Netflix has a brand new sports documentary just waiting for you to binge-watch. "Receiver" is the follow-up to last year's "Quarterback" and it's already shot up to the No. 1 spot in the Netflix top 10 shows list.
Given that we selected the sports doc as one of the top Netflix shows this week, maybe it shouldn't be a surprise that it's already at the top spot. But just because it's shooting up the charts doesn't mean that it's necessarily worth your time. I hit play on the first episode — "Great Expectations: Part 1" — to see if this show measures up to the hype, and after 55 minutes, I have a verdict on whether to stream it or skip it.
So is "Receiver" for NFL fans or documentary lovers? Should everyone be watching Netflix's latest hit show? Or is it a miss from Netflix? Let's get into what "Receiver" is about and my impressions of the first episode.
What is Netflix's 'Receiver' about?
Like with "Quarterback," "Receiver" follows some of the best at the position across the NFL season, on and off the field.
Well ... that's not entirely accurate. While the show does focus mostly on some of the NFL's best wide receivers — Davante Adams (Las Vegas Raiders), Amon-Ra St. Brown (Detroit Lions), Justin Jefferson (Minnesota Vikings) and Deebo Samuel (San Francisco 49ers) — it also focuses on a tight end. No, it's not Mr. Taylor Swift aka Travis Kelce, though you'd be forgiven for expecting that. Instead, it's Samuel's teammate, George Kittle.
Over eight episodes, the show follows the five receivers on and off the field as they work their way through the 2023-24 NFL season and the road to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas. You'll need to watch to see if any of the five receivers punch their ticket to the Super Bowl by the end of episode eight, though if you're a football fan like me, you know "All Too Well" how the season ended.
'Receiver' isn't just about the big plays
Mild spoilers to follow
While there are plenty of touchdowns in the first episode of "Receiver" — George Kittle scores three on his own in a single game — this show isn't just about what happens on the field. In fact, it spends what feels like equal screen time on what happens off the field.
This is a hallmark of recent Netflix sports documentaries. "Formula 1: Drive to Survive," "Quarterback" and others have all taken care to give fans a behind-the-scenes look into athletes' lives. In this first episode alone, we get a look at fatherhood, a decade-long relationship and what it looks like when you've been trained to be an elite receiver from childhood by your larger-than-life parents.
Verdict: 'Receiver' fails to score with me — skip it
Currently, the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes are few and far between, but overall they're positive. One critic even goes as far as calling it "a great way to kill some time until the fall."
Unfortunately, I have to respectfully disagree. While the show is certainly polished from a production standpoint, it fails to sufficiently get into the X's and O's. The highlights from games are just that — highlight reels. We don't get a deeper analysis of why the play worked, what was done in training that led to success in that particular moment, etc. Brock Purdy tries to get some analysis from Samuel after a big play but even he can't win that battle.
Off the field, things aren't much better. The look into the lives of the Kittles in this first episode wasn't particularly engaging, and his teammate Samuel's personal life was barely touched on. The show does well diving into Amon-Ra St. Brown's personal life, but unfortunately, we just don't get enough time with him in this episode and the way the episode is edited kills the momentum that any one subject can build. We don't even meet two of the five receivers in this first episode.
So if you're bored and looking to binge-watch something this week, "Receiver" is at least well-made enough that there are worse options out there. But barring that, this sports documentary fails to approach the levels of engagement and insight you get from the best sports documentaries. There are enough good shows and movies available to stream right now that you should skip this Netflix show and stream something else.
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