoiler example. Something like

Spoiler

IT'S ME AUSTIN! IT WAS ME ALL ALONG!

I will probably binge this all in one day. Loves me some wrestling and really love the 80's aesthetic.

 

[Sinatar]

They only have the right to use the actual name, nothing else. But the main character ends up as

Spoiler

the Russian villain.

Oh really? That's disappointing. Then again I'm probably in the giant giant minority of people who actually watched GLOW back in the day.

 

[Zach]

Hoping to enjoy this. The ladyfriend is puuumped.

 

[Oddduck]

OP missed a great opportunity about the spoiler example. Something like

Spoiler

IT'S ME AUSTIN! IT WAS ME ALL ALONG!

Ha, that's a good one, lol. I hope you don't mind me using that.

 

[BronsonLee]

The fact that:

There's a wrestling show being made by Netflix
...that's about fuckin' GLOW
that has Alison Brie in it
that is really good

gives my mind whiplash

 

[the_firewithin]

Brie is all i needed to binge <3

 

[Anth0ny]

Here's hoping if this does well, the Vince Mcmahon biopic becomes a reality.

 

[Struct09]

Glad it's reviewing well, will definitely check it out

 

[Tall4Life]

I'm super super excited for this

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I'm honestly tired of Netflix's "all episodes at once" releases, but I still intend to check this out. Hopefully it doesn't feel like too much of a slog.

 

[CSJ]

I'm honestly tired of Netflix's "all episodes at once" releases, but I still intend to check this out. Hopefully it doesn't feel like too much of a slog.

Hell, just use your powers of control to watch it at your own pace.

 

[Platy]

..THE Kate nash ?

 

[ShaneB]

Excited. Should be a fun summertime watch.

 

[mm04]

Yeah, I'll be watching this. Nostalgia overload. I'll never forget when that one wrestler

Spoiler

dislocated her elbow during a match.

As someone who has done that, I could painfully relate.

 

[adj_noun]

Orange is the New Backdrop

Excited for this one.

 

[Foggy]

I'll try to enjoy it while it lasts. It's a Jenji Kohan show so it'll go off the rails within a couple seasons.

 

[Bladenic]

I'll try to enjoy it while it lasts. It's a Jenji Kohan show so it'll go off the rails within a couple seasons.

She's only an EP

 

[Tom Nook]

Looking forward to this.

 

[rikichi]

Alison Brie is in this? Might have to watch then.

 

[DominoKid]

oh wow its actually good.

 

[Oddduck]

IGN just posted their full season review. I added it to the OP.

IGN  - 9.0 out of 10

GLOW is fundamentally fun and effortlessly engaging, following a troupe of lost performers who find family and friendship through an art form that, in most other situations, they'd never consider trying. Alison Brie, Betty Gilpin, and Marc Maron triumphantly triple-team this series as anchors in performance, but pawns to production - just like with any good wrestling show. The money is in the chase, and GLOW honors this.

 

[blame space]

they just played the trailer for this after my show ended and it looked fantastic.

 

[Aiii]

Featurette: https://youtu.be/W66qxBlU660

Chavo Jr is somehow involved with every new wrestling endeavor ever.

 

[Lima]

You had me at Brie.

 

[Kaladin]

A good wrestling show in 2017?

 

[slightconfuse]

Featurette: https://youtu.be/W66qxBlU660

Chavo Jr is somehow involved with every new wrestling endeavor ever.

His uncle trained the wrestler's in the original show

 

[RatskyWatsky]

Hell, just use your powers of control to watch it at your own pace.

There are too many shows though - it's overwhelming, not to mention daunting, to watch a massive amount of episodes pile up if you dare to fall behind.

Spoiler

Not to mention missing out on the conversation, which usually doesn't last long for streaming shows. Don't leave me out of the conversation bro!

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

The fact that:

There's a wrestling show being made by Netflix
...that's about fuckin' GLOW
that has Alison Brie in it
that is really good

gives my mind whiplash

Tomorrow, I get:

- Hamilton
- Steam Sale
- GLOW

So fucking happy right now.

 

[daffy]

There are too many shows though - it's overwhelming, not to mention daunting, to watch a massive amount of episodes pile up if you dare to fall behind.

Spoiler

Not to mention missing out on the conversation, which usually doesn't last long for streaming shows. Don't leave me out of the conversation bro!

What I don't understand are the people that finish watching 10-13eps in like 1 & 1/2 days and then pop up to discuss like its normal but I'm not judging fyi

 

[Oddduck]

More reviews coming in.

New York Times - 9 out of 10

GLOW is blessedly its own thing. It's nostalgic, but it's more than the sum of its soundtrack and hair spray. Its ratty mid-80s Los Angeles of motels and skate punks feels specific and lived in. Like last summer's Netflix breakout, ”Stranger Things," GLOW is a hulking creature sewn together from pop-cultural scraps, but when it steps into the ring, it reveals itself as a true original.

Los Angeles Times - 8 out of 10

Some characters get more screen time than others, but none are shallow; all get to tell you at least a little bit about who they are, without making too obvious a point of it.

UPROXX (Alan Sepinwall) - 8 out of 10

GLOW takes its time teaching its characters, and its audience, the tricks of the wrestling trade. But that's okay, because it gets the far more entertaining part of the field--the soap opera, and the over-the-top commitment everyone makes to it--right. It's an absolute pleasure.

AV Club - B+

GLOW needs no persuading to take wrestling seriously. And if it struggles to get some of its larger points across, well, so did the original Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling. But it's a totally winning, totally unique series, a battle royale of styles and tones that deliveries victories to characters who can really use them.

 

[WyndhamPrice]

I watched all of this last week. It's ridiculously good.

Also I found the pacing to be super refreshing&#8212;I thought going in that it would be an hour-long show like OITNB but it's a half-hour (really 30-35 minutes) each episode which keeps it moving in a great way.

 

[Matty77]

Cant wait. I like wrestling, as someone who missed it I am fascinated by the idea of glow, plus I tend to enjoy anything involving Maron that isn't his stand up.

In fact he had Alison and Betty on WTF this week and I guess there are more episodes coming with other people involved.

Looks good.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

I'm actually pretty excited for this now, especially after learning that it's only half an hour per episode.

 

[megatronium]

IN!

 

[Lord of Castamere]

The trailer looks great. In for Alison Bree.

 

[Indelible]

I didn't know what to expect from this but those reviews have me very optimistic, should be fun to binge it tomorrow.

 

[SomewhatGroovy]

Stoked for this. Allison Brie is great. Marc Maron is awesome as well.

 

[DJKhaled]

Should be up in like half an hour, right?

 

[parrotbeak]

I hope this is a hit just in hopes we get the old GLOW rereleased. i loved that shit back then. Cheyenne Cher was my favorite. Sarah and Mabel legit scared me.

 

[DJKhaled]

YAY it's up

 

[bobnowhere]

The episodes range from 29 to 36 minutes.

Just finished the first episode, it's great. The final scene is amazing.

 

[blackflag]

Good so far. Wasn't expecting Allison to get naked so much.

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

Also I found the pacing to be super refreshing—I thought going in that it would be an hour-long show like OITNB but it's a half-hour (really 30-35 minutes) each episode which keeps it moving in a great way.

That kind of deflates my boner.