The Good Lord Bird
  • Network: SHOWTIME
  • Series Premiere Date: Oct 4, 2020
User Score
6.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 43 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 43
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 43
  3. Negative: 12 out of 43
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User Reviews

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  1. DragonVenom
    Oct 7, 2020
    10
    White Supremacist are very angry about this show. That is a very good thing!
  2. DaQuarterPounda
    Oct 10, 2020
    10
    Excellent show! White supremacists can't appreciate quality, unfortunately.
  3. Gdgip
    Oct 5, 2020
    10
    How sad do you have to be to get on a site and give a negative review to something you will never watch
  4. shoulderoforion
    Oct 7, 2020
    2
    Almost completely unwatchable, and period piece civil war shoot em ups are right in my wheelhouse. Too much "crazy" repeatedly shoved in your face at the expense of character and story development, blech.
  5. Topdog912
    Nov 1, 2020
    10
    I just can’t understand why so many people are dissing this show. Brilliant McBride novel; brilliant and engaging tv mini series! Lighten up and laugh and get serious when you really need to.
  6. mylesvonjohnny
    Nov 12, 2020
    10
    Not sure why viewer rating is so low because this is an amazing miniseries. Ethan Hawke is brilliant
  7. geewah
    Oct 24, 2022
    9
    One of 2020's best shows.
    Ethan Hawke is brilliant as the crazy, yet dedicated John Brown in the unique telling of a brutal period of American history.
    While most shows about slavery are told in an unsparing manner, this shows manages to do so with some levity and refrains from painting Brown as some perfect white saviour.

Awards & Rankings

19
#19 Best TV Season of 2020
70
#70 Most Discussed TV Season of 2020
9
#9 Most Shared TV Season of 2020

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84

Universal acclaim - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
  1. The Independent
    Reviewed by: Ed Cumming
    Nov 19, 2020
    100
    The Good Lord Bird is an unusual thing: a smart, starry treatment of serious historical events that manages to retain a sense of humour without losing heart or gravitas.
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  2. The Guardian
    Reviewed by: Rebecca Nicholson
    Nov 18, 2020
    80
    The Good Lord Bird feels like complicated, adult television that assumes its audience will view it with intelligence. It asks questions that it doesn’t always wish to answer, and it has a surprising amount of fun doing so.
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  3. The New Yorker
    Reviewed by: Doreen St. Félix
    Oct 26, 2020
    80
    Certain skitlike scenes are thrillingly reminiscent of Monty Python; the series is like a cross between “Masterpiece Theatre” and a particularly elaborate episode of “Drunk History.” Hawke alternately stars and recedes into the background, as “The Good Lord Bird” swings nimbly from pulpy proto-Western to surreal, somewhat anachronistic social satire. ... The comedy of “The Good Lord Bird” is bawdy and dry, but the show is bighearted.
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