Compare The Season, Season 1 vs It’s Not Like That, Chapter 1

The finale appears to push toward another conflict, but it did not land cleanly for the more critical reviewers. The final episode left at least one viewer disappointed and another unconvinced by the next-season setup.

The finale delivers an intense, tissue-worthy emotional experience, even though its romantic outcome divides the audience.

The screenplay has the ingredients for a sleek thriller, but one review says the deeper writing work under the gloss is missing. It leaves the show looking expensive while feeling underwritten.

The script is praised as carefully thought out, with layered characters and emotional moments that serve more than the central romance.

The writing is one of the show’s main liabilities. Critics point to clunky names, exposition-heavy scenes, and a script that does not do enough underneath the glossy surface.

Writing is repeatedly praised as beautiful, humane, and emotionally layered, with faith and family issues woven together naturally. A few critics call it sappy, shallow, or clichéd.

Critical response is mixed. The kinder take frames it as an easy summer distraction, while the harsher take says to enjoy the scenery and keep expectations low.

Strong critical notices reinforce the show's appeal beyond its enthusiastic customer audience.

Emotional connection is limited outside a few relationship moments. The Carrie/David subplot worked for one critic, while Cola’s revenge mission left another critic struggling to care.

Tearful, heartfelt moments are a defining strength, with grief and family scenes repeatedly described as moving, hopeful, and earned rather than manipulative.

For scandal-soap fans, the series has some appeal, but its thriller and elite-scandal promises are uneven. Viewers hoping for sharper, wilder scandal drama may come away underwhelmed.

It is widely seen as a welcome revival of warm multigenerational family drama, combining comfort-viewing appeal with contemporary emotional complications.

Dialogue is a repeated weak point. The show is described as leaden, stiff, and overwritten, with characters often sounding like they are explaining the world instead of speaking naturally.

The strongest responses call the dialogue realistic and human, especially around grief and family conflict. One critic found it too close to sentimental or unnatural.

The revenge infiltration often strains believability. Cola gets access to information and people too conveniently, which makes some turns feel engineered for the plot.

Grief, divorce, parenting, and faith usually feel messy, relatable, and emotionally honest. Negative responses question the pastoral behavior, consequences, and volume of issues packed into the story.

The opener has a hooky final reveal, but reviewers were mixed on whether the hour earns its intrigue. Some saw promise in the last scene, while others thought the early exposition and execution were weak.

The opening episode is repeatedly described as charming, compelling, and an excellent start, even when its exposition feels compressed.

The season can feel overloaded, with too many storylines competing for limited space. One viewer called out unexplained situations and plot holes, making the revenge arc harder to follow.

The large ensemble is introduced clearly, while David's motives and parts of the marital history remain underexplained.

Acting reactions are mixed to weak overall. Selected performers land well, but line delivery is also described as stilted, abrupt, uneven, or simply meh.

The cast is one of the clearest strengths, with customers repeatedly praising believable performances. A small minority found the acting poor or disliked specific casting choices.

The hanging ending did not satisfy at least one viewer. Rather than creating excitement, it left the season feeling incomplete and underexplored.

The unresolved ending clearly points toward another season, though its payoff depends on future episodes following through.

Suspense is inconsistent. The secrets and dishonesty create some intrigue, but several reviewers felt the show rarely sustains real tension or delivers the payoff its setup promises.

Unpredictable choices and unanswered relationship questions keep viewers wondering what will happen next, supporting continued interest without turning the show into a thriller.

As a revenge drama, the show lands in the middle-to-low range. It has enough intrigue to watch, but several reviewers found the revenge angle underpowered, unthrilling, or hard to invest in.

The series balances grief, romance, parenting, and faith with warmth and meaningful stakes. Its quieter, earnest style can feel too sappy or subdued for viewers wanting sharper drama.

The show touches on social pressure, appearance, and class expectations, especially within wealthy Asian circles. Those ideas are present, though not developed as deeply as the strongest prestige soaps.

Grief, faith, divorce, addiction, parenting, and second chances are explored with compassion and few easy answers. Some viewers found the sheer number of issues excessive.

Characters are watchable but often thinly drawn. Cola gives the show a rooting interest for some, yet several reviews say the cast falls into archetypes or lacks enough background and growth.

The adults and children receive distinct emotional struggles that make most of the ensemble easy to invest in. Detractors found some children unlikable and wanted serious problems addressed more responsibly.

The premise is repeatedly described as familiar, borrowing from revenge dramas and wealthy-society soaps. Its Hong Kong setting freshens the package, but the underlying beats rarely feel new.

The series often avoids an easy romantic resolution and can surprise viewers, but familiar child arcs, predictable tropes, and one strongly negative response limit the praise.

Several episodes rely heavily on announced backstory and crowded subplots. That structure makes the world easy to understand, but it can feel mechanical rather than lived-in.

The pilot wins viewers over despite a noticeable explainer-heavy setup that sometimes feels like conventional premiere groundwork.

The show is best suited to viewers who like glamorous elite scandals and scenic escapism. Broader appeal is limited by weak suspense, familiar plotting, and uneven dialogue.

Its warm, accessible style reaches beyond a strictly faith-based audience and resonates especially with families and viewers who have experienced grief or divorce.

Entertainment value depends on expectations. It works as glossy, low-effort summer escapism for some, but others found it merely moderate or even a waste of time.

The broad response is highly positive, with many calling it refreshing, comforting, and easy to enjoy. The harshest critics found it unrealistic, overstuffed, or not worth finishing.

The story has a workable rich-people revenge setup, but reactions split hard on execution. Some found it engaging and breezy, while others felt the plot soured, rushed through too many threads, or never found enough force.

The intertwined family story is widely praised as heartfelt, relatable, and compelling, with strong balance between adults and children. Critics cite clichés, overcrowded issues, and disappointing late choices.

Production design draws mixed reactions. Some loved the polished interiors and well-appointed locations, while another critic thought the supposedly luxe sets and costumes looked chintzy.

The overall production is described as polished and well made, reinforcing the sense that this is a higher-quality entry in faith-oriented television.

Twists are one of the better-liked story tools here. The plot can be predictable, but surprise turns and midseason momentum give the final stretch something to work with.

The changing relationships and twists keep the story lively and increase anticipation for another season.

The show gestures toward colonial wealth, class divides, and the sins behind elite privilege. Those themes add texture, but one critic felt the critique of the upper crust was half-hearted.

The girls' wrestling storyline may feel contemporary and inclusive to some viewers, but it was also criticized as propaganda.

The show has enough motion to keep casual viewers pressing next. Big turns and the central revenge hook make it easy to continue even when the writing disappoints.

Several viewers finished the season in two days or said they could not stop watching. Even a more critical response still watched the full run in hopes of a stronger payoff.

Humor is light and intermittent rather than a major draw. The show can be a little funny, but it plays more as breezy soap than sharp comedy.

Light banter, awkward family moments, and Foley's easy humor keep the grief-heavy story from becoming oppressive without turning it into a broad comedy.

Jessie Mei Li’s Cola gets the most consistent acting praise, especially for balancing charm, calculation, and uncertainty. Some broader performance concerns remain, but the lead work is one of the steadier elements.

Scott Foley and Erinn Hayes earn especially strong praise for vulnerability, warmth, and emotional clarity. One critic tired of Foley repeating the same tearful expression.

Episode momentum varies by storyline. Some parts drag under crowded plotting, while another review felt the plot generally moved without making the viewer feel dragged along.

The premiere moves confidently for some viewers, but others felt it races through exposition and romance before the relationships have enough time to settle.

The six-episode format is divisive. It keeps the season compact and easy to watch, but another critic felt it was far too short to build proper investment in the revenge story.

The eight-episode order frustrates viewers in opposite ways: one critic thinks the middle is padded, while another believes the season is far too short.

The revenge-and-accountability angle does not fully persuade. The Hexts do not become villainous enough to make Cola’s quest emotionally gripping.

Conflict resolution is usually presented as compassionate and constructive, but the drunk-driving crash drew sharp criticism for lacking police consequences or meaningful intervention.

The supporting players often fare better than the plotting around them. The social circle can be entertaining, and characters like Madeline get enough spark to stand out.

The younger cast often earns standout praise for warmth, realism, and emotional range, particularly Cary Christopher and Caleb Baumann. One hostile response disliked how the children were presented.

The strongest chemistry sits in the relationship pairings rather than the revenge machinery. Carrie and Cola, Carrie and David, and the long-married Hexts all drew praise for adding warmth or lived-in tension.

Scott Foley and Erinn Hayes generate natural, lived-in chemistry that anchors the series, while the wider ensemble often feels like a believable interconnected family.

Visuals are the clearest consensus strength. Even negative takes praise the gorgeous Hong Kong setting, yacht-party glamour, and scenery that sometimes outshines the script.

Clean imagery and thoughtful framing support the emotional tone, including a restrained apparition device that keeps Jenny's absence visually present.

Continuity and internal follow-through are concerns in the more negative response. Unexplained situations and plot holes made the season feel loose rather than tightly engineered.

A major drunk-driving crash is criticized for vanishing without a police report or consequences, creating a conspicuous break in narrative follow-through.

The show’s images of Hong Kong are a major pleasure. Golden-hour harbor shots, skyline views, and city scale give it a polished travel-gloss finish.

The picture is described as clean, steady, and professionally filmed, with clear visuals that avoid the murky darkness common in some dramas.

The Hong Kong setting gets more texture than a generic rich-people backdrop. Cantonese-English movement and a lovingly rendered city give the show a welcome sense of place.

Faith is usually praised as sincere, welcoming, and naturally woven into modern family life rather than preachy. A vocal minority rejects the inclusive Christian portrayal as inauthentic or overly progressive.

Pacing is one of the clearest tradeoffs: a compact structure keeps some episodes moving briskly, but others found the season rushed or uneven. The short run helps momentum yet leaves threads underdeveloped.

The middle episodes are the weakest stretch for pacing, with criticism that the season becomes low-key, uneven, and less compelling week to week.

Hong Kong is the show’s richest asset. Reviews praise the way the series uses elite yachts, restaurants, markets, apartments, and city vistas to make the setting feel specific and immersive.

The interconnected households, church, school, and neighborhood feel fully formed quickly, making it easy to settle into the characters' shared lives.

The ending left some viewers frustrated rather than satisfied. The season’s closing setup and last-episode payoff were criticized for feeling disappointing or not fully working.

The finale is the clearest source of frustration, particularly Lori's romantic choice and the last-minute reversal of the hoped-for pairing.

The restrained presentation suits many families with teens, but grief, self-harm, addiction, divorce, and other mature themes make it a questionable choice for younger children.

Malcolm's choices are the main sticking point: critical viewers felt his behavior did not match the responsibilities of a pastor or attentive father.

Costumes do not fully sell the ultra-wealthy fantasy for everyone. One critic specifically felt the wardrobe looked surprisingly chintzy for a show built around elite wealth.

Brad Silberling's direction is singled out for helping the slice-of-life material feel polished, emotionally clear, and impactful.

Parents appreciated the way the show encourages conversations about difficult issues, and one older viewer found its parenting lessons personally revealing.

The roughly 48-minute episodes keep stronger installments from feeling overextended. The compact size helps plot points pay off before individual episodes stretch too long.

Most viewers value the wholesome tone, limited profanity, restrained sexual content, and focus on family. Mature themes and a few moral objections mean it is not universally suitable for children.

Profanity is minimal and generally viewed as refreshingly restrained, although faith-focused guides still note occasional swearing as a content caveat.

The buried family scandal gives the season a decent mystery backbone. New pieces of past and present history keep the mystery moving even when the thrills are uneven.

Demand for another season is exceptionally strong, with many viewers explicitly asking for Season 2 and some wanting several more seasons.

Rewatch value looks limited. The show comes across as frothy and forgettable rather than a likely lasting favorite.

Sex is discussed or implied without graphic depiction, and several viewers praise the restraint. More conservative responses still object to dating and intimacy outside marriage.

Included Prime access makes the series feel like an excellent value and worthwhile use of time. Its initial add-on placement was harder to justify for less enthusiastic viewers.

The limited violence is generally appreciated, with only school wrestling and bullying flagged as mild concerns rather than dominant content.