Love in the Time of Corona - Season 1

Without COVID-19 in the air, so to speak, Love in the Time of Corona would probably seem wan and, at points, clichéd. But as an effort to be both of and about life in 2020, as an attempt to adapt to difficult filming protocols, it's not bad.

Itchy, uncomfortable and deeply unsatisfying.

Without enough time and retrospect to give its stories more depth -- we are, after all, nowhere near beyond the scope of this disaster -- Love in the Time of Corona isn't exactly good television.

Love in the Time of Corona ultimately manages to rouse with its grand romantic gestures, but too much of the preceding material feels unimaginative, expository and dramatically DOA.

Freeform's audience skews younger, but if I'm cringing at some of these messaging moments I have to believe that viewers hailing from a couple of generations behind me may get a headache from all the eye-rolling.

At its best, Love in the Time of Corona is sweet and hopeful, as its characters look for light at the end of the tunnel that, in reality, hasn't as yet materialized.

Heartfelt pandemic romcom has innuendo, drinking.

The couples have understandable chemistry, and the production values are surprisingly high, given the restrictions the producers and crew were under.

In the end though, the world probably has enough doom and gloom in it at present, and Love in the Time of a Corona is a blessed escape into a feel-good rom-com that provokes tears of joy rather than sorrow.

Love in the Time of Corona could have been thoughtless, cringey, and poorly-made all around. Instead, it shows that art can and will endure this moment, with love behind it.

An easy, breezy binge, "Corona" puts a welcome, mostly upbeat spin on trying times.