My first viewing of Boondocks, so many years ago, left me wonderfully uncomfortable. It was dark humor; I accept that it's a double entendre. Who was I to root for? Who was the protagonist? By the end of Season One: Episode One of most episodic television shows we would discover who we were to consider the protagonist, be they the hero, or anti-hero. I thought it was Huey Freeman. I was wrong. But why?
As the show progressed,, I soon understood that Huey had no character arc. He was, and remained, the voice of reason and conscience in a reality in which both attributes allowed him to say, "See, I told you!" Huey was the hook and the heart that drew people in. He was the constant. So, who was the protagonist? Easy. Robert "Granddad" Freeman.
Robert believed he stood beside the progressive progenitors of social change that were embodied in his character. He believed that he survived to represent what which Rosa Parks and Martin Lither King, Jr., hoped to achieve. Still yet, he was anchored in a past that led him to "whoop" his kids as, sadly, that was considered a sure fire method of imposing one's will on another. Had he been the father he imagined he was, be wouldn't have had to assume the responsibility for children to that his own flesh and blood could not. This strength v. Subservience is reflected in his wards, Huey, the strong and righteous side, and Riley, the rebellious and pragmatic gangsta'.
We watched as Granddad made choices with the best of intentions that ultimately put him in difficult circumstances. I knew this character, just as most, who are honest with themselves, know this character. My grandfather, an incredible human being, would frequent remind us, "Your background always catches up to you." I truly believed I understood as much, recognizing that my grandparents and my parents were "good people." They were.
That good people can be mistreated and screwed over? That took time to understand. Without going down the intellectual rabbit hole, I learned to comprehend that Granddad's character was well represented by the extremes that separated Huey from Riley.
Then the series throws as two slippery curveballs. Uncle Ruckus, the hard working black man working menial jobs based on his race and disabilities, imagines himself a white man and sees the world from an oddly self-destructive point of view. Next we have Tom, the well paid DA, who might be construed by some, to be an "Uncle Ruckus" with an education and dignity. I considered Uncle Ruckus and Tom the Attorney to be two distinct sides of the same coin. Ruckus was aggressive in his denial, every bit as much as Tom was in denial.
I dare not try to condense all of these complex characters in a few paragraphs. Even the show's title, "The Boondocks," seems antithetical. What became four seasons in syndication, did incredibly well in portraying characters as real human beings, albeit in situations which were created to demonstrate character extremes. It wasn't always an easy watch, but what would become the first three seasons proved to be equally as complicated as are most societal interpersonal and cultural relationships.
That all good things come to an end was demonstrated in the lackluster fourth season. Everything that this incredible show brought to the table was discarded. Why? I suppose the powers that be no longer chose to provoke thought. It was as if the underlying messages of South Park suddenly were discarded in favor of the slapstick vaudevillian simple comedy of, "Family Guy."
Damned Shame: i would rate the bulk of the first three seasons a well-earned nine stars, a remarkably rare rating given my peculiar standards. Season 4 dropped my interest and care to such a degree, that I feel I am being generous in giving the entirety of all seasons seven stars.
The leaders in the movement, whom he believed he assisted in setting the stage for a better future.
As the show progressed,, I soon understood that Huey had no character arc. He was, and remained, the voice of reason and conscience in a reality in which both attributes allowed him to say, "See, I told you!" Huey was the hook and the heart that drew people in. He was the constant. So, who was the protagonist? Easy. Robert "Granddad" Freeman.
Robert believed he stood beside the progressive progenitors of social change that were embodied in his character. He believed that he survived to represent what which Rosa Parks and Martin Lither King, Jr., hoped to achieve. Still yet, he was anchored in a past that led him to "whoop" his kids as, sadly, that was considered a sure fire method of imposing one's will on another. Had he been the father he imagined he was, be wouldn't have had to assume the responsibility for children to that his own flesh and blood could not. This strength v. Subservience is reflected in his wards, Huey, the strong and righteous side, and Riley, the rebellious and pragmatic gangsta'.
We watched as Granddad made choices with the best of intentions that ultimately put him in difficult circumstances. I knew this character, just as most, who are honest with themselves, know this character. My grandfather, an incredible human being, would frequent remind us, "Your background always catches up to you." I truly believed I understood as much, recognizing that my grandparents and my parents were "good people." They were.
That good people can be mistreated and screwed over? That took time to understand. Without going down the intellectual rabbit hole, I learned to comprehend that Granddad's character was well represented by the extremes that separated Huey from Riley.
Then the series throws as two slippery curveballs. Uncle Ruckus, the hard working black man working menial jobs based on his race and disabilities, imagines himself a white man and sees the world from an oddly self-destructive point of view. Next we have Tom, the well paid DA, who might be construed by some, to be an "Uncle Ruckus" with an education and dignity. I considered Uncle Ruckus and Tom the Attorney to be two distinct sides of the same coin. Ruckus was aggressive in his denial, every bit as much as Tom was in denial.
I dare not try to condense all of these complex characters in a few paragraphs. Even the show's title, "The Boondocks," seems antithetical. What became four seasons in syndication, did incredibly well in portraying characters as real human beings, albeit in situations which were created to demonstrate character extremes. It wasn't always an easy watch, but what would become the first three seasons proved to be equally as complicated as are most societal interpersonal and cultural relationships.
That all good things come to an end was demonstrated in the lackluster fourth season. Everything that this incredible show brought to the table was discarded. Why? I suppose the powers that be no longer chose to provoke thought. It was as if the underlying messages of South Park suddenly were discarded in favor of the slapstick vaudevillian simple comedy of, "Family Guy."
Damned Shame: i would rate the bulk of the first three seasons a well-earned nine stars, a remarkably rare rating given my peculiar standards. Season 4 dropped my interest and care to such a degree, that I feel I am being generous in giving the entirety of all seasons seven stars.
The leaders in the movement, whom he believed he assisted in setting the stage for a better future.