Brothers & Sisters (2006–2011) User Reviews

A very good show, even if Season 5 was lacking

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 19 July 2011]

When Brothers & Sisters first started, I was very fond of it. However, I don't consider Season 5 to be as good as the rest, the finale was good and the actors great but the written quality and story lines were not in general as compelling as they once were.

On the whole though, I like Brothers & Sisters very much. The production values and music are of top notch quality, the writing was both droll and touching, the story lines were thought-out and compelling and the characters were engaging.

Also there is some very good acting on this show, Callista Flockhart is very endearing, but in my mind the show belongs to Matthew Rhys and Sally Field who are both fantastic, and Rachel Griffiths too.

In conclusion, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Great show but worst mother award

[annalisamcgee · 6/10 · 2 December 2022]

Sally Field is a brilliant actor who has given us so many memorable movies and shows but her portrayal of the overbearing, meddling, mother is embarrassing.

Most parents goals are to raise their kids to be independent and self sufficient. This mother character is about 100 steps backward creating adults who are ever reliant on their mother for the rest of their life and incompetent when it comes to living independently in the world.

I had to tune out on several episodes when Nora went into crazy town.

The cast is amazing and I enjoyed the series but at times honestly found it hard to listen to Nora's ridiculous rants.

dysfunctional loving family

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 5 September 2017]

Kitty (Calista Flockhart), Sarah (Rachel Griffiths), Kevin (Matthew Rhys), Tommy (Balthazar Getty), and Justin (Dave Annable) are the adult children of Nora (Sally Field) and William Walker (Tom Skerritt). The Californian family owns fruit business Ojai Foods. Nora's brother Saul Holden (Ron Rifkin) is the financial officer. Kevin is a gay lawyer who eventually marries Scotty Wandell. Kitty is a conservative radio host who returns to LA to start a TV show. She leaves her new job for war hero Republican Senator Robert McCallister (Rob Lowe). Justin had gone to fight in Iraq following 9/11. Nora blames Kitty for Justin returning broken and drug-addicted. Sarah struggles with her marriage to Joe, her kids, and her work at the company. After William's sudden death, she and brother Tommy discover financial mishandling and his old affair with Holly Harper (Patricia Wettig) which seemingly produced love child Rebecca Harper (Emily VanCamp).

The first season is a bit unstable. William's shocking death is obviously planned. Skerritt is a great actor and a devastating lost. It would have been nice to have him built up the character for a few more episodes before his death. There are other changes that kept the show off-balanced. At first, Kitty has a great liberal foil but that large part of the show is abandoned to recruit TV star Rob Lowe. It's understandable but the show does suffer from instability in the first season.

The other big missed opportunity is the literal concentrating on the five siblings. There should be more on the next generation of siblings and cousins. The kids provide story potential and are arguably the best aspects of the fifth and last season. Paige has a couple of great traditional teen stories and there is the adoption of Olivia. More kids and more of their stories would have given the show character depth.

This is a dysfunctional but loving family. They are often self-sabotaging. They can't keep a secret. They argue all the time and have cross-talking phone calls. All of this arguing and melodrama do wear the show down a bit. It needs more uplifting moments. It needs more joy. That's not to say that this is a downer but it does need more of the higher notes. Overall, the great cast is compelling and the family's unbreakable bond is always at its center.

A Fantastic Show

[beforethedawnhealsus · 10/10 · 23 October 2006]

When Brothers & Sisters was about to premiere, I was eagerly anticipating it, though I had my doubts I was going to stick with it in the long term. However, that's totally not the case. This show shines as a crown jewel in this years television season.

The cast is wonderful and they all contribute such an amazing talent to making us feel as though the Walker's are truly brothers and sisters. The interactions between Kitty and Nora are always great to see, as are any scenes that Sally Field and Rachel Griffith's are in. They bring an amazing emotional depth to the story that definitely adds to the great writing that is turned out by the amazing writing staff.

Overall, this series has earned it's keep. I think I may have teared up once per episode so far. The family acts very much like a family through it's ups and downs, and it truly is moving. If you're looking for a new show that entertains you, moves you and brings you top notch acting, then Brothers & Sisters is definitely a show that you should be tuning into. You won't be disappointed.

Would love to see this show brought back.

[mountaingal1978 · 10/10 · 3 October 2017]

This was an excellent family drama and should never have been canceled. Season 6 was set up to be great and then it was canceled. If Will and Grace could be brought back after all the years it was off the air, B & S could be brought back, too. Loved the natural chemistry between Nora and Brody. Bring the show back.

Brilliant show.

[mtaffeot · 10/10 · 1 November 2006]

Brothers and Sisters is one of the finest TV dramas to come along in a very long time. The performances are superb from all involved, especially Sally Field, Racheal Griffiths and Matthew Rhys.

Each Sunday night I am treated to one of the finest hours on television. The mixture of humor, drama and that whole family dynamic is very intriguing. This show takes you through a whole host of emotions in one sitting as the story lines of each family member unfold in such a way, it leaves you craving for the next episode.

The gay storyline involving Kevin(Matthew Rhy) and Scotty(Luke Macfarlane) is outstanding. For once we have a complete and in-depth relationship between two men handled with maturity and intelligence. I'm so very pleased to see this on ABC network TV without much fuss being made. This is one of the finest gay story lines i've ever seen on TV.

Bravo to the writers, actors and all involved in producing one of the finest TV dramas in years.

Interesting newcomer to the Fall Lineup

[Mumofalmost3 · 7/10 · 25 September 2006]

I have finished watching the first episode and thought I would like to leave a slightly more favourable review than the previous poster. I like to give a show more of a chance to pique my interest than 5 minutes so I sat and watched the entire episode. There were the usual introductions to new characters... since it's a rather large ensemble depicting a family of adult children and two older parents there wasn't much room for in depth intros but it was adequate for a premiere episode.

The end of the show set the stage for the series. I will give it more time to develop. The family is centred around older parents and their children - 2 daughters (casting Calista Flockhart, 42, as the younger of the two sisters and much younger looking 38 year old Rachel Griffiths, 38, as the older sister was a little odd) and 3 brothers (one, seemingly, an Afghanistan war veteran, one a lawyer who does happen to be gay and the last a brother who is working at the family business). Something odd is afoot at the family business both on the financial side and the emotional side.

The demise of the patriarch (what a shame) at the end of the premiere episode will set the tone with, I believe, the sister from NYC (Flockhart) moving back to CA to start a new job on television and mending bridges with her mother and family.

Excellent family drama

[lelin2-1 · 9/10 · 24 September 2006]

The pilot managed to introduce a large cast of complex characters while maintaining individuality and clarity--and the characters and their problems were interesting to boot! Calista Flockhart gets to use her very real acting ability portraying a character who has very little in common with Ally McBeal. Tom Skerritt and Sally Field are terrific as the parents, and each of the brothers and sisters has his or her own problems to deal with, and yet the story doesn't have the feel of a tear-jerking melodrama. The ending of this episode was a shocker, and it will be interesting to see if the writers can maintain the tension in future episodes.

Six Feet Under for Regular TV

[jls-17 · 7/10 · 25 September 2006]

I enjoyed the show but cannot help but see it as a regular TV version of HBO's "Six Feet Under." You have a dysfunctional family of adult children who spend a great deal of time at home with their parents. The patriarch dies unexpectedly in the first episode leaving mom and the kids to figure out how to pick up the pieces including taking over the operation of the troubled family business.

Also, I was struck by the comment that Calista Flockhart's character is supposed to be 38 and the younger sister to Rachel Griffiths. I think casting got this one backwards.

All in all though, it's an engaging show with an excellent cast. Hopefully it will rise above the trouble that was reported bringing it to the small screen.

Can You Say: Thirty Something...

[Troubleboy · 2/10 · 20 January 2009]

..., except even more banal?

Another dysfunctional family apparently representing today's America, including a loony daughter as a conservative talk show pundit (gee, that's unique) although Flockhart's about 3 lbs heavier, but no less irritating than Ann Coulter.

There's no difference between this mob - their problems - and all the other sea of 'look at me' family-based reality programming TV. How it garnered Golden Globes and has survived three seasons, one can only wonder.

'Huff' and 'Six Feet Under' were head and shoulders over this dreg.

Finally a Great new show.....

[pws_la · 10/10 · 4 November 2006]

Not since Knots Landing have writers been able to introduce the television audience with characters that you want to get to know and want to follow. Desperate Housewives started out this way, but sadly lost it in season two, I hope they retain it back. The interaction of the siblings on B&S is fresh, interesting, real, and normally dysfunctional, and they admit it. This is The Waltons with Wine. They want to be perfect but they know their not and Sally Field ( THE BEST ACTRESS EVER ) just leads the pack great. She is a MOM all the way, and she puts her children first, even as they get older. I applaud ABC for listening to the fans and keeping the show, I also applaud the writers for great lines, humor and actually making the characters on this show believable....... I can honestly say that not since 1993 when Knots Landing went off the air, have I looked forward to an hour of sitting in front of the T.V.

Once a compelling show, now it's run out of steam

[Ibuk · 6/10 · 5 April 2011]

I haven't reviewed anything on IMDb for a long while and I thought it's high time I returned with one of my reviews. Brothers and sisters was a show I wasn't exactly anticipating for a long time, I happened to be flicking through channels one night when the pilot was airing and there was nothing else on so I gave it a shot I instantly became hooked. It has to be said it is a flawed TV show, the show I feel is pretty repetitive. The first season was all about the illegitimate daughter of William Walker, Rebecca. The show prolonged it for a while and when it was revealed that she wasn't his daughter another illegitimate child pops out of the woodwork. Secondly I have never seen such an unlucky family, in almost every season a family member gets a deadly disease.In the latest season aired in the UK Kitty Walker is diagnosed with a disease and the family is forced to rally around her.

Enough of the negatives. On the plus side it does have Sally Field as the matriarch of the family. She is very endearing and always puts herself out for her family. The family member I can most relate to is the youngest offspring of William and Nora Walker, Justin. Like me he is deeply flawed and I think it would be fair to say he is the black sheep of the family. Despite the flaws he is an incredibly likable character. Whilst I do enjoy the show immensely, I am hoping it doesn't get recommissioned for another season and quit whilst they are ahead.

2011 .... just awful

[Dickyfilms · 1/10 · 19 March 2011]

This has become the most awful low grade rubbish, full of hideous cutesy-pie clichés. "Hardeehar" music accompanies so called female spats, the gay guys whine like spoilt brats. God what happened ? It used to be character and story driven Now it's older rich woman flirts with hunky plumber who is secretly ex business man hiding in the country with huge muscles. Oy vay !@! Total trash, it should be burnt. Seriously, it used to be so good, we would sit feeling tearful at the end of episodes imagining it was us, now .... well ... the platitudes and "oh how do we spend 51million dollars" rings hysterically false. From one of the best the US can offer ... to everything it makes thats bad. Sorry

Best show I'voe watched in a long time!

[lpspellmeyer · 10/10 · 25 September 2006]

I was pleasantly surprised to watch the premiere episode of Brothers & Sisters. It is such a refreshing change to watch a well written drama with talented actors instead of the all too common prime-time shows which consist of murders, blood, sex, violence & bad acting. I had really given up on prime time television. I am sickened by the amount of graphic violence that have become commonplace in television shows. That is not entertainment to me! I loved every minute of Brothers & Sisters & cannot wait to see next week's episode! The story line is realistic, yet still entertaining. During commercials my husband and I were excitedly discussing the characters and the story that was unfolding. Thank you for offering such a great program~I have been waiting for a show like this for years!

Just excellent

[dr-bluish · 10/10 · 26 September 2006]

Just excellent!!! I don't know why TV companies are trying to hide some talented actors just like Flockhart...She is an outstanding actress..and from her first 10 minutes of the show I knew I was going to love this show..with all of its relations and characters... This show is a breath-taker and I just love it...and I can't wait to see the more of it... we are all waiting... The characters and their problems were interesting to know! Calista Flockhart gets to use her very real acting ability portraying a character who has very little in common with Ally McBeal. Tom Skerritt and Sally Field are great as the parents, and each of the brothers and sisters has his or her own problems to deal with, and yet the story doesn't have the feel of a tear-jerking melodrama. The ending of this episode was a shocker, and it will be interesting to see if the writers can maintain the tension in future episodes

So good, where do I start?

[PHeath60 · 10/10 · 4 December 2006]

This show has me hooked!! It's an amazing balance of all the conflicts and joys within a family. It delves into diverse belief systems; political, social and religious, and how they affect this family's structure. There are times of division, and amazing times of solidarity, as if to say: We are family...we fight, we love, we are at polar opposites sometimes, but we are always together.

The cast is anchored by Sally Field (Thank goodness she is back!!) her talent is still amazing, and I just love to watch her!! Also at the forefront is Calista Flockhart...her life, love, career and even her place in this family, are at odds with each other.. and she portrays all the conflicting emotions seamlessly!!

Each cast member lends a very realistic and emotional performance that leaves you feeling like they are truly a family. Whoever did the casting job on this, just did a great job!!

I am so glad that this show was picked up thru the season..I just hope it stays there! ABC has a bad habit of canceling it's most promising shows without much time to prove itself. Let's hope they don't do that with this little gem!!

Goes down hill after episode 1 because of lazy writers

[jermerf · 21 November 2011]

I have to say, what happens in the first episode is good writing. The situation (I'm trying to not spoil) is a bit awkward but it's just such a good funny thing . That got me hooked. The problem was that after that episode none other was able to keep up.

The more I watched the more I came to realize, yes there is an overarching plot going on with certain events placed here and there but the character conflict can be summed up and AVOIDED if the main characters would subscribe to the following philosophy: STOP LYING TO EACH OTHER.

Every single bit of conflict comes from one character lying to another and in the end the truth always comes out anyways, so there's no point. All in all it just seems like lazy writing. This ended up being a show I would watch while doing something else, I didn't have to pay attention to what was really going on, just who was lying to who.

Just as a heads up, if you find a lot of conflict in your life because of lies you need to: A) Stop lying to people and then later telling them or someone else the truth. People can't actually keep secrets unless it will endanger them to tell the truth. B) Don't associate yourself with chronic liars. At the very least confront them about their lies one last time, tell them you've had enough and mean it!

I don't lie unless it's for a surprise party. My honesty gets me into a lot of trouble with girls who later tend to agree I was right. Guys tend not to care. Just be tactful.

Basic drama with a few surprises

[marko_ru · 7/10 · 23 October 2006]

B&S is a neat basic drama: well produced, nicely shot and casted with adequate charisma. It has enough angles to draw attention, but I think it lacks the true edge to make it memorable. To make it really work for me, the script and the characters should have more unexpected reactions and moments - such as the purifying dip Nora takes in the pool.

To credit B&S, I think it boldly tries to tie together personal and political. A family divided by separating political views is nothing new (All in the Family, Family Ties), but as the politics has become more alerted and polarized, it really isn't all that funny anymore. To being forced to choose whether to be on an ally (unintentional, ha ha) or the enemy, even though there are bonding elements, such as love and a shared lifetime.

What puzzles me most with the starting point of B&S is that grown up children move back home to live with their parents. Also puzzling, as commented earlier, the real-age difference between the actors playing the siblings covers a range of 15 years, yet the siblings seem to have a lot of shared memories, as if they all had been there at the same time and of the same age.

Yet another mystery: I wonder how big a goldmine the family business actually is, because the house seems huge (and the pool party for 25 people had at least 4 people working for them). Also the siblings must have high-payed jobs to keep up their spacious living-arrangements.

Awesome!

[jgleeson-2 · 10/10 · 24 September 2006]

Wow! I couldn't wait for the commercials to be over! I think this "is" my NEW favorite show! I can't wait for next week. Wonderful Acting and Writing! Make sure you turn in next week to watch. The hour went too fast. Sally Field is AMAZING! As well as Calista. A few new folks that mix well with those two ladies. Highly recommend. It's a breath of fresh air watching a new show like Brothers and Sisters. I'm from a family of 7 kids. So it's neat to see all the dynamics. The show has already surprised me by the first night's ending... Again, I almost can't wait for next week. Great show to watch after Desperate Housewives. I hope this one sticks around. I think it will. There's a big fan over here!

Overall disappointment

[anne-ecobichon · 6/10 · 22 July 2023]

The premise of the Show is interesting and the ensemble cast is great! I truly liked the first three seasons which were well acted, well scripted and interesting! Towards the end of the third season it started to slip, the scripts got a little sloppier and many factual errors occurred. From then on it went downhill fast as though we entered Soap Opera territory with ridiculous plots and subplots, important characters just eclipsed and ridiculous plot lines exploding everywhere.. the only thing we were spared were the aliens.. I still don't understand how there was a fourth and fifth season and it was torture to see it through! It is the difference between a network show and a cable show! A network show does not know when to call it quits.

Painful to watch

[chelseawalker · 1/10 · 1 December 2007]

I don't know, maybe I'm too lad-ish and distant to US culture to enjoy this show, but this is so utterly boring and pointless show that almost painful to watch, and the reason is that this show is full of cliché and there's nothing more in this, period.

There are group of family members - white, rich, has a big house with pool, so typical. And they are dysfunctional. How original. The brother is gay and another is spoiled womanizing trouble-maker. VERY original. The elder sister is a grounded working mom, the younger sis jiggles her job and love-life. Highly and horribly unique. These things just need to go to retirement home now because they are just so overused again and again, they must be quite exhausted by now. And nosy, spoil mother who looks like she's about to throw hissy fits at any moment...AND are we supposed to feel sorry for them and feel empathy for them?

None of them are likable, and none of them stand out except Kitty, but sadly for her, whatever she does she just looks/sounds Ally, if not much awkward and annoying (and I stopped watching Ally McBeal because of her) and Sally Fields'character...her (I am just guessing here so apologies if not true, but surely she must have done SOMETHING to keep that face?!) botoxed-and-lifted-to-inch-of-her-life face aside, it's just so annoying so that so it's almost embarrassing. It's like watching a group of bratty teenagers, who think they have it all yet very childish.

Very generic, forgettable TV show.

Loving and Passionate Drama

[kevinisha111 · 10/10 · 24 September 2006]

Today this show premiered and I thought it was great! I love the relationship between the brothers and sisters, and the relationship between Kitty(Calista Flockhart) and Nora(Sally Field), because it is full of drama and argumentation, but when it all boils down to it they love each other so. I am looking forward to many more years of this show and I hope others enjoy it as much as I have. It has a wonderful cast starring Sally Field, Calista Flockhart, Balthazar Getty and Rachel Griffiths just to name a few. I also love how they incorporate politics into this family-oriented show, and they incorporate 9/11 as well. Everyone should tune in next Sunday to watch this show it is very enjoyable!!

Could be GREAT show..much needed work on lines!

[Attie_kershner · 7/10 · 19 January 2007]

Rachel Griffiths and Sally Fields were the draw for me to watch this show. Calista was the negative...but despite her, I wanted to see what the show had to offer.

Rachel as the OLDER sister of Calista..pleassee! I loved her on "Six Feet Under" and find that she is underused and her character seems stressed. The fact that she leads the family company seems contrived with what decisions and lack of scenes she has.She is beautiful and is such a character actress, not relying on her beauty. I feel as if Calista is dominating the whole show with her line of suitors. I watch for tidbits that are thrown Rachel's way and it disturbs me her lines are so shallow and family life are secondary to everything else going on.

I think the show could be great if all the story lines didn't come back to Calista's character's views, feelings, love interests and political views. Give us a break and give equal time to the rest of the cast. Calista reminds me of Robin Williams or Jim Carrey giving interviews, too many facial expressions and cute antics!

Utter drivel

[jgaskell · 1/10 · 30 March 2009]

I keep running into this awful, awful show as it is run between two good shows here in Australia. I have to say I am embarrassed for Rachael Griffiths, who is a very talented actress and who has generally appeared in pretty good stuff prior to this dross. She does her best with what she is given, but no-one is good enough to save this rubbish.

The stories are tedious, the characters completely unsympathetic, the dialogue ridiculous and the whole thing is so self-conscious that it makes me cringe. I do not understand what people see in this show at all. The fact that this is being lauded as quality drama just makes me despair for how far television has fallen.

Love it except for *her*

[nowens-72014 · 9/10 · 26 January 2023]

I loved this show the first time I watched it when it was on TV and am falling back in love with it the second time around watching it on Disney Plus Honestly though, I can't stand Holly. Each time I think her character's going to redeem herself, then the opposite happens and I like her even less and I wish she wasn't in the show as much (I knooow, she's the reason for a lot of the plot but still, she gives me the ick).

It's really too bad that this show was cancelled because the writing and character development is so great and I would love to watch more TV like this.

Next up on the list, Parenthood!