Jackie Robinson

:

Season 1
  • Network: PBS
  • Series Premiere Date: Apr 11, 2016
User Score
5.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 16 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 16
  3. Negative: 7 out of 16
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User Reviews

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  1. jeremyp
    Apr 26, 2016
    9
    A very telling story about America's racial history, but more importantly an in depth look at a complicated hero. Just as we must never forget the Holocaust, or Slavery, or Jim Crow, we must never forget the dismal history of America's favorite sport. While Jesse Owens and Joe Louis could compete with and best Caucasians it was deemed improper for Blacks to do so in Sports' biggest venue.A very telling story about America's racial history, but more importantly an in depth look at a complicated hero. Just as we must never forget the Holocaust, or Slavery, or Jim Crow, we must never forget the dismal history of America's favorite sport. While Jesse Owens and Joe Louis could compete with and best Caucasians it was deemed improper for Blacks to do so in Sports' biggest venue. They could, and were expected to, fight for their country, and then sit in the back of the bus again. Most appallingly in order for Robinson to break the color barrier he had to accept the racial slurs hurled at him. In other words: appease the apes. Sadly the later younger generation Afro Americans viewed him as an Uncle Tom. Non violence was no longer a badge of honor but a badge of shame.
    Interviews with his still living widow draw up a fuller picture of a man whose legacy is all too ignored.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

28
#28 Best TV Season of 2016
31
#31 Most Shared TV Season of 2016

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
83

Universal acclaim - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Uncle Barky
    Reviewed by: Ed Bark
    Apr 11, 2016
    83
    Jackie Robinson connects all of these dots and gives a far fuller picture of the man than the pedestrian 2013 feature film 42 or 1950’s The Jackie Robinson Story, in which Jackie played himself opposite Ruby Dee as Rachel.
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  2. Cleveland Plain Dealer
    Reviewed by: Mark Dawidziak
    Apr 11, 2016
    100
    From the first frame, it's clear that Jackie Robinson is a genuine labor of love. The warmly crafted two-part, four-hour PBS documentary from filmmaker Ken Burns positively glows with its admiration for the man and his accomplishments. ... Another mighty home run for PBS.
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  3. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Robert Lloyd
    Apr 11, 2016
    80
    As in his 1994 "nine-inning" film "Baseball," the subject suits the director's deliberate, even poky pace, and the air of what might be called critical nostalgia that colors all his films. Jackie Robinson brings the old world to vivid life, but its messages are for today and any day.
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