Andrew C. Revkin of The New York Times wrote that "the Showtime team, at least in episode one, deserves plaudits for taking a compellingly fresh approach to showing the importance of climate hazards to human affairs ... having the movie and television stars ... asking questions and driving the story through their inquiry." CleanTechnica called the series "powerful" and "compelling", observing that the "often baffling science of climate change, marked by relatively small changes that are often invisible to lay observers, is finally something the larger public can immediately understand here in the format of the finest mainstream cable television. The Sun Herald commented: "The stories are compelling, and were filmed as real news was happening around the participants.Leytham, Tammy. "Showtime's Years of Living Dangerously looks at climate change through 60 Minutes storytelling", Sun Herald, April 7, 2014 A reviewer for The Hollywood Reporter thought: "The documentary does an excellent job of being simple and clear without being arrogant, and its convergence of science, politics, religion and industry proves its ultimate point."Keene, Allison. "Years of Living Dangerously: TV Review", The Hollywood Reporter, April 11, 2014 The Guardian calls the series "perhaps the most important climate change multimedia communication endeavor in history."Abraham, John and Dana Nuccitelli. "Years of Living Dangerously – a global warming blockbuster", The Guardian, April 9, 2014
