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Season 1 – Common Side Effects

Play trailer 1:09 Poster for Season 1 – Common Side Effects Feb 2025 Comedy Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
100% Tomatometer 27 Reviews 90% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Two former high school lab partners stumble on a mushroom that can heal almost anything, apart from the corporate interests of the DEA, big pharma, and international businessmen.
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Common Side Effects — Season 1

Common Side Effects — Season 1

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Critics Consensus

An addictive mix of expressive animation, heady concepts, and an offbeat sense of humor, Common Side Effects is a must-have prescription.

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Critics Reviews

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Alan Sepinwall Rolling Stone The aesthetic is simultaneously off-putting and endearing, as if this is obviously not what people should look like, but in a way that suggests how hard it is for them to navigate this strange and broken world in which we all find ourselves. Jun 18, 2025 Full Review Coleman Spilde Salon.com Creators Joe Bennett and Steve Hely are so adept at hooking viewers that it’s almost frightening. Apr 7, 2025 Full Review Roxana Hadadi New York Magazine/Vulture This animated world may revolve around a fantastical fungus, but it contains all of our real-world frustrations, as well as our questions, about what we can actually do to improve how normalized our miseries have become. Mar 31, 2025 Full Review Bethan Ackerley New Scientist Eventually, the messier elements of Common Side Effects do coalesce pretty much perfectly into a hopeful, humanistic show about making mistakes and how we go about healing. Apr 6, 2025 Full Review Isaiah Colbert io9.com Common Side Effects is abound with lush and vivid background art; surreal, kaleidoscopic, fluid animation; and shocking violence—all working in concert with its suspenseful narrative. Apr 3, 2025 Full Review Chris McCoy Memphis Flyer Don’t let the animation fool you into thinking this show isn’t a serious work of art. Mar 27, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Renato M Watched the first 3 episodes hoping it would pick up steam but I gave up. Honestly, every show should at least try to hook you from the pilot but I felt like this one didn't even try. I see attempts at comedy, drama and thrills, but it all falls flat. I assume they aimed for subtlety, but they hit boredom. There's no hook. The characters are one-dimensional. The plot seems to be exactly what you expect from the premise but I'm not interested enough to follow through and find out. It honestly feels like they wrote an extremely boring conspiracy show about big pharma and the government as a parody of the premise itself. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 10/19/25 Full Review Tom F You can see where this is going, but it’s fun enough to watch play out. A great idea, but it takes a meandering course. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/08/25 Full Review Mateo O GREAT SHOW! Interesting, exciting, and while it might look goofy and silly, it sucks you in! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/26/25 Full Review Eric W After I watched it, I immediately rewatched it. It's really something special, something fresh, something new. The premise is deep and profound with so many layers of significance. But it's also light and funny. Great to see great creative work like this at a time I was starting to lose faith in it all. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/08/25 Full Review Levin C It's an absolutely amazing show! It will keep you on your toes every step of the way. To describe it here wouldn't do it justice you have to see for your self. :) Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/21/25 Full Review Qweezus Amazing show, great characters. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/19/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Common Side Effects — Season 1

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Cast & Crew

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Joseph Bennett

Creator

Steve Hely

Creator

Dave King

Marshall Cuso

Emily Pendergast

Frances Applewhite

Mike Judge

Rick Kruger

Martha Kelly

Agent Harrington

Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Feb 2, 2025 Pilot Marshall Cuso shows up in NYC with a mushroom, that can cure any disease or injury; his old classmate, Frances, meets him by chance, but keeps secret that she works for Reutical, a pharmaceutical company. Details Episode 2 Aired Feb 2, 2025 Lakeshore Limited Marshall is on the run, trying to flee New York; Frances confides to her boss, Rick, about the mushroom; Rick sends her to Marshall's farm to get more, but the situation gets out of hand. Details Episode 3 Aired Feb 9, 2025 Hildy Marshall seeks advice from his old mentor Hildy; Copano and Harrington are drawn further into the mystery of the mushrooms obtained at the raid; Frances goes to Geneva with her boyfriend Nick and Rick but can't resist the call of the mushroom. Details Episode 4 Aired Feb 16, 2025 Dumpsite Marshall buys a plot of land near a chemical waste site with a plan to grow more mushrooms; Frances rushes home from Europe after a huge development; Copano and Harrington investigate a connection between Marshall and Frances. Details Episode 5 Aired Feb 23, 2025 Star-Tel-Lite Marshall, Frances, and their crazy neighbors deal with the aftermath of a dangerous incident. Details Episode 6 Aired Mar 2, 2025 In the System Marshall arrives in jail and learns that some important people refuse to let him out, while danger lurks around every corner; Frances makes a fateful decision; Copano and Harrington pick up the pieces. Details Episode 7 Aired Mar 9, 2025 Blowfish Another inmate rescues Marshall, but now Marshall owes him a favor; desperate to get out of prison, he works on a risky plan when he runs into a surprising ally; Frances grapples with a life-changing event. Details Episode 8 Aired Mar 16, 2025 Amelia & Wyatt Marshall meets an old friend and forges a new plan; Frances receives terrible news and feels torn by it. Details Episode 9 Aired Mar 23, 2025 Cliff's Edge Marshall finds out what Hildy is up to, but still faces obstacles; Copano and Harrington follow Marshall's trail. Details Episode 10 Aired Mar 30, 2025 Raid Agents from the FBI and the DEA storm the site, with consequences; the fate of the mushroom is decided. Details

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Common Side Effects — Season 1

Common Side Effects: Season 1 Trailer 2 Common Side Effects: Season 1 Trailer 2 1:09 Common Side Effects: Season 1 Trailer Common Side Effects: Season 1 Trailer 1:30 View more videos
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Common Side Effects — Season 1

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Season Info

Director
Camille Bozec, Sean Buckelew, Benjy Brooke, Vincent Tsui
Creator
Joseph Bennett, Steve Hely
Executive Producer
Sean Buckelew, Greg Daniels, Dustin Davis, James Merrill, Suzanna Makkos, Mike Judge, Steve Hely, Juan Manuel Freire
Screenwriter
Joseph Bennett, Emma Barrie, Steve Hely, Jon Foor, Jean Kyoung Frazier, Dave King
Network
Adult Swim
Rating
TV-14
Genre
Comedy, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date
Feb 2, 2025