The Duchess of Sussex’s long-promised Netflix series has finally dropped – to reviews and a global reaction perhaps only described as poor.

The streaming giant released Meghan Markle’s lifestyle series, With Love, Meghan, on Tuesday after months of delays.

(Actually, maybe it’s Meghan Sussex? The duchess makes that point in the first episode.)

It is Meghan and husband Prince Harry’s fifth effort in their Netflix deal worth a reported $US100 million ($A161 million).

Over the eight episodes, the California-based royal appears to channel a combination of homemaking guru Martha Stewart and wellness goddess Gwyneth Paltrow as she shares cooking, gardening and crafting tips with meaningful conversations with celebrity friends.

But critics were less than impressed.

“This isn’t innovative, it’s backwards,” said Kinsey Schofield, host of the To Di For Daily podcast.

“The projects themselves aren’t original. It lacks authenticity. It’s aesthetically pleasing but not where the content world is at right now. It’s too controlled. Too glossy. Too produced.”

Variety was even more blunt, describing the show’s overall aesthetic as like Meghan’s on-camera wardrobe: “Well-tailored and beige.”

“Since her first forays out in public life after the genuinely sympathetic Oprah Winfrey interview of 2021, Meghan and her husband Harry both have seemed confident that interest would naturally follow them. But there isn’t enough here to justify the running time, nor its star’s belief we’ll keep watching,” reviewer Daniel D’Addario wrote.

“The show plays out like a forced march, one in which Meghan’s guests must, as the price of getting to share an afternoon in a made-for-TV kitchen with her, praise her first.

“With Love, Meghan is made with a great deal of love – in the sense that the greatest love of all is the one that a person has for herself.”

British media was also less than impressed. The Independent critic Katie Rosseinsky gave the series a one-star rating out of five, calling it “queasy and exhausting” and saying it “strains for aspiration and relatability in a way that never gels”.

The Telegraph gave it just two stars, and called it an “exercise in narcissism”. “Meghan invites people to her pretend house” and “they tell her how amazing she is. This happens for eight episodes”, critic Anita Singh wrote.

British broadcaster and photographer Helena Chard was scathing.

“Meghan seems eager to play the altruistic, kind soul, but it is a tad smarmy. My toes are curling,” she said.

“This is so cringey and not fun at all. It feels too staged, and the tips and tricks are far too basic … Meghan comes across as a modern Stepford Wife.”

Vogue found something to love, describing the show as a “bold re-entry to the lifestyle space” – a reference to the lifestyle blog the duchess abandoned when her relationship with Harry became serious.

“Well, I loved The Tig, but I certainly love my husband more,” Meghan told People magazine in a lengthy interview before the show premiered

“That was a choice I made at the time, and I wouldn’t change that for a second.”

Harper’s Bazaar was similar, calling With Love Meghan a “rewarding return to self”.

“Fans of The Tig, rejoice – the Duchess of Sussex is fully back in her lifestyle bag,” it wrote.

Reviewer Bianca Betancourt said she found “With Love strikes a fine balance between friendly lifestyle voyeurism (in the form of both gorgeous Montecito views and glimpses into the duchess’s personality) and true service content”.

And what of Meghan herself? She told People the show pushed her beyond her comfort zone.

“I was never really in front of the camera like this,” the former Suits actor said.

“It feels as though we’re just spending time together, which is what it ended up being,” she said of the crew’s presence.

“I’d make a recipe and say, ‘Everyone try this’, and there are certain dishes where you just watch everyone flock in. I’d say, ‘We’ve run out of spoons!’. It ended up feeling so communal, and that’s the spirit of the show.”

With Love Meghan is streaming on Netflix