Home > State of the Union > Season 1 « TV Series Page State of the Union: Season 1 (2019) Want to see Episode List Season 1 State of the Union Critics Consensus State of the Union is an insightful and scathing collection of scenes from a troubled marriage, with Chris O'Dowd and Rosamund Pike proving to be compelling partners in sophisticated banter. 96% TOMATOMETER Critic Ratings: 25 79% Audience Score User Ratings: 28 See score details Rate And Review Submit review Want to see Edit Submit review Super Reviewer Verified Super Reviewer Verified Edit Super Reviewer Rate this season Oof, that was Rotten. Meh, it passed the time. It’s good – I’d recommend it. Awesome! So Fresh: Absolute Must See! What did you think of this tv season? (optional) Submit Continue Super Reviewer Step 2 of 2 How did you buy your ticket? Let's get your review verified. Submit By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie. You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket. Super Reviewer Rate this season Oof, that was Rotten. Meh, it passed the time. It’s good – I’d recommend it. Awesome! So Fresh: Absolute Must See! What did you think of this tv season? (optional) Submit How did you buy your ticket? Submit By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie. Episodes 1 Marathon Air date: May 6, 2019 Louise and Tom prepare for their first marital counselling session and try to work out how they got to this point. More 2 Antique Globes Air date: May 7, 2019 Tom commends himself for the courage it took to turn up late to last weeks session and promises to be there from the beginning this week. More 3 Syria Air date: May 8, 2019 Tom and Louise discuss the lost passion in their relationship - is passion something that can be found again? More 4 Plaster Cast Air date: May 9, 2019 Tom asks Louise to back him up in a lie with their counsellor - is it them against the world or not? More 5 Normal Slope Air date: May 10, 2019 Following a bad session, Tom has moved out. Louise suggests that this could be the start of a slippery slope. More 6 Nigel and Naomi Air date: May 13, 2019 Tom makes an effort, Louise complains that it feels contrived. Tom realizes that he has to remain himself while acting differently. More 7 Call The Midwife Air date: May 14, 2019 Louise admits that she's ashamed of Tom's lack of employment. They decide to communicate more openly. More 8 Dolphins Air date: May 15, 2019 Louise and Tom reflect on why and how they got together in the first place. More 9 Prison Sex Air date: May 16, 2019 Louise and Tom discuss a breakthrough in their relationship - Louise wonders if it was, in fact, a breakthrough. Eventually she asks him to move back in. More 10 Another Drink Air date: May 17, 2019 Tom has moved back in and feels that their issues are resolved. They agree that they wouldn't be friends if they weren't married and look for the right word to describe their relationship. More Tv Season Info Genre: Comedy Network: Sundance Premiere Date: May 6, 2019 Cast Rosamund Pike as Louise Chris O'Dowd as Tom Episodes 1 Marathon Air date: May 6, 2019 Louise and Tom prepare for their first marital counselling session and try to work out how they got to this point. More 2 Antique Globes Air date: May 7, 2019 Tom commends himself for the courage it took to turn up late to last weeks session and promises to be there from the beginning this week. More 3 Syria Air date: May 8, 2019 Tom and Louise discuss the lost passion in their relationship - is passion something that can be found again? More 4 Plaster Cast Air date: May 9, 2019 Tom asks Louise to back him up in a lie with their counsellor - is it them against the world or not? More 5 Normal Slope Air date: May 10, 2019 Following a bad session, Tom has moved out. Louise suggests that this could be the start of a slippery slope. More 6 Nigel and Naomi Air date: May 13, 2019 Tom makes an effort, Louise complains that it feels contrived. Tom realizes that he has to remain himself while acting differently. More 7 Call The Midwife Air date: May 14, 2019 Louise admits that she's ashamed of Tom's lack of employment. They decide to communicate more openly. More 8 Dolphins Air date: May 15, 2019 Louise and Tom reflect on why and how they got together in the first place. More 9 Prison Sex Air date: May 16, 2019 Louise and Tom discuss a breakthrough in their relationship - Louise wonders if it was, in fact, a breakthrough. Eventually she asks him to move back in. More 10 Another Drink Air date: May 17, 2019 Tom has moved back in and feels that their issues are resolved. They agree that they wouldn't be friends if they weren't married and look for the right word to describe their relationship. More Critic Reviews for State of the Union Season 1 All Critics (25) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (24) | Rotten (1) Fueled by grounded, authentic performances by O'Dowd and Pike, "State Of The Union" asks compelling questions. Nov 22, 2019 | Full Review… Eric Deggans NPR Top Critic These stories are as rewarding as they are withholding. By showing only slices of the protagonists' lives, the audience is tasked with looking out for changes in their dynamic. It's like a game of Spot the Difference. May 9, 2019 | Full Review… Shirley Li The Atlantic Top Critic It's so good, in fact, you're left wishing there was more; more time, more settings, more to the story than just the simple structure these professionals excel within. Jan 29, 2019 | Rating: B+ | Full Review… Ben Travers indieWire Top Critic It is funny, but not boastful about it. Oct 4, 2019 | Full Review… Alistair McKay London Evening Standard Top Critic Pike and O'Dowd seemed to relax in to their roles; their ease with one another looked much more like that of a 15-year marriage than a read-through and a tech rehearsal. Sep 9, 2019 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review… Benji Wilson Daily Telegraph (UK) Top Critic It is as honest and multi-faceted an examination and appreciation of marriage as you could hope to find (as well as an astonishingly cliche-free one). Sep 9, 2019 | Rating: 5/5 | Full Review… Lucy Mangan Guardian Top Critic Portrays a classic relationship crisis... bluntly and with a sense of humor. [Full review in Spanish] Dec 6, 2019 | Full Review… Zita Arenillas Letras Libres Marriage is portrayed in ten excellent slices. [Full Review in Spanish] May 14, 2019 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review… Alberto Carlos Espinof State of the Union worked because it was beautifully written by Nick Hornby, handsomely shot by Stephen Frears, and who doesn't like looking at Rosamund Pike sipping white wine? Oct 14, 2019 | Full Review… Alison Rowat The Herald (Scotland) The first two episodes of this 10-parter about a middle-class married couple chatting in a pub on their way to counselling sessions were perfectly fine, with nuanced dialogue and fine playing by the leads, but they were also very slight. Sep 16, 2019 | Full Review… John Boland Irish Independent O'Dowd is his usual clever shaggy bear self; Pike quite a comedy find, even if you wonder, up until about halfway through, how the two could ever have got together in the first place, let alone survive marriage until one had to scratch that 15-year-itch. Sep 16, 2019 | Full Review… Euan Ferguson Observer (UK) Here, though, sarcasm is what passes for middle-class frankness, where everything comes with a wry sense of detachment and, in Nick Hornby's script, a stagy way with words. Sep 9, 2019 | Full Review… Peter Crawley Irish Times View All Critic Reviews (25) Audience Reviews for State of the Union: Season 1 Apr 08, 2020 everything is perfect: sharp dialogue, funny, great music touching Sheila F Sep 15, 2019 The writing is amazing Samuel S May 16, 2019 Well written and utterly absorbing. Although it weighs in at only ten minutes per episode, each one is densely chewy and leaves you fully satiated. Shades of Woody Allen in the direction but Hornby's dialogue anchors the show in the UK and the Brexit references help to contemporise what otherwise could be a setting in the 90s. Brilliant and a timely antidote to superhero and fantasy fare. 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