It's not uncommon for new shows on Netflix to get widely praised by critics but poorly received, or totally ignored, by audiences. However recently that situation has been flipped around, thanks to a new workplace comedy from the streamer.
This new show is Tires, which was created by and stars American stand-up comedians Shane Gillis and Steve Gerben as well as frequent collaborator John McKeever, who directed all the episodes. Reportedly this show was totally funded by Gillis himself, and it debuted on Thursday, May 23.
Tires is about the workers of a struggling auto repair shop who are beset by incompetence or laziness, despite their need to turn the fortunes of the shop around. It's a workplace comedy in the spirit of The Office or Superstore.
If you look at Rotten Tomatoes, you'll find that Tires is one of Netflix's worst-received shows recently, sitting at just 43 percent on the Tomatometer at the time of writing. Critics are calling the humor "juvenile" and the show "cheap" although a few critics admit to laughing at some of the jokes.
However, if you look at the audience score, you'll see something much more glowing: it sits at 91%, which is notably higher than the likes of Baby Reindeer, Bridgerton season 3 or Ripley. You read that right, Tires has been received better by fans than Netflix's ratings-smashing newest season of Bridgerton, which has an 87% audience rating.
It's clear from the audience reviews that plenty of Shane Gillis fans are coming out in force to support the show — for those who don't know, Gillis is a little bit of a divisive figure after getting fired from SNL — but others are enjoying it in its own right.
If you're worried about the show falling too much into the genre of 'bro comedy', you might find Tires pleasantly surprising: the childish and laddish culture of the auto repair shop seems to be the the butt of jokes, rather than the point of them (this is coming from the first two episodes, which I watched).
There's also something to enjoy here if you like Netflix's phenomenal sketch show I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, because Gerben's performance as beleaguered store owner Will channels more than a little of Robinson's chaotic energy in episodes.
Still, Tires is definitely not for everybody. But with 20-minute-long episodes, like a good comedy should, it's easy to check out the show to see if it's to your taste.
