[1] "Search Party Season 5 sees Dory enter a very public business partnership with charismatic tech billionaire Tunnel Quinn on the other side of her near-death experience.

[2] Series co-creators Sarah-Violet Bliss, Charles Rogers, and Michael Showalter remained as co-executive producers with Lilly Burns and Tony Hernandez.

Dory's spiritual leader persona was also inspired by public figures including Deepak Chopra, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Marianne Williamson, and Ram Dass.

[12][11] Rogers and Bliss described Dory's descent into becoming a cult leader with good intentions as a "full circle" transition from season one, when her altruism also transformed into narcissism.

hailed the series: "Among a swelling array of TV shows that lampoon navel-gazing Millennials, Search Party has stood out for its mordant humor, razor-sharp wit, and pitch-black plot.

"[13] Critics noted that the series continued to bend genres, as it has taken on the style of true crime, legal drama, noir, horror, and psychological thriller across the first four seasons.

[17] Slash writer Valerie Ettenhofer stated that the season's satirical focus is consistent with the overall series: "No matter how pie-in-the-sky it gets, "Search Party' is still, at its core, a biting satire about the rich and soulless...In the season premiere, Elliott makes plain the type of hollowness the series loves to poke at, saying gleefully, "We're adults, and adults don't care about making a difference!

[9] Multiple critics connected the off-the-wall tone and plotting to the destabilizing and unprecedented events that took place in the United States between Search Party's 2016 debut and 2022 finale.