Good Lord Bird

History brought riotously to life

Based on the James McBride novel of the same name, Good Lord Bird is a seven-episode miniseries based on the life of abolitionist John Brown. Ethan Hawke plays Brown as a fire-breathing evangelist for human rights, his eyes alight with passion and fury. By his side is "Onion," a former slave who views Brown with equal amounts of affection and bemusement. Each episode is propulsive, witty, brilliantly chaotic, movingly scored and almost shockingly watchable.