You might also like
Rate And Review
-
What did you think of this tv season? (optional)
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
What did you think of this tv season? (optional)
How did you buy your ticket?
Episodes
Henry Shackleford, a young slave living in the Kansas territory in 1856, has a run-in with abolitionist John Brown, who mistakes him for a girl and promptly "frees" him.
Separated from Brown's army, Onion and fellow slave Bob leave the fight in Kansas only to cross paths with pro-slavery "red shirts" who escort them to the slave-trading town of Pikesville, Mo. Onion soon finds himself enmeshed in a mounting slave insurrection, where he learns the consequences of his own actions.
After the battle in Pikesville, John Brown, now one of the most wanted men in America, heads north with Onion to raise funds for the abolitionist cause. They take refuge at the home of famed orator and "King of the Negroes" Frederick Douglass and his two wives.
John and Onion continue their fund-raising mission, this time heading to Canada on foot. After seeing true freedom for the first time and frustrated with Brown's increasingly irrational behavior, Onion demands freedom from Brown's army. But, when the legendary Harriet Tubman endorses Brown in a room full of new recruits, Onion realizes that he may be more invested in the cause and the "old man" than he thought.
Onion and new recruit John Cook head to Harper's Ferry to prepare for the arrival of John Brown and his army. However, Onion struggles to perform his mission of recruiting more African-American soldiers from the area when Cook's reckless behavior threatens their exposure to suspicious neighbors. After several weeks of waiting, Brown, his army and his daughter Annie finally arrive—creating a new distraction for Onion: true love.
The plan to seize the nation's largest armory at Harper's Ferry is finally put into action, but a crucial mistake by Onion threatens the success of the entire operation. John Brown's army takes hostages, grabbing the attention of an angry mob and local militia, and with shots firing, Onion is sent out to get reinforcements.
John Brown and his remaining army take a last stand as more federal troops descend upon Harper's Ferry. With John Brown captured and held for public execution, Onion, truly on his own, risks his life to say his goodbyes to Brown. Series finale.
The Good Lord Bird: Miniseries Videos
Tv Season Info
Cast & Crew
Jason Brown
Jew Weiner
News & Interviews for The Good Lord Bird: Miniseries
Critic Reviews for The Good Lord Bird Miniseries
All Critics (52) | Top Critics (29) | Fresh (51) | Rotten (1)
Despite four Oscar nominations, Ethan Hawke has always floated just below the A-list. "The Good Lord Bird" should lift him to the top.
As good as Hawke is here, Johnson just might be better. A winner.
With a rollicking pilot from director Albert Hughes, the limited series is bursting with lively music, well-staged shootouts, and a wicked sense of humor. Holding it all together is Hawke.
The show's rowdy atmosphere is flexible enough to slide into intensely moving and disturbing moments, thanks to directors such as Albert Hughes and Kevin Hooks and creator-writers Hawke and Mark Richard, all of whom stay true to McBride's vision.
The disdain is breathtaking and infuriating. If only it seemed more distant.
As long as you don't come to it for a direct history lesson, it is as entertaining as almost any new show of 2020.
One expects this sort of miniseries to be solemn and violent, and it often is, but The Good Lord Bird is also a delightfully funny piece of entertainment with a crooked sense of humour.
Irreverent, yet engrossing... Like last year's riotous 18th century Russian romp The Great, this is history with a raucous, rambunctious streak.
The Good Lord Bird promises to be a memorably wild, fast-paced, incident-packed journey full of riotous humor and angry insight. It's already off to a fantastic start.
Despite the sombre subject matter, The Good Lord Bird's humour is beautifully pitched.
Likely pulling in large chunks from McBride's own text, the show enjoys an acuity of dialogue that paints its subject matter vividly, even when he's pontificating some authentic frontier gibberish.
The Good Lord Bird doubles as sly commentary on what has brought us to another historical reckoning.
Audience Reviews for The Good Lord Bird: Miniseries
-
Mar 12, 2021A little bit too much about the Lord for my little critical, atheist heart.
-
Mar 06, 2021This was all about the performances for me, with the two leads Ethan Hawke and Joshua Caleb Johnson complimenting each other brilliantly. Hawke was an absolute delight to watch as John Brown and I was not expecting the tone of this film to be as irreverently humorous as it was. I was becoming giddy any time Hawke started up, with many of his diatribes and musings eliciting audible guffaws. Johnson's running commentary and more realistic view of this world balances well with Hawke's Brown and Onion's seemingly natural ability to create dry humor and pathos simultaneously is quite impressive. The supporting cast generally made the series stronger and I particularly thought Hubert Point-Du Jour who played Bob deserves a nod as well.
-
Feb 03, 2021Loved this show! Ethan Hawke deserved his nomination for the Golden Globe 🏆 Highly recommend!
-
Dec 29, 2020Stunning performances.
-
Dec 26, 2020Outstanding! Ethan and Ryan Hawke have brought John Brown to life.
-
Dec 06, 2020Rather compressed and so a bit limited with historical fact. Each episode is a jewel that oddly does not really compel you to look at the next. But forward motion and history aside, it is an amazing piece of work. When Hawke's John Brown erupts into his bellowing zeal, you will not fail to be mesmerised. Polished performances all round.
-
Dec 02, 2020At 1st I did not know if this was History or Comedy? However, I think it is a little of both which I found really interesting that they pulled that off w/the Story Line. I loved all the characters. Wish I seen more of Harriet Tubman & dealing w/the underground railroad though.
-
Nov 26, 2020I liked it a lot. I am not a fan normally of any "westerny" type movies/shows, but this has a good story that kept me intrigued the whole time. Onion is just a doll.
-
Nov 24, 2020Ethan Hawke gives it all as the charismatic and deeply religious John Brown, and that's more than actually expected. He and his counterpart 'Onion', so honestly sweet and innocent, portraid by Joshua Caleb Johnson, along with a great cast, strong music full of soul, top cinematography, all together creates a highly credible atmosphere that smells of dirt, sweat and gunpowder. Still, it's all so nuanced and peculiar that it's hard to realize what the story really is about. Makes one ponder.
-
Nov 22, 2020A very good story! The cast is very good, especially our dear and not very dear, John Brown (Ethan Hawke). Which is ... perfectly splendid
Verified