In HBO's "Regime," a satirical authoritarian regime is collapsing Unfortunately, the same seems to be true of the series itself, judging by the reaction of critics and viewers so far

Starring Kate Winslet as the prime minister (read: dictator) of a fictional dictatorship in Central Europe, it was supposed to make fans of shows like "Succession" and "Veep" grin Instead, it fails to garner the support of any of the armies

The series made its streaming debut on HBO and Max on March 3, earning a lukewarm 57% Rotten Tomatoes from a sample of 44 review scores The audience score was not much better at 47%

"The Regime," which has only been available for streaming for about two days, does not seem to have received the positive response that seemed almost certain when previews first began After all, it looked as if it would be a sharp satirical comedy disguised as a political drama, but the scores indicate otherwise

Many critics had predicted another big awards contender for lead actress Winslet, but there seems to be no wind under her sails

"Regime," from screenwriter Will Tracy ("Succession"), follows Elena Varnum (Winslet), a former doctor who becomes the prime minister of a fictional Central European country She has spent much of her time in the palace over the years, never stepping out of her luxurious home Unfortunately, this has made her paranoid and unstable, and she places her trust in a military man named Herbert Zubak (Matthias Schoenaerts)

Zubak, despite being a disgraced soldier and a less than trustworthy character, becomes Vernam's "personal water diviner" and ultimately her most trusted advisor Zubak's influence over the vizier continues to grow as the people's trust in the vizier's leadership wanes While she uses brute force to expand her power and influence in the country, the palace and her staff begin to disintegrate, leaving instead a divided country

Rude, blunt, and cold-hearted, the prime minister seems completely unaware that the situation around her is disintegrating, but walls stand in the way of her authoritarian rule

"Regime," despite its initial poor reception by critics and viewers alike, could be well received, but so far the reaction seems to be middling across the board

Kristen Baldwin of Entertainment Weekly called it "a bleak and superficial exploration of the dangers of authoritarianism," noting that it is "not particularly funny, enlightening, or insightful"

USA Today's Kelly Lawler was a bit gentler, admitting that it was "at times entertaining, but also cringeworthy, confusing, and a bit boring"

CNN's Brian Lowry found the show, aside from Winslet's "over-the-top antics," to be "weird but not very good"

Peter Travers of ABC News praised Winslet's performance, but conceded that she "can't save this divisive political farce from being a clumsy disaster that drifts incoherently"

A few critics, such as John Anderson of the Wall Street Journal, found a new favorite in The Regime: "Winslet has single-handedly captured our attention, making the profoundly mad and unquestionably despicable Elena one of the major achievements of this respected actor to make

Since only one episode has aired, reactions may change in the future However, these initial critiques are not exactly glowing It will be interesting to see if things improve as additional episodes air in the coming weeks