This is such a silly show. The awkwardness really cracks me up. If you liked Napoleon Dynamite and all that weirdness, you'd probably like this show too.
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mindiblake14 November 2018
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Okonh0wp14 October 2016Colleen Ballinger created a unique YouTube persona with legs in Miranda Sings. She's also a likable personality (sincerity works in the favor of most YouTubers as they create vlogs and tweet to authentically connect with fans) and talented singer.
Still, this only buys a small amount of of goodwill when you have to transfer an unlikeable character into a narrative format. In this version, Miranda Sings, a horrible singer whose flirtations with YouTube gives her delusions of grandeur, tries to achieve fame with her deluded uncle (Steve Little).
Part of the origin of Colleen Ballinger's idea was her perception as a classically-trained musician that YouTube was giving rise to a coddled generation of singers who thought they were stars simply because they are getting internet views. That commentary is definitely apparent here: Miranda Sings is bratty to sociopath levels here, but she has a mother who's afraid to say no to her, a intellectually challenged uncle who fosters the worst parts of her self-esteem, a boy next door with an inexplicable crush on her, and a lack of a father figure.
The net effect of all these characters' combined idiocy is that you have to suspend your disbelief quite a bit. When you realize how terrible of a person Miranda Sings is, there's no reason to really want to try either. While many worthwhile TV shows have featured irredeemable characters, it's generally a tricky line to pull off.
It generally helps if there's an awareness in the TV show's universe that the person is, in fact, terrible (off the top of my head Legit, The League, It's Always Sunny, and Curb Your Enthusiasm) and the show has the level-headed sister Emily but it's hard to explain away all the other people in Miranda's immediate sphere (the pastor who wants to date Miranda's mom) who can't seem to stop enabling her whether directly or indirectly. And realistically, shouldn't they be yelling for poor Emily to be transferred to child protective services ASAP.
The show has its only hints of warmness when Emily seems to connect with Miranda but those are few and far between.
The show's inherent weirdness also has a whiff of Tim Burtonesque suburbia (the kind seen in "Edward Scissorhands") and the uncle's circuitously empty get-rich schemes recall Mike Judge. In other words, there's traces of good stuff here but it needs a little tweaking to stand out more.
NOTE: This review is through the first four episodes. -
I was excited when I heard Netflix was giving Ms. Ballinger a vehicle to more fully develop her Miranda Sings persona. When Marc Maron riffed on reality singing shows by saying "everyone is so easily impressed; they think it could be them," that is the gist of Miranda. An unrepentant and sociopathic narcissist, everyone keeping orbit around her delusion is what makes the show tick.
Ballinger is actually an incredibly talented singer, which makes the gimmick a strong sell for me; it's fun seeing how hard she has to try to sing poorly, and the hyperbolic facial expressions and bodily motions needed to get her there perfectly echo every "big fish, small pond" wanna-be you've ever seen giving it their all and falling flat in a reality show audition.
The show is very well cast; Angela Kinsey and Steve Little are basically method takes on their "Office" and "Eastbound and Down" characters, which is fine. Eric Stocklin is every hard luck puppy love teenager rolled into one, and Francesca Reale pulls off being the "genius among misfits" without being condescending or off- putting.
Where the show loses steam, to me, is in trying to take YouTube concept humor, and give it narrative heft. Kinsey, Little and Stocklin are the perfect personifications of enabling, and Ballinger's psychotic brat is great in spurts. While the show is pretty well-written, it becomes mired itself pretty quickly. Even a lovable brat throwing everyone under the bus wears thin after a few episodes, and Miranda is deliberately caustic, not "aww shucks."
I understand what Ballinger and company are after: a bombastic portrayal of the personal dishonesty and parental disinterest that has created a culture of ravenous wanna-be YouTube celebrities. By the end of the last episode, with everyone in the family having literally abandoned her, she *finally* gets the viral video success she sought. This moment of soul-selling truth comes across a bit too heavy- handed, though; Ballinger is a good actress with some dramatic chops, but she spends the entire first season being coy, immature, cruel and selfish. When she yells to a full, stunned auditorium, earnestly asking "why is it funny to think someone could love me?", and when Ballinger displays an incredible array of feelings in the final scene at her computer, it only makes me wonder how much more this show could be if it would tamp down the display of moral bankruptcy, and give more than two characters (Kinsey and Reale) an inner life that leads to moments of self-actualization.
It makes their characters matter; in the end, I'm not sure who else does--or to be honest, why I wouldn't rather watch a drama with this exact same cast instead. -
LeJonofX16 January 2020A cringe fest every minute you watch. Avoid at all costs
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leeprew114 October 2016This show is brilliantly oddball. It perfectly captures the other side of the character of Miranda who up until now has been restricted to Youtube videos, a book and stage shows.
Miranda is an amalgamation of the cringe-inducing and seemingly lacking in self-awareness internet 'stars' who post videos that go viral for all the wrong reasons plus many over the top exaggerations from the deviously warped minds of the characters creators.
This series has gone as far as to actually humanise a character who at times has seemed far from human. There's now more of a meaning and purpose behind the character and it has only helped further flesh out a wonderfully zany and interesting person.
This isn't the all out wacky and surreal show I thought it was going to be. It has a lot more depth and emotion than that. It actually raises some very interesting points about mental illness and obsession. Is Miranda really as unaware as she seems of the world around her or is she suffering from some form of obsessive- compulsive disorder or even possibly autism?
I think it is fair to say that the show creators were fully aware that many would not 'get' the joke. After all, the character Miranda is well known for rebutting the hate sent her way on Youtube. Yes, she is monstrously annoying and seemingly has no self-awareness. But that's what's so fun and interesting about these characters. It's not like this hasn't been done before. And I'm sure as with those other characters that lack their own self-awareness they will come under fire from those who seemingly do not get the joke. Of course, there will be those who do and still find it not to their taste as after all, comedy is very subjective and if you know nothing of the character previously or even have no knowledge of Youtube you're probably going to have a hard time relating to Miranda. -
dougevansftw21 October 2016When I heard that YouTube's Miranda Sings was transitioning into more traditional media, I was intrigued. Her platform online used to entertain me several years ago, but the content soon fell repetitive and stale, and therefore lost its entertainment. With a new door open from Netflix, I wondered if Colleen Ballinger could reach new distances with her character than she previously could. In some cases, she did. In others, she did not. "Haters back off" follows Miranda Sings and her attempt into fame, giving large glimpses into her dysfunctional domestic life. Angela Kinsey ("Bethany") and Francesca Reale ("Emily") are strong actors and characters throughout, being lovable and balancing out from the "crazy" of Colleen Ballinger ("Miranda"), Erik Stocklin ("Patrick"), and Steve Little ("Jim").
Due to Miranda and Jim's negative nature as characters, they are often the antagonist of many of the situations in the show. From the word "go" you feel sympathy from those the duo encounter and you soon grow to dislike both of them incredibly because of this. "Haters back off" tries, essentially, to protagonise its main antagonists, which does not work. After few episodes, it goes from Miranda and Jim being silly in real-life situations to being annoying and rather repetitive. The sympathy you feel for Kinsey and Reale's characters and the way they tackle Ballinger and Little's characters forms them into stronger personalities that make you want to continue watching. Both Kinsey and Reale have great potential in the show, yet are overshadowed by the stupidity and annoyance of Ballinger and Little. Whilst watching the show, I found myself wanting to see more of the performance of Kinsey and Reale, due to their likable tendencies as characters and actors. In order for the show to work in the future, the writers need to shed more light onto the supporting cast like Reale and Kinsey, instead of forcing annoying plots from Ballinger, Stocklin, and Little.
The final episode, however, swaps a lot of these themes around, unsuccessfully. Miranda is left with a successful YouTube channel, yet she is overcome with sadness due to the fact that she pushed everyone close to her away. The show only makes you feel bad for her due to the fact that this is the only time you see her with real, human-like emotions. At the end of the series, I was left admiring Bethany and Emily due to them finally leaving their destructive lifestyles, and I was left wondering how their situation could expand. I did not care for where Jim went, or what happened to Patrick (despite the conspicuous bicycle ring in the final seconds of the episode).
In conclusion, I felt that "Haters back off" still has potential that it failed to reach in its first season. With characters like Miranda, Bethany and Patrick developing into more "real" people, you're left with a want to know how they continue and what they have to offer. Although, in order for this show to succeed, we need to relate and appreciate the protagonists. A show that makes you dislike the characters is, ultimately, a show that makes you dislike the show. With actual emotions coming from all characters right at the end of the season, you want the show to continue just to see how the characters expand as people. -
alyssaabernaughty24 July 2017Meant to wait longer before writing this review but I just had to do it right now instead. I had planned to watch the entire first season (I hear there will be a second and I can't can't can't can't can't believe it) first, but I couldn't possibly sit through one more single minute of this show.
I don't love or hate the YouTube videos but the idea of taking those short clips of a really annoying character and stretching it out to a half hour series is just brain numbingly awful. Who had that bright idea?
The sister is a decent actor and the uncle causes a couple laughs as does Angela from The Office fame (who is Miranda's mom).
The writing is painfully awful to sit through with the jokes incredibly unfunny and predictable. Anyone who does not see these jokes coming from a mile away must be blind and never experienced a single sitcom before. Boring, boring, boring.
The worst part of the show though is the lead character of Miranda. The people around her are all unbelievable (except the sister) and stupid but she is the worst one of all. The whiny voice and complete lack of singing talent are of course planned but just because you write something to be intentionally bad does not somehow make it good... it's still awful to sit through!
This is so bad I can't even tell for sure if this is supposed to be a comedy or a drama or a statement about modern YouTube "stars"... it is very sad that this person is making a lot of money by being a terrible actress who pretends to sing badly, standing out as the worst person in a cast of unlikable, uninteresting characters.
Netflix doesn't make too many bad mistakes but this is one of them. No season two please. Make something else instead. -
ledzeppelino26 October 2016Being a fan of her YouTube channel, I was looking forward to watching "Haters Back Off." Since the character itself is a parody, I was expecting a really cheesy comedy. The humor and family dynamic strongly reminds me of Napoleon Dynamite, giving off that same sense of awkwardness and struggle to be noticed and accepted by others. As the series progresses, it transforms into a dramatic comedy, creating much more depth with each character's personal struggles. There were many times where I found myself laughing only to be tearing up minutes later, because there is a realness to the show that has never been offered through Miranda's actual YouTube channel. I can understand that some fans may not have enjoyed the show as much as her channel, because Miranda's character is portrayed a bit differently. Even though she may come across more selfish or clueless with her actions, I think in order for this show to have worked Colleen needed to portray her in a more realistic way. Miranda has always been extremely confident of herself, and this is the first time we get to see how her behavior affects the few loved ones she has. I really enjoyed the realness that this show brought. Great job with the casting also, all of the actors did a really phenomenal job. I hope to hear about a Season 2 in the works someday, I would love to see how the story continues! Would highly recommend!!
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RoboGarrett19 June 2018Not funny for a comedy, just plain not good if it's a drama. The lead character is incredibly annoying and I get they're trying to play it off as "no we're being annoying on purpose to be funny" but it just doesn't work, it's just an annoying and unlikable and unfunny person. The other actors are mostly terrible as well. The writing and jokes are terrible. Nothing worth watching and I saw the entire first season. I guess apparently there's a season two? Hopefully it is better but I will not be watching. Awful!
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A mocukentary of the orgins of Miranda sings, the alter ego of youtuber College Balanger a sureal parody of the hubris that embodies the overly serious youtube stars... Balenger created Miranda from inspiration of her narcissistic college mates, and created a caricature of them.....
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jessy_williamson18 July 2018Absolutely horrible. I would rather watch turds dry.
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Brilliant meta-comedy if there is such a thing. Same people who hate Andy Kaufman.
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samaras0924 February 2021After reading the user reviews I didn't hold much hope for this but I must say I was pleasantly surprised, some really funny stuff some not so funny stuff but all in all I enjoyed it. I feel as though it has a somewhat of a Napoleon Dynamite feel to it....though let me add I'm not saying it is on that level but I see some similarities. I'd gives a comedic look at youths today who crave social media attention and how the rest of society makes you aware very quickly how they feel about you. It tries to send a strong message with the comedy aspect, if you want something not to taxing and an easy to watch I'd give it a thumbs up just don't expect to see the greatest thing ever but it will make you giggle.
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data_over_dogma1 December 2017This is the worst Netlfix show I have ever seen. Not only would I ask you to never waste a second of your time on it, but I also would like Netflix to remove it immediately.
It is the worst written and bland show I have ever seen. There is absolutely nothing in the show worth commenting on. This show seems to be trying to channel Napoleon Dynamite. If someone recorded random people doing Napoleon Dynamite impressions, it would actually be better than this script and the terrible actors.
The absolute worst part is the uncle. He sucks the life out of anything that might have been redeemable. Its interesting to note that the awkward uncle bit is stolen straight from Napoleon Dynamite, except that he should die in a gratuitously violent long lasting death so we could feel proper resolution after the torture of watching him.
My only wish is that you write a review and send this trash to the pits of review hell. This does not deserve anything more than a single star. This is the "fake news" of Netflix shows.
My only regret is that I gave it a chance and watched more than a single episode. My only wish is that I could remove it from my watch history and also my brain via lobotomy.
The fact that someone was paid to write this, and that someone still produced the show after reading the script, and that anyone involved was paid at all is so depressing that I'm probably going to call a suicide hotline once I finish this review. Please never let these people create anything ever again. It is unconscionable. -
Obnoxious, could barely stand 5 minutes of it. It is one thing to have an obnoxious annoying character in an ensemble but this has multiple intentionally annoying characters. The main character, Miranda, is so whiny that I can not accurately pin point what age she is meant to be playing. The premise had potential but it missed the mark completely.
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leeabbeyangelique15 October 2016I've always thought of Miranda Sings as a comedy act of sorts and, yes, at times, she could be funny, but most of the time, she's inappropriate and insensitive to those around her. We might not have been understanding her and what her character stands for fully until this series came out.
Youtube, being our main source of information about her, has limited us to seeing the quirky side of Miranda, which we've always laughed at because what she does is not normal in our reality but for her she's always right and is always the most perfect and the most talented in any room.
I rated this series a 9 out of 10 because, in my opinion, the series is more complex than what we think it to be or what we comprehend it to be. It's obvious that Miranda has some sort of disability. She hears what is being said to her but does not grasp the implications of what people really mean. She feels emotions but does not understand what to do with them.
It's a show where you will be annoyed at Miranda's antics but also feel for her when she fails or is being shamed for pursuing her unattainable dreams, or even when she's being scolded for something she did wrong.
I could be wrong, but whatever disability Miranda has could be hereditary and I say this because her mother and uncle, although diluted and subtly inserted into the story, basically has Miranda's traits divided into two people.
Her mother forcing the idea of having certain ailments when she really doesn't and her being uncaring and passive but also want to be the center of anyone's attention, her uncle deluding himself into thinking that he's also talented and also has Miranda's trait of pointing a finger on everyone else except himself for his failings and where he is in life. No wonder Miranda turned out the way she did.
Like Miranda, the series is funny, complex, and, if you really think about it, is a series that makes you rethink how you feel and think of what to think. -
seige-hound17 October 2016(This review is based off the first episode of Season 1. If it gets better after that, I would not know)
When I first heard that Miranda Sings was picked up by Netflix, I was very surprised, especially since most people on Youtube went and made Youtube Red shows. So I was wondering what exactly made Haters Back Off different from the other shows based on Youtubers.
Haters Back Off is created by and stars Colleen Ballinger as her famous character Miranda Sings. I'm not a fan of her, but I do know that she's essentially a parody of those overly pretentious cover singer artists that Youtube is full of. Her gimmick is that she wears really bright red lipstick, and sings badly. This show, however, gives her character a little more depth, by adding a quirky dysfunctional family. There's the uncle who is just as crazy as Miranda, her mother who knows Miranda is crazy, but enables her behaviour, and her sane younger sister, who is just trying to live a normal life.
The comedy isn't really my thing, as the humour is based around Miranda being incredibly unlikeable and narcissistic as she pursues her dream of being a star. She is awful, but nobody wants to tell her that, so they let her do whatever she wants to do, with little to no repercussion. The fact that her (in universe) career isn't picking up is ignored by her and her uncle, as a sign that 'everyone else is wrong', hence the title of the show.
One thing this show has over other shows based off Youtubers is the production value. This legit looks like a show on par with many other Netflix Originals. It's something that Youtube Red originals haven't quite replicated, as their shows almost universally have that bland Reality TV look to them. Haters Back Off at the very least has a decent budget and crew behind it. The acting is also really good. Miranda is (debatably) the worst actor, but since she's playing an exaggerated character, that she has done well over and over again, perhaps I'm just reading into it too much. The other actors, who are undoubtedly professionals, play their (much more subtle) roles very well. No complaints there.
So if you're into the character of Miranda Sings, or are interested in a comedy show with a crazy protagonist, give this a shot. For myself, there are other shows I would rather watch. -
midnightjammy15 January 2017I've never really been a huge fan of MirandaSings or Colleen. Not because she's a bad person or anything, it's just that her stuff has never really been my cup of tea. When I heard about this show coming out on Netflix, I decided to look forward to this show with an open mind.
Sadly, I was a bit disappointed. You can only watch an annoying character be obnoxious before it actually starts to annoy you for so long, let alone eight 30-min episodes. Watching the way too dysfunctional and messed up family fall apart even more just makes it awkward and uncomfortable to watch. Basically, it feels like watching an annoying kid in your school yelling at and arguing with her parents in the school parking lot for too long. The only good things I can say is that Colleen did a pretty good job playing her part as Miranda (which is pretty much expected as she plays the role all the time). The writing was also better than expected. I guess the point I'm trying to get across is that it could've been worse, and thankfully it wasn't.
Also, who is the target demographic of this show? I know most of Miranda's fans are probably 12 year old girls or something, so the rating of TV-14 just cut off a lot of potential viewers. I don't know, maybe I'm just judging the situation wrong. Besides that, most of the audience for this show are probably already fans of Miranda, so they'll just mindlessly watch and "enjoy" this show just because of that fact that it's a show with Miranda as the main character, without thinking about what the actual content is.
Overall, this show is basically Zach Stone is Gonna Be Famous, except Zach has been replaced with a self-obsessed brat with a voice that gets old after a while with a creepy uncle. And minus the comedy. Didn't really know what I was expecting. -
brandonshedder18 October 2016I am a long time fan of Miranda and her actress, Colleen Ballinger. She's an incredibly funny, talented woman and I've supported everything she's done wholeheartedly. However, if I'm going to be completely honest, this is probably one of the lowest quality shows I've ever seen. While the concept of the show is great, it fails terribly overall. The first episode opens with the main character, Miranda, creating her first YouTube video. It was familiar, just another Miranda Sings video like I've been watching for years. However, this moment of charm and nostalgia faded quickly. One of the biggest issues that this series has is that it is painfully unfunny. It has some rare humorous moments, but these are all too few and brief, such as one scene where Miranda tanks a Popsicle in about 20 seconds and then drops the remaining stick on the ground, all the while her best friend Patrick wistfully gazes at her supposed beauty. The series continued to be boring, over the top in the worst way, annoying, and illogically stupid. None of the characters possess any depth, the acting is okay to way too extreme, and it appeared that both the actors and script writers were trying way too hard. As Colleen has come from a YouTube background, the transition to television was one I believe she was not fully ready for. To my knowledge she was the primary writer, consultant, and actress on this series as well as her brother, Chris Ballinger. Possibly, her sibling caused some form of disruption in the writing process because he himself is not inside the head of Miranda. Colleen is truly the only person who knows how Miranda acts as well as her family members and friends. An alternative explanation could be that Colleen was incredibly overworked and was dealing with running three channels to which she consistently uploaded during this time, the TV show itself, moving to Canada away from her family, and her issues with her shoulder, which I know caused a lot of stress for her. Maybe all of these stressors were not helpful in the creation of "Haters Back Off," and impacted the script and production negatively. The only good performance in this entire series is from Colleen, although I have heard that some people are unhappy with her acting. I find this to be confusing because Colleen does a great job with this wacky character. She fully embodies this character. From her makeup, hair, clothing, facial expressions, voice, and even the way she walks. It takes true talent to transform yourself into the opposite of your real personality. However, placing this unique, funny, and insane character into an environment filled with other crazy, not well written characters was a horrible idea. The novelty of Miranda wears off due to these other unnecessary characters. I've always been very entertained by Miranda's videos on YouTube because she is with a normal person in all of her collaborations. The contrast here is what is funny. It highlights how truly weird, unreasonable, and hilarious Miranda as a character is compared to normal, everyday people in the YouTube community. Inserting Miranda into a group of other characters with their own unfunny quirks does not work in the slightest. My least favorite characters have to be Miranda's mother, Bethany, and her uncle, Jim. Bethany's subplot about her imaginary injury and cringe worthy love interest with a fetish for injured women was completely uncalled for and agonizingly unfunny. Every scene with her brought the show down a notch and made me feel uncomfortable. Jim was incredibly over the top and over dramatic in a very unhumorous way. He was obnoxious and overbearing. The formula of this show should have been that Miranda is the only odd character, everyone else is normal except for maybe one or two other people, and Miranda has bizarre adventures in the town she lives in. It could have even been a mockumentary style series in which the camera crew follows Miranda from her hometown to different YouTube conventions, meet and greets, and shows she's performing in. This would showcase her interactions with everyday people and other YouTubers who are perfectly normal, and would create the same hilarious contrast and atmosphere her videos have. There are some TV shows that feature a whole group of strange, out-there characters, like "the Office." But, that show was very well written and a lot of effort was put into making the characters work cohesively, all act naturally, and believe that everything they're doing is normal and correct. They play off of one another expertly, getting on each other's nerves, having arguments, creating friendships and relationships, and hitting people with cars. "The Office" works incredibly well because of all these reasons, including experienced actors and writers who understand what people will find funny and unfunny. These people were able to give their full attention to "the Office" and were able to craft a classic television series that people can watch over and over. In the case of "Haters Back Off," almost none of the positives previously listed are true. Colleen Ballinger is truly the only entertaining, funny person in this show, but she is consistently bogged down by everything and everyone else in the show that fails. If another season is to come out, I will give it a chance, and I will never stop watching Colleen or Miranda's videos. However, this series was definitely not for me.
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youngmoneyinformation14 October 2016Miranda Sings has always made me laugh when watching her on YouTube. I have been waiting for this show since Colleen told us all about it on her channel.
It is great to finally see Miranda's family and their life before Miranda rose to fame. The comical elements each character has is outstandingly acted and almost every line they say is hilarious.
Although it does take at least the first episode to get into the show, it is 100% worth it afterwards.
The best way to describe this show is awkwardly-hilarious. If you enjoy a good laugh, then this show is a must-watch for you. It really is fun for all the family. -
chrnic6 September 2021If you click on a series like this obviously you are looking for something silly and something that will make you laugh. If you didn't click on this expecting something else this is exactly the show you're looking for.
I honestly didn't think it was going to be as good as it was, it had me giggling and had some great life lessons. If you're looking for something you don't have to take serious give this a try. I had to write this with all the crazy low reviews. -
dougwbeard23 January 2018This is unfunny, trite, crude and off putting. I can't stand this sort of non-comedy and it diminishes us as a society.
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People totally underestimate this show. Sure it can be a be a bit odd at times but that's what makes it awesome. I only discovered it a week or two ago but I LOVE IT!!!!! Seriously aside from stranger things this is the best Netflix original(a series of unfortunate events only falls shortly behind). The characters are so funny and quirky and Miranda will crack you up. I was so essited for season 3 but then I found out that they canceled the show.UGH! Sure Bethany and Jim's romance can be a bit annoying but that's really the only bad part. I love how each episode opens with a video that relates to the content in it. The last 2 episodes are sooooooo epic. This is a must watch
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gillteward30 November 2017By no means is this ever going to be listed up there with the best, but I think too many reviews here are from the wrong kind of people! Of course this isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, but the beauty of it is - it's not trying to be. I thing Coleen Ballinger does a fantastic job of portraying a completely talentless performer, but I truly believe the stand-out performance is from Steve Little as Uncle Jim.
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rajveerwariah9 August 2020Dont watch it if u value your time It's so boring and has no story