Lawmen: Bass Reeves

I've only watch the first episode, and I'll come back and adjust my review after I finish the series, but I can tell already I'm going to like it. I do like it.

First of all, the writing in this is outstanding. Most productions would make everything black-and-white, good and evil, without any intrigue whatsoever. Bass himself is not perfect, in fact he fights for the confederacy willingly. Even as a slave, he has a sense of honor, of right and wrong, but he serves his master until his master no longer deserves his allegiance.

I know quite a bit of the history of this character, and so far they've been faithful to trying to replicate the authenticity of Bass Reeves.

As sets, locations, costumes, and related are outstanding. The casting is outstanding. No caricatures, and everyone plays the role right on the money neither under nor over playing it. This is smart writing that doesn't insult the intelligence of the viewer.

If the first episode is any litmus test, this is one of the smarter shows on television right now. I've been a critic of Taylor Sheridan lately because I want him to FINALLY finish Yellowstone, but if this is what he's been working on instead, I'm gonna give him a bit of a pass because the show really is outstanding.

Lawmen: Bass Reeves is another in a long line of hits for Taylor Sheridan. Anything this guy touches is pure gold. Obviously, this series is about the life of Bass Reeves, one of the legends of the West and one of the first U. S. Deputy Marshall's who was black. David Oyelowo does a terrific job playing the title character, he was just nominated for an Emmy for his job in this. This series also has a bunch of supporting characters played by great actors like Dennis Quaid, Barry Pepper, Shea Whigham, Donald Sutherland, Lauren E Banks, Garrett Hedlund, Forrest Goodluck, etc. If you're a fan of this genre or Taylor Sheridan then this is a must watch.

I enjoyed the first 5 or 6 episodes, but the last ones were a little out there and short. The last episode left me with questions unanswered, perhaps that was the intent. Over all a 7 at best. I enjoy most of Taylor Sheridan's stories/shows/endeavors, but I am glad this one is not setup for another season - or don't think it is. The shows with multiple seasons take far too long between them - so much so that I loose interest and let alone remember what was in the prior season. I truly believe it would be better to conclude some of his other shows like Yellowstone (if it is ending); or 1923 before coming out with more new ones.

The show is beautifully shot, well directed and with some fantastic performances. Unfortunately, as the series progressed, the stories drifted farther into pure HBO level cartoonish fiction.

Bass Reeves was a great and legendary lawman, and it is sad that his story couldnt be told simply and truthfully. I guess his 14 kills in 32 years of being a lawman werent considered dramatic enough for us 2020's folks who need explosions and green screens. It detracts from the man's greatness when his long service to law enforcement is reduced to some magic-tinged fight between good and evil, mysticism and wild conjecture. By the time I reached episode VIII I grew disappointed that the heroics I saw in the early episodes--which I had thought must be accurate--were most likely complete fiction.

This show was perhaps the biggest chunk of all my reasons to sign up for Paramount + and I will not watch any of the upcoming Lawmen seasons supposedly portraying famous lawmen. It's a shame.

This is worth the watch, at only 8 episodes, and as I said it is very well done.

If you liked 'The Good Lord Bird' this is very similar. Well filmed, good acting. Seems higher budget than you might expect. I'm only a few episodes in, but enjoying it. You can always tell when a tv series is based on a book because the storytelling tends to be better as does the character development.

If you're into Westerns, civil war style stories and the challenges of the mid 1800's, you'll no doubt like this. Also great to see Barry Pepper and Shea Whitman in the cast. David Oyelowo is a great leading man and brings so much to this series. Looking forward to finishing it and hopefully more series to follow.