Netflix’s Space Force Rotten Tomatoes Score Is Out

Netflix is about to skew one of the newest bits of cultural phenomenon that’s arrived in the last few years: the US government’s Space Force initiative. Ever since the current administration announced in 2019 that it was investing in Space Force, there have been plenty of jokes at its expense. Netflix’s Space Force series is looking to give all that mockery a nice home, with a strong comedic ensemble led by Steve Carell. But is Space Force really going to be the next Office, Parks and Rec, and/or Veep? The Space Force score on Rotten Tomatoes is out, and it may reveal that very answer!

Unfortunately, it looks like Space Force may not be the next Netflix hit, right out of the gate. According to Rotten Tomatoes, Space Force has a very middling score of 52% (at the time of writing this), with 23 critical reviews having been submitted.

TV Guide slams Space Force with a 1 out of 5 score, stating that, “Despite its pedigree and the pile of money Netflix threw behind it, Space Force is a high-powered, expensive rocket that tips over and explodes before it can even launch.”

Entertainment Weekly hit the show with a C+, stating, “What the show lacks is any kind of comedic vision, or even a fully-formed concept. If space is a vacuum, “Force” is a kind of TV black hole: A-list stars and lots of Netflix money go in, and what comes out is a big old nothing.”

And even the almost always positive Rolling Stone says, “Seeing all that money onscreen is rarely funny in and of itself. The stylistic touchstone seems to be in the farcical vibe of Dr. Strangelove, but everything just winds up feeling frantic and labored.”

However, there are plenty of positive counters to those negative reviews – such as from our own Comicbook.com review of Space Force:

“Space Force is delightfully absurd, a comedic light that comes along at the best possible time. The satire throughout is welcome comedy, poking fun at the notion that the United States government aims to convert soldiers into space-faring crimefighters. Admittedly, the parodies are a little too on-the-nose at times, removing the suspension of reality some might expect while they put on a movie or TV series. Even then, that’s something that speaks volumes to the world we live in, rather than to the quality of the programming itself.”

Here’s the synopsis for Netflix’s Space Force:

“A decorated pilot with dreams of running the Air Force, four-star general Mark R. Naird (Steve Carell) is thrown for a loop when he finds himself tapped to lead the newly formed sixth branch of the US Armed Forces: Space Force. Skeptical but dedicated, Mark uproots his family and moves to a remote base in Colorado where he and a colorful team of scientists and “Spacemen” are tasked by the White House with getting American boots on the moon (again) in a hurry and achieving total space dominance.”

Netflix’s Space Force starts streaming on Friday, May 29th.