Brian Skerry originated the show concept in 2008, after writing an article for National Geographic about endangered whale species.
[6] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 89 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
[7] Mike Hale of The New York Times found the visuals exciting, stating that the shots manage to provide a deep emotion for the audience, while claiming that the series emphasizes the intelligence and the social skills of whales.
[8] John Serba of Decider stated that the series succeeds to distinguish itself from other wildlife documentaries, claiming it provides fairly scientific data and very satisfying visuals that manage to capture the attention of the audience.
[9] Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun-Times gave the series a 4 out of 4 stars rating, claimed that the documentary succeeds to explore the behavior and culture of different whale species scientifically, found the visuals of the series astonishing across its photography, while saying that Sigourney Weaver was the ideal choice as the narrator.