Season one of HBO’s Lovecraft Country ended this past Sunday and it has everyone talking about story line implications and what they think season two will be like. There were several major character deaths however to avoid spoilers I won’t discuss them here. There are some minor spoilers below in the conclusion.
Deadline speaks with showrunner Misha Green about the season finale and the show overall. They discuss what Misha hoped to accomplish in season one, the character arcs and any missed opportunities she had in developing certain characters. Below are a few quotes from the story:
How do you envision a season 2?
Nothing is official yet, but I envision a second season that carries on the spirit of Matt Ruff’s novel by continuing to reclaim the genre storytelling space that people of color have typically been left out of.Was this the way you wanted the first season to end when you started?
Yes, this is the ending I knew we would be working towards from the beginning.Lovecraft Country has become a touchstone in the cultural discourse. What was that like?
As an artist, I make art to start conversations, and one always hopes their art is a reflection of the times. I’ve been excited to see all the discourse around Lovecraft Country, and I hope it continues long after the finale.What did you want to do with the finale? Did you feel you succeed?
With the finale I wanted to bring the arc of the first season to a close, while opening a door to the next. In the writer’s room we talked a lot about what “full circle” looks like for each character, and then set out to do that in a surprising, yet satisfying way. I think it’s up to the audience to decide if we succeed, and hopefully they will.You engaged directly with your audience over criticism, most recently over your admittance on Twitter that you feel you “failed” in the telling of Yahima’s tale in attempting to “show the uncomfortable truth that oppressed folks can also be oppressors.” Why did you go that way?
As a person and a storyteller, I’m interested in growing, and part of that journey is accountability. Acknowledging my failure in the handling of Yahima’s storyline is the first step in holding myself accountable.Lovecraft Country has woven in real historical events such as the brutal murder of Emmett Till and the 1921 Greenwood massacre. Why did you take that approach?
Historical references were baked into Matt Ruff’s novel – sundown towns, the Tulsa Massacre, the Green Book — which is one of the reasons I was initially drawn to it. I wanted to expand on those touchstones for the series, and keep us grounded in reality and issues that are a part of this country’s history even with all the fantastical elements.
[From Deadline, edited for brevity]
I have been absolutely glued to my laptop screen watching this series. It was so well executed from the characters to the sci-fi infusion into each episode. I also loved how Misha Green weaved in historical events and connected them to the characters. Emmett Till was a friend of Diana’s, Hippolyta’s daughter. Montrose was caught up in the Greenwood massacres (Black Wall Street) as a child in Oklahoma. The show is a study in true story telling from beginning to end.
Michael K. Williams’s performance was exceptional and I loved seeing Courtney B. Vance in the first few episodes. I will admit I did not like Tic’s character throughout but understood his purpose and Jonathan Majors fulfilled it. I wish we would have gotten more of Yahima and I believe Misha Green is correct in stating she missed an opportunity to flesh out that character. However, I think she was limited in that regard because the season only allowed ten episodes.
Minor spoilers follow
The season finale was bittersweet and there were a few things that happened that have me wondering what they mean and how they will be fleshed out in season two. I’d like to know where Diana got her robotic arm. Did she travel to the future with her mom before the end scene or Hippolyta create it for her? The scene of Ruby, Tic, Diana, Hippolyta, Montrose and Leti riding in the car and singing so joyously was heartwarming yet created a lot of unease. It would seem anytime I see a movie or scene in a movie that shows such unadulterated Black joy, it is almost a foreshadowing of tragedy. Black people generally are suspicious of joy. My absolute favorite scene is when the women ancestor’s of Tic came to assist him and Leti in a binding spell. It was epic and what I see when I think of my ancestors supporting me on the other side.
I will say that I am slightly irritated that I have to wait another year for season two. Perhaps I will just get the book and read it from cover to cover to prepare as well as fill in the gaps. I really enjoyed the historical meets sci-fi/futuristic concept of the book mixed with the mystical. I appreciate how Lovecraft illustrated that the true monsters are human beings and not JUST mythical creatures. It was indeed entertaining and gut wrenching at times. All I can say is, if you haven’t watched Lovecraft Country, definitely give it a go.
*whispers* Thank you all for going on this little road trip with us every week.🥰💃🏾✊🏾 #LovecraftCountry #Lovecraftfinale pic.twitter.com/dEDCCfaqr9
— Misha Green (@MishaGreen) October 19, 2020
The book is almost completely different from the show. I hated what the show did to Letitia & Ruby’s characters (but it is HBO so we gotta have all the sex, including anal rape with a shoe), and I quit watching after the fox lady with the tentacles coming out of every hole. I enjoy sci-fi but that was laughably ridiculous to me and had no relation to the rest of the story. It felt like the show used sci-fi as an excuse for a bunch of look-how-shocking-we-can-be moments.
SPOILERS!
I loved the show overall, especially the demonstration of monsters being less scary than racism; the tales from actual history (like Tulsa, which is not very well known worldwide, but it should be); and the acting was superb (awards for Majors this season, please!). Oh, and I loved the clicks in the language of Adam when Letitia was speaking it in the last episode, I think it makes complete sense!
That being said, I though the writing (not the story itself as a whole, I mean the dialogues or pacing) and the editing (direction?) were really subpar, and it frustrated me to no end. Forgetting (or ignoring) the established lore and rules; using magic at one point but forgetting they could at another; heartfelt conversation at the time when they’re in the most hurry; what was the point of taking Dee with them on their last, extremely dangerous, journey etc. It was frustrating me throughout, because this could have been so much more awesome.
Still hyped for possible season 2. Although dunno how that would work without Atticus? Because if they resurrect him, that opens a whole new can of worms that sci-fi genre always has a problem with: If you fixed this, why can’t you fix everything else?
I have the same feelings about that show as you do (and also curious to see what a second season will bring)
@Oya I was a bit confused where the robotic arm came in as well. I re-watched part of it last night because the tv was set to HBO when I turned it on – interestingly, it was right at the the discussion between Dee & Hippolyta about Dee’s arm so paid close attention and noticed the buzzing & whirring electronic sounds in the room Hippolyta leads Dee into that I missed Sunday night & look of wonder on Dee’s face. The next scene with them setting up the storefront, I noticed Dee’s arm was no longer in a sling – it was down and she seemed to be using it but they are careful not to show it. It’s like they were leaving subtle clues before the big reveal at the end
Yes, Pottymouth. That was my take too. When her robotic arm was revealed, my husbands was like “where did THAT come from?” and I remembered the scene with the whirring/mechanical sounds.
I was a little underwhelmed by the finale (not even sure why; I guess it just felt rushed), but still enjoyed the show. Has anyone read the book? If so, what’s it like? Is is worth adding to my monster TBR pile?
I liked the book. I even felt like it was too short, like there were a lot of parts of the story that could have been fleshed out a little more.
This series, wheeew. I don’t dare to watch it at night😂🤣😅
I loved, LOVED this show. And I wish more people were talking about it and watching it.
Don’t get me wrong, I do know it was imperfect and I had to step away a bit after Ji-Ah’s standalone episode. She was a wasted storyline, which was an absolute shame. I was expecting her storyline to go a different path and mean more. I felt that was a wasted buildup.
The night of the season finale, I binged everything after the Ji-Ah episode until the end and am glad I did. I’m still in my feelings about it. So overall emotionally, they’re hitting something out of the park. But there is so much that I think got left on the cutting room floor and the overall story may have been better served with a few more episodes or better editing. I don’t know which. Maybe both.
I do think they could go into an anthology like series like AHS or they’re going to at least have to skip forward in time a bit. I think Dee was the worst served of all of the characters by this last episode, but I’m also most interested to see what happens to her next. Her innocence is gone since she’s lost so much and she’s been introduced to this shadow world at such a young age. What will that do to her?
Also there is precedent to bring back the dead here. Through ghosts and also magical healing. That which is dead, does not stay dead in this universe. So we may see some of these characters again. I could see this driving some character motivations as well.
So yeah I’m definitely interested in a Season 2. And I’m hoping this cast gets all of the recognition.
I loved the show, even it is hard to explain to others.
Loved the Black Wall Street, the Green Book identifying sun down towns. HBO is knocking it out of the park with black story telling.
My daughter is getting ready to bing watch and not a SyFy fan at all. With that being said if she likes it that’s telling for me.
I’m glad for this series ad that it’s done well because, hopefully, that means there will be more SciFi featuring POC and written by POC. I was excited to read that Ava DuVernay optioned Octavia E Butler’s Xenogenesis trilogy to create a series for Netflix and am even hoping out that she fleshes it out with more storylines that occur between books. I’m just finishing NK Jemisin’s Broken Earth trilogy which is amazing and would be great source material for a series by someone given the latitude & budget HBO gave Benioff & Weiss for GOT (but, obviously, better show runners & writers).
I really don’t understand why Hollywood just keeps re-hashing the same shows/movies with reboots. There is a lot of great fiction out there that can be tapped, and an amazing amount of content written by POC that can be mined to provide shows that can increase representation on screen & behind the scenes.
I’m pretty sure Broken Earth is in some sort of development, or at least the rights were already purchased. This is what I find online:
“The Fifth Season was optioned by TNT in August of 2017 with Sleepy Hollow’s Leigh Dana Jackson set to write the pilot. Heroes’ Tim Kring was also set to serve as an executive producer. There has been no news since, but development on even a simple (from a design perspective) high-school drama can take forever.”
This is from 2019, lets just hope these projects survive 2020.
thanks Nanny, keeping my fingers crossed for this
I absolutely loved this show. I really wish there were more episodes in the season. Fingers crossed that there will be a 2nd season. Loved all the historical references and was delighted to see it all from the point of view of a POC. We, as humans, can really be monsters…
The Black women and their storylines in this show, especially Hippolyta, have truly healed me on levels I didn’t even know tv could do. I’ve never felt so affirmed by a show, cheering their journeys and also the places the Black femme characters are able to go in terms of fantasy-reality. It’s been incredible to watch, especially during these times when it feels like more than ever the hate for Black women is on display in this country (USA). I feel really satisfied with the finale and could be happy with this season as the only one. I look forward to seeing what season two brings.
Also @Oya just a gentle note that his name is spelled Emmett Till with two “e”s .
I loved this show SO MUCH. Week after week, I was just about giddy with how great it was.
They took solid source material and improved it immeasurably. For example, the Christina character doesn’t exist in the book; she’s a gender-swapped Braithwaite son. That allowed the show to explore intersectionality and the ugly limits of white feminism. Atticus’ father wasn’t gay in the book. That let the show explore the harms caused by other forms of bigotry. The Korea storyline doesn’t happen in the book; that let them talk about the alienation bi-cultural kids can suffer when no one accepts them.
I could go on and on. It was just a really well-made, smart show with all these INCREDIBLE performances in a juicy genre story. I loooooved it.
Also, just as a warning: Because the show changed so much, the book might be a let-down. It’s very good, but the show broadened the story. (I actually liked Hippolyta’s adventure in the book better, and Leti’s way of dealing with the ghost in her house was fun, although I preferred the show’s empowering way of sorting that out.)
This show gave me life and took me to church every week. Viewed as an anthology, brilliant; viewed on the spiritual levels, astonishing; viewed through the lens of Black American experience; haunting and breathtaking; viewed as regular sci fi lacking. I’m ok with that.