HBO’s Returning Comedy Series With Friends Star Breaks Rotten Tomatoes Record Ahead Of Final Episodes

Lisa Kudrow’s HBO series The Comeback is back for a third and final season, and its Rotten Tomatoes score has set a new record for the TV comedy.

Ahead of its March 22 premiere, The Comeback season 3 has debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with a 90% score, surpassing the ratings for the first two seasons.

Critics are calling the final season hilarious, emotional and a fitting sendoff for the series. Kudrow’s performance as Valerie Cherish is also being praised as one of the best parts of the show.

By comparison, The Comeback season 1 received mixed-to-positive reviews and a 63% Rotten Tomatoes score. Critics were much more receptive to the second season, though, giving the 2014 installment an 86%.

The Comeback debuted in 2005, one year after Kudrow’s hit 10-season sitcom Friends went off the air. After playing Phoebe Buffay for a decade, the actress has had a more hands-on role with her next series.

Not only is she the star of The Comeback, but she also co-created the comedy with Sex and the City‘s Michael Patrick King and serves as an executive producer with King and Dan Bucatinsky.

It took HBO nine years to revive The Comeback for a second season and another 12 years for the final season.

During those long hiatuses, Kudrow starred in movies like Easy A, The Girl on the Train, The Boss Baby, Booksmart and Better Nate Than Ever, and returned to the small screen in Web Therapy, Feel Good, Space Force, Time Bandits and No Good Deed.

The Comeback centers on Kudrow’s character, Valerie Cherish, a fading actress who attempts to stage a comeback in the entertainment industry by starring on a reality show and a new sitcom.

Kudrow’s co-stars include Bucatinsky, Damian Young, Laura Silverman, Tim Bagley, Ella Stiller, Matt Cook, Jack O’Brien, Barry Shabaka Henley, Abbi Jacobson, John Early, Brittany O’Grady, Tony Macht, Zane Phillips, Andrew Scott and Julian Stern.

Several celebrities, like Andy Cohen, Chelsea Handler, Conan O’Brien and RuPaul, have made guest appearances on the show, and Fran Drescher will be one of the famous faces stopping by this time around.

One aspect of society that has rapidly evolved since The Comeback was previously on the air is the evolution of artificial intelligence, which will play a major role in the plot of the third season, as the producers of Valerie’s new sitcom rely on the technology to craft the scripts.

For the first time, The Comeback will have its own video podcast released on HBO Max, in which Evan Ross interviews Kudrow, King and the cast to get more insight into the storylines and behind-the-scenes details about the making of the show.

For both seasons of The Comeback, the former Friends cast member has landed Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, and won Outstanding Female Lead – Comedy Series at the Gracie Awards.

The Comeback season 3 premieres Sunday, March 22 at 10:30 p.m. EDT on HBO and HBO Max.