Parents' Guide to

Country Comfort

By Joyce Slaton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 7+

Gentle humor, predictable plots in throwback family sitcom.

TV Netflix Comedy 2021
Country Comfort Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 9 parent reviews

Mama2021
Mama2021 Adult
April 16, 2021
age 16+

Cute, inappropriate content for littles

This is a cute show with eccentric acting. I enjoyed it and the story line is sweet. However... the use of alcoholic beverages is obvious and blatant and unnecessary. One episode shows the youngest going to take a drink of a spiked lemonade and the nanny having to stop her. Another episode shows teens full on kissing/making out. One episode is devoted to the dad lying to his children and making the nanny lie for him. The kids then repay his lies with a lie of their own. Worse yet in the episode the dad says, it’s not a lie if the truth never comes out. During this episode, the dad is on an overnight date with a woman where he places his hand on her “heart” for an uncomfortable length of time. They also show adults kissing, drinking champagne and the dad beginning to get undressed for some sexy bedroom time. We turned it off at that point. Not for my young family, which is a disappointment bc the story is cute without all of the immorality.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
1 person found this helpful.
erinromas
erinromas Adult
June 17, 2021
age 12+

Questionable story lines

I was concerned after one episode had a story line about the Dad not spending the night yet with his girlfriend. I thought this was not age appropriate for my 8 year old and very unnecessary for the story line to be a part of the show.

This title has:

Too much sex
See all 9 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Country singer Bailey (Katharine McPhee) didn't set out to be a nanny, but when a broken-down truck leads her to knock on the door of a sprawling ranch house, she becomes one anyway in COUNTRY COMFORT. You see, dreamy cowboy Beau (Eddie Cibrian) lost his wife two years ago, and ever since his five kids have been lost and lonely. Flirtatious eldest Tuck (Richard Hurtado), insecure Brody (Jamie Martin Mann), burgeoning music business ace Dylan (Griffin McIntyre), rebellious Cassidy (Shiloh Verrico), and youngest child Chloe (Pyper Braun) all take to Bailey quickly, despite the consternation of Beau's threatened girlfriend Summer (Janet Varney). Can Bailey find a home at the ranch and reinvigorate her music career playing with a newly hatched family band while at the same time helping a family feel whole again?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (9):
Kids say (7):

With its "aw shucks!" rural vibe, cacophonous laugh track, and contrived half-hour-of-plot setups, this series is a throwback to whole-family-friendly sitcoms of old like Full House or The Nanny. The language is softened enough for young viewers -- the age range of characters varies from seven (Pyper Braun's Chloe, who gets the type cute 'n' clever lines the Olsen twins delivered in Full House) to late-40s (daddy Beau) to give every member of the family something to relate to, and the hijinks are gentle and predictable: Bailey et al have to find a missing guitar; a tornado suddenly strikes the ranch; one of the kids stops going to church and has to be convinced to return. If these plot lines sound kinda familiar, no surprise, because Country Comfort feels familiar, too.

That's not a terrible thing -- there's a need for art made by and for people who want to enjoy a series with just a smattering of won't-offend-Grandma humor and no surprises. Country Comfort's central family is charming, with plenty of fun banter between the teen-and-up wing of the family and the younger siblings. McPhee herself is a far better singer than actor -- the show takes flight in the many, many moments in which she's called to perform -- but she's game enough. Cibrian seems too checked-out to be more than a benevolent dad-like presence, but the kids and McPhee energetically work their way through plots with a telegenic conflict that always winds up with everyone laughing, hugging, and maybe singing a country song together. It may not be great art, but for certain kinds of viewers it's the comfort the title promises.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about family dynamics and communication between kids and parents. How do families establish and maintain good communication? Who do you go to for advice? Parents also can talk about what defines a family. Who do you consider to be part of your family?

  • Families can talk about the issues raised in each episode. Are the situations that come up on the show still relevant to today's kids? Does anything about the show read as old-fashioned? If so, what?

  • What do kids think it would be like to grow up in a family like the Tanners? What other types of non-traditional families are your kids familiar with? Are there any advantages or disadvantages to having a less-typical family unit?

TV Details

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