In public opinion, Justin Timberlake's career seems to be in big trouble.

The former NSYNC star, who brought his “Forget Tomorrow World Tour” to a packed Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia on Friday, has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons lately.

In June, a few weeks into his concert tour, which is scheduled to last through next summer, Timberlake was arrested in Long Island and charged with driving under the influence.

His remark that “this will ruin the tour” to a young officer who reportedly didn't recognize him was widely mocked in memes online. (He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in September and was ordered to pay a fine, record a public announcement and perform community service.)

In recent years, Timberlake has been criticized for his behavior in the 2000s, for his treatment of Britney Spears after their breakup, and for Janet Jackson taking the brunt of backlash over the “wardrobe malfunction” incident at the Super Bowl in 2004 . In 2021 he apologized to both of them.

Then this week, Timberlake outraged some fans when he postponed a concert in Newark, New Jersey, just an hour before it was scheduled to begin because of what he vaguely described as “an injury” in an Instagram post.

As Timberlake's “Philly Forget Tomorrow” date approached, there was some doubt as to whether it would even happen. And if so, how warmly would the Memphian native and his band, the Tennessee Kids, receive.

It actually took place when the song and dance man took the stage promptly at 9pm after an opening set from well-known DJ hype man Andrew Hypes. Timberlake showed no signs of physical impairment during a two-hour, 28-song performance that was flawless in its smooth professionalism.

At 43, Timberlake – who, like the eight musicians, three backing singers and five dancers accompanying him, was dressed in black and wore white sneakers – is still a skilled, fleet-footed hoofer and a skilled entertainer with a resume dating back to his days as a Mouseketeer The all new Mickey Mouse Club Mid 1990s.

The set leaned heavily on Timberlake's mediocre new album Everything I thoughtand songs like the bloated “Sanctified” and the overloaded “Technicolor” were highlights of an otherwise brisk, expertly choreographed evening.

Timberlake's longtime collaborator, Philly bandleader Adam Blackstone, is not on this tour, his bassist duties being ably handled by Derrick “Swol” Ray. But Blackstone's presence is still felt in his offstage role as musical director and music programmer.

The band is powerful and the show is fun to watch, with everyone on stage except for powerhouse drummer Michael Reid Jr. and keyboardist Justin C. Gilbert putting on their dancing shoes.

The four-piece horn section, along with Timberlake and his singers and dancers, moved to a mini-set on the second stage at the opposite end of the arena in the smoothest transition I've ever witnessed.

On the way out, the ensemble wandered playfully through the crowd Everything“Play” from “Play” returned without missing a beat as Timberlake jumped into the groove of 2006’s “What Goes Around…Come Around.” FutureSex/LoveSounds.

Timberlake made no mention of his struggles, instead relaxing in the comfort zone of a loyal crowd – probably 70% female and racially mixed, although mostly white and his age cohort or a few years younger – delighted to be in the presence of a dance-music-making pop idol, which they have been following for decades.

The longtime fans' enthusiasm was evident in the carefully planned show's only interlude of seemingly spontaneous spontaneity, as Timberlake interacted with women at the front of the stage who came armed with hand-made signs with messages such as “Sold My Plasma to Be Here,” to get his attention.

One that caught his eye was “Got My Tickets With My Divorce$$.” When a woman nearby shouted, “Congratulations, girl!” Timberlake spontaneously said, “Oh, I know I'm in Philly now!”

Another woman brought a sign asking for “help disclosing my gender.” She handed him an envelope and FaceTimed her husband at home, who was babysitting the couple's two-year-old. Like an Oscar presenter, Timberlake shyly opened the envelope and revealed, “It's a baby…boy!”

The visual star of the show was a 30-foot-tall rectangular/high-definition video screen with a shape reminiscent of the mysterious god-like monolith in Stanley Kubrick's work 2001: A Space Odyssey.

For the most part, Timberlake and the TK's let the music do the talking, with an easy-flowing mix of R&B and pop that kept the crowd on their toes throughout the night. It never cuts too deep, but is almost always comfortable.

But the large rectangle offered state-of-the-art, expensive-looking digital staging. You could make it look like a giant water tank that fills up in Drown, threatening the life of a giant Timberlake trapped inside.

In “SexyBack,” Timberlake's 2006 signature hit with producing partner Timbaland, the star's oversized head glowered from a screen that was tilted ominously at an angle so that it looked as if it would fall and crush the singer and the band , while they were busy grinding the radio vamp's thick body out of the groove.

For the finale, the monolith transformed into a platform on which Timberlake could be mounted as he was lifted above the crowd to end the evening with “Mirrors” from his 2013 album The 20/20 experience.

It was an unpleasant ending, partly because that essential The arena spectacle levitation stunt has become so common that it's starting to seem silly.

And also because he had his feet strapped to him for safety up there, which made him awkwardly immobile, whereas he's much more captivating when he's standing freely on solid ground.

Earlier, before playing “Selfish” on acoustic guitar, Timberlake asked the audience if it was the first time they'd seen him with the Tennessee Kids or “if you've been rocking with me for 20 or 25 years.”

The fans, whose loyalty dates back to his NSYNC days at the turn of the millennium, won by a deafening margin. “We grew up together,” Timberlake said, relaxed amid an adoring crowd that wrapped him in a warm cocoon of comfort no matter what the haters might say.