What you need to know
- Apple TV+ crime-thriller Truth Be Told launches on December 6.
- The show stars Octavia Spencer as a podcaster who uncovers new evidence in a murder investigation.
- Here's a roundup of some of the initial reviews.
Apple TV+ crime thriller Truth Be Told will launch on streaming service on December 6, where three episodes of the latest Apple original will be made available at launch.
The description of the show states:
When new evidence compels podcaster Poppy Parnell to reopen the murder case that made her a national sensation, she comes face-to-face with the man she may have mistakenly helped to put behind bars. Based on the novel by Kathleen Barber, "Truth Be Told" provides a unique glimpse into America's obsession with true crime podcasts and challenges its viewers to consider the consequences when the pursuit of justice is placed on a public stage.
With just a day before release, here's a roundup of some of the initial reviews of the show so you can decide whether you might be interested in Apple's latest original offering.
CNET
CNET described the show as being "guilty of being less interesting than the real-life version" of true-crime podcasting. However, it did note that the show has some unexpected directions and that Aaron Paul is doing his best work since Breaking Bad.
Vanity Fair
VF notes that the plot of TBT is "very complicated" and that there is "way too much going on", however it says that the show earns it, and that the story is held together by the public appetite for the podcast at the heart of the story.
Time
Time pulled no punches, describing TBT as "everything that's wrong with Apple TV+". Not that the show is a disaster, but rather "bland and forgettable." The reviewer claims that the script is cluttered with "unwieldy" lines, but that the show finds "some resonance" when it explores how "the media can warp the families whose tragedies it distills into entertainment."
Vulture
Despite the fact it sounds excellent on paper, Vulture says the show is "not great". It described TBT as "pedestrian and tedious and not as entertaining as it should be." Like other reviews there was also criticism of too much going on, and that it can feel as though the actors are "straining to elevate the material."
Whilst these reviews don't make for encouraging reading. Nearly all of Apple TV+'s shows have all seemingly landed much more favorably with wider audiences upon release. With just one day to go before release, viewers don't have long to wait before they can dig into Truth Be Told themselves to determine whether or not the show is worth watching. Before then, why not check out the trailer below!
find out if Truth Be Told was worth the wait on December 6!
Subscribe, or enjoy a year's free viewing if you bought an iPhone, iPod, iPad Mac or Apple TV after September 10, 2019.
Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.
Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple.
