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Summary:
In the 1960s, crime boss Bumpy Johnson (Forest Whitaker) returns to Harlem after a decade in prison to find it under the control of the Italian mob and becomes friends with Malcolm X (Nigél Thatch) this drama from Chris Brancato and Paul Eckstein.
Genre(s):
Drama
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Season 1 Episodes
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S1:E10. Chickens Come Home to Roost
Air Date: December 1, 2019
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S1:E9. Rent Strike Blues
Air Date: November 24, 2019
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S1:E8. How I Got Over
Air Date: November 17, 2019
Oct 10, 2019
RogerEbert.com
Sep 27, 2019
It is an ambitious, layered period piece about Harlem in the mid-‘60s that seeks to dramatize the often intersecting movements of the mafia and the battle for civil rights. The Oscar-winning star of “The Last King of Scotland” holds it all together, but this is definitely an ensemble piece, and it’s smart, engaging television that only occasionally falters under the weight of its ambition to tell a few too many stories at once.
Read full review
Sep 30, 2019
Sep 9, 2019
Through his recessive and quiet charisma, [Forest Whitaker] provides the strongest case for the series. The show’s depiction of the Italian mobsters as raffish louts lacks any imagination or real take on the material. (Give them credit, at least, for going with the best: The casting of the likes of Vincent D’Onofrio, Paul Sorvino, and Chazz Palminteri gives scenes that otherwise feel tired a nice patina of quality.)
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Sep 30, 2019
Whitaker is excellent, D'Onofrio's wilder side meshes with Sorvino's quiet one, and Thatch, who has already played Malcolm X before in Selma, is excellent playing off both Whitaker and Esposito. ... By the end of the third episode, the series has leaned in hard to more soap-box and/or convenient moments to tie these massive storylines into something cohesive, but it's too rushed and manipulative, with the episode's ending looking like a music video.
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Sep 30, 2019
It’s a promising setup, but the show doesn’t build on it after the opening episode. The story starts to veer off into tangents that are melodramatic (a fairly insipid Romeo and Juliet subplot involving Gigante’s daughter), distractingly implausible (an episode built around attempts to fix a Cassius Clay fight) or both (a family member of Johnson’s caught up in drugs and prostitution).
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Oct 1, 2019
Dope soundtrack, great casting and good script thus far. Loved the pilot, hopefully it stays that way.
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Seasons & Episodes
- Series Overview
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Season 3
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Season 3 Overview
Air Date: January 15, 2023
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Season 3 Overview
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Season 2
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Season 2 Overview
Air Date: April 18, 2021
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Season 2 Overview
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Season 1
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Season 1 Overview
Air Date: September 29, 2019
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S1:E10. Chickens Come Home to Roost
Air Date: December 1, 2019
-
S1:E9. Rent Strike Blues
Air Date: November 24, 2019
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S1:E8. How I Got Over
Air Date: November 17, 2019
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S1:E7. Masters of War
Air Date: November 10, 2019
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S1:E6. Il Canto de Malavita
Air Date: November 3, 2019
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S1:E5. It's All In The Game
Air Date: October 27, 2019
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S1:E4. I Am The Greatest
Air Date: October 20, 2019
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S1:E3. Our Day Will Come
Air Date: October 13, 2019
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S1:E2. The Nitty Gritty
Air Date: October 6, 2019
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S1:E1. By Whatever Means Necessary
Air Date: September 29, 2019
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Season 1 Overview