TV Show review
Review basis: 8 seasons, 155 episodes · through May 11, 2026
October 1, 2018 · 22 min · TV-PG · Ended
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
The Neighborhood is a CBS sitcom that ran for eight seasons from 2018 to 2026. It follows a friendly white Midwestern family that moves next door to a Black family in a Pasadena neighborhood and slowly builds friendships despite initial cultural clashes. Early episodes directly address white privilege through a golf club outing and a season three premiere centered on a Black Lives Matter protest and police interactions.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for The Neighborhood.
Woke representation / casting
The core premise places a white family in a predominantly Black neighborhood and builds stories around visible racial and cultural differences in prominent roles for both families, including competent Black professionals in the established community.
Woke political dialogue
Early episodes include direct discussion of white privilege in everyday settings and a season three premiere that portrays a BLM protest along with characters processing police interactions and differential treatment.
Identity-driven story themes
Racial and cultural adjustment between the white newcomers and Black neighbors drives the initial setup and many early plots, though later seasons shift more toward general family and friendship stories.
Western institutional / cultural critique
A few episodes use comedy to show race-based differences at a golf club and during a protest, but these stay episodic and light without broad attacks on Western institutions, patriarchy, or capitalism.
Production
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Viewers specifically called out the white privilege episode and BLM premiere as heavy-handed or agenda-pushing, with some labeling early content as preachy or DEI-style, though such complaints stayed limited across the show's eight-season run.
Creator track record context
Jim Reynolds created a premise built on racial clashes and assembled a diverse writers room; Cedric the Entertainer advocated for the white privilege content; brief showrunner Meg DeLoatch highlighted inclusivity; most other writers and directors have conventional comedy track records.
