The public reaction is not good

The verdict has been reached for Netflix’s The accidentAlthough it has managed to gain some fans, the public is generally not happy with itwith some even laughing at the general premise. The Ready Steady Cut Community had a lot to say about the show, with emphasis on a unique tragedy.

Critical, The accident doesn’t get a good rap from critics. Six critics have submitted their latest reviews on Rotten tomatoeswhich has already led to a bad score.

Pramit Chatterjee of Digital Mafia Talkies said“In the worst case, The accident should have been a movie, and at best it shouldn’t have existed at all.” While I’m here at Ready Steady Cut, we reviewed it and said“It’s very serious. The actors do a great job of conveying that seriousness in very intense performances. But I can’t imagine a world where an inflatable thing floats up in the air that wouldn’t be hysterical to me.”

There are a few critics who are positive, however: LaNeysha Campbell of But why? said this about the show: “The accident is a thrilling exploration of the dark sides of guilt and grief and how, if not dealt with properly, those emotions can ripple through and destroy a community.”

Audience is not impressed by The Accident

Our community on Reddit had a lot to say about The accidentbut sentiment towards 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 really shouldn’t find this funny at all, but it seems like many viewers found the pivotal scene in the entire series laughable, and that’s probably not what the creators intended:

“Wow, the accident scene might just be the funniest scene ever, unintentionally – Aware-Leading-1213”

And Skyerippa answered:

“LMFAO it was so ridiculous.

First of all, it is normal for everyone to act like there is a raging wind blowing and they just talk about it.

And when the bounce house went up, why didn’t the adults all grab it and pull it down? LOL.

At least tell all the kids to jump off and not just keep screaming inaudibly while floating away lmfao.

How did 3 children die?!?!? They were barely in the air.”

However, one user, Potatosmom94, pointed out that the accident you see on the TV show did happen in real life, and that five children died in Australia. They shared a video with us for context:

I have to agree with the consensus here that this scene shouldn’t be funny at all, but the delivery was so bad that viewers couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it. Maybe the creators will regret the way they executed it. Even the critic who reviewed it here expressed how bad he felt 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’s hard to admit that I found the whole premise absolutely hilarious.”

Generally unsympathetic characters

I think critics and audiences can agree that The accident is an interesting premise, but it is far too bogged down in execution. As CharlotteLeBauff pointed out, there is not a single sympathetic character:

“There’s not a single character I like, except maybe the little girl’s dad. Everyone is so annoying and unpleasant. Especially the journalist. The only one I cared about was the dog. Luckily the dog was unharmed. That was my only fear, knowing that Netflix loves to kill dogs in their shows.”

Of course there is the exception of the dog. If a dog died on this TV show I think all hell would break loose.

And many agreed with Charlotte:

“I agree with others, everyone is so mean and then they blame each other, while they are all scum. I 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 standard “wait! Explain it to me! What are you talking about?! Wait!”

No offense but where are my ladies who would be out the door and fucking things up if you felt threatened by a STUPID man?!?? – RubyRubyG”

“I’m on episode 7. I thought it was ok for the first few episodes. Then it just became cringe with the overacting, insane drama violence for no reason every 3 minutes, which is hard to follow.

I might just finish it all…. Lol – RealisticForce6117”

Overall, viewers found the entire series a mess. A tragedy that was unintentionally funny and unserious, with a cast of unlikable characters, gave this Netflix series no chance.

We should add, however, that there was one person on X who was a bit angry about our positions:

Was it hilarious when 6 children in Tasmania died under these circumstances 3 years ago? https://t.co/z1u55tXqzS

— Mark P (@MarkP7186012653) August 23, 2024

I think Mark is missing the point here: no one is saying the tragedy is funny. It’s just an execution. In real life, I imagine it would have been a terrible 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 hear your thoughts below.