The Good Lord Bird: Season 1

2020

Created by Ethan Hawke
98%
73%
7 episodes
Drama

From Ethan Hawke, a limited series adaptation of the 2013 James McBridge novel, winner of the National Book Award. An... More

From Ethan Hawke, a limited series adaptation of the 2013 James McBridge novel, winner of the National Book Award. An enslaved teenager (Joshua Caleb Johnson-Lionel) becomes a member in abolitionist John Brown’s (Hawke) motley crew during the Bleeding Kansas era before the Civil War. They would eventually participate in the 1859 raid on the Army depot at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Brown's raid failed to initiate the slave revolt he intended, but was the instigating event that started the American Civil War.

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Where to watch The Good Lord Bird: Season 1

The Good Lord Bird: Season 1 is available to stream... More in New Zealand now on TVNZ+.

The Good Lord Bird: Season 1 episodes

Meet the Lord

Henry Shackleford, a young slave living in the Kansas territory... More in 1856, has a run-in with abolitionist John Brown, who mistakes him for a girl and promptly “frees” him.

A Wicked Plot

Separated from Brown’s army, Onion and fellow slave Bob leave... More the fight in Kansas only to cross paths with pro-slavery “red shirts” who escort them to the slave-trading town of Pikesville, Missouri.

Mister Fred

Following the battle in Pikesville, John Brown, now one of... More the most wanted men in America, travels north with Onion to raise funds for the abolitionist cause.

Smells Like Bear

John and Onion continue their fundraising mission, this time heading... More 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.

Hiving the Bees

Onion and new recruit, John Cook, head to Harper’s Ferry... More to prepare for Brown and his army’s arrival.

Jesus is Walkin'

The plan to take control of the nation’s largest armory... More at Harper’s Ferry is finally put into action. However, a crucial mistake by Onion threatens the success of the entire operation.

Last Words

John Brown and his remaining army take a last stand... More 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: Season 1 | Ratings & Reviews

98_%51 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes® rating
73_%66 reviews
Audience score rating

"Speaks to the present as well as the past. This is one of the most thoughtful and surprising series of an already impressive year: a historical epic of real vision."

"Frankly, it rules."

"When it works, especially at the start, The Good Lord Bird invigorates its material with the rousing trappings of a semi-comedic western that gives it a particularly memorable sort of power."

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Slant Magazine

"“The Good Lord Bird,” Showtime’s new limited series about Brown and his mission, percolates with quirky and strange energy, overflowing with its sense of America as a place defined by its oddity."

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Variety

"Anchored by a truly remarkable performance from Ethan Hawke, “The Good Lord Bird” is smart, entertaining television that doesn’t highlight or underline its timeliness or messages as much as it allows the viewers to do half the work."

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RogerEbert.com

"The most revelatory part of The Good Lord Bird is how funny it is."

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TV Guide

"The miniseries is good—at times, great. But Hawke is beyond great; he is incandescent."

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Vanity Fair

"It’s startling how many laughs Hawke generates — and, for that matter, how funny The Good Lord Bird is as a whole, given its subject matter. Hawke, Richard, and their other collaborators (among the directors: Albert Hughes, Kevin Hooks, and Haifaa Al-Mansour) have managed to retain the satirical spirit of McBride’s book."

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Rolling Stone

"Seven hours of The Good Lord Bird left me both clear-eyed about John Brown as a historical figure and curious to learn more. Above all, it left me with zero doubts about Hawke’s ever-evolving talent."

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