'Spectacular' western series streaming on Netflix stars Hollywood legend

This American sitcom broke new ground with TV fans, thanks to its classic western setting and A-list casting, and all episodes are available to stream now on Netflix.

The Ranch is a TV series created by Don Reo and Jim Patterson, set on a fictitious ranch in a small town in Colorado. It follows a dysfunctional family, known as the Bennetts, made up of two brothers, Colt and Rooster, and their parents, Beau and Maggie.

Hollywood heartthrob Ashton Kutcher stars alongside Danny Masterson, who he co-starred with on That '70s Show. The real winner that western fans will be pleased to see at the helm of the show is Sam Elliot, as he plays the well-known cattle ranch owner.

An impressed viewer took toIMDb to share their thoughts on Elliot's role, writing: "Sam Elliot is fantastic as the stick-in-the-mud father and balanced well with Oscar-nominated Debra Winger as the flighty and sometimes very wise mother. While another said: "The knockout performances from Elliot and Winger speak for themselves."

Colt is a semi-pro footballer whose career has come to an end, and when he makes a return back to the farm, he's quick to cause disruption to their well-established routines. As we follow along, the show delves into what it means to be a family, the traditions they uphold, legacy and the struggle to overcome change.

Another fan of the show shared their thoughts, writing that The Ranch is "pure gold". They said: "The show is amazingly funny. Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson are comedic gold. The show portrays a great storyline of family, love, pain and prosperity. Every character was portrayed perfectly, and Netflix has struck gold with this one.

Meanwhile, many viewers praised the 2016 show for the 'realistic' themes it was able to portray in a light-hearted but often hard-hitting way. A review claims: "What makes this comedy so unique is that it deals with such serious topics in a very realistic and unblinking way.

"Ageing, drifting apart, financial hardships, betrayal, and, without giving spoilers, the list goes on. As a matter of fact, if you took out the punchlines and the 5-10 minutes of every show that is laugh-out-loud funny, you could easily edit this show into an hour-long drama series."

Although, one common criticism the show received was its 'laugh track' - a common style used within the sitcom genre. One viewer wrote that they felt the show didn't "make sense" to even have one in the background and that it would be better without it.

A disgruntled viewer shared: "I get why shows use them, but it's so stupid. How about just making a cry track also for emotional moments so I know I need to feel sad? This trend needs to die."

Another person shared their disliking of this element of The Ranch. They wrote: "What person decides to put a laugh track every 10 seconds...it spoils what is a really good show."

For those interested in throwing themselves into a western series all about family drama, all episodes of The Ranch are available to stream now on Netflix.