Teen Wolf spin-off Wolf Pack has arrived on Paramount+ to dramatically contrasting opinions between fans and critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, the werewolf series promised a lot and with a genre icon like Gellar involved it has been getting a lot of attention leading up to its premiere. From an audience point of view it seems to have been worth it, with the first wave of reviews being mostly positive and giving the series a fresh 84% score. However, critics have been less impressed, and as well as slating the show for being “cheesy” with “undercooked storylines” and being “all growl and no bite.”
Last year saw the announcement that Teen Wolf would be returning to screens in a TV movie, along with a new loose spin-off series, Wolf Pack. The reveal that the spin-off would include Sarah Michelle Gellar in its cast had many fans excited for the new series. While the series seems to have done enough to please those fans it has really missed the mark for critics, and for many not even the inclusion of Gellar is enough to save it from being just another generic werewolf show.
Inverse’s Dais Johnston commented: “It’s almost like Wolf Pack had the ingredients for a hit teen series — a proven creator, solid source material, intriguing start, fresh-faced talent, and a beloved figure from the previous generation — but was missing a recipe.”
CBR’s Sam Stone noted that, “Despite some promising elements, Paramount+’s Wolf Pack can never escape the shadow of more compelling takes on the same supernatural genre.”
Jack Seale of The Guardian didn’t have much time for the series either, saying, “Cheesy slow-motion, cheesy fast-motion montages, super-cheesy match cuts and at least one twanging continuity error: it’s all going on.”
Once again, the gulf between critics and audiences is proving itself to be ever widening. For every “rotten” review from the critics, there are ten positive audience reviews praising the show for having a strong start and Jeff Davis for delivering a great show.
One review reads: “I enjoyed the first episode. There is a lot to take in and characters to meet, but the show does a good job setting up the premise and plot of the show. Just like anything with source material , super fans are going to give it a harsh rating if it doesn’t stay 100% faithful to the show. Which is a shame because its shaping up to be pretty interesting. I don’t think it deserves the harsh reviews its getting. I’m excited to see if the pack gains anymore members and how they’ll deal with the big bad wolf.”
Another commented, “A really, really, really good show!! Jeff Davis really did a good job on this, the first episode was just an amazing start. There was suspense, drama and especially a little bit of “Teen Wolf” on this. The show brings us very important topics, like mental issues and family problems. The visuals are also atractive. If the show keeps going like this, for sure will be great!”
A third added, “Very good show with a good potential to reach the rank of Teen Wolf. Looking forward to new episodes and possibly second season.”
Wolf Pack is currently streaming on Paramount+.
