Black Jesus is an American live-action sitcom created by Aaron McGruder (creator of The Boondocks) and Mike Clattenburg (creator of Trailer Park Boys) that aired on Adult Swim. The series stars Gerald "Slink" Johnson, Charlie Murphy, Corey Holcomb, Kali Hawk, King Bach, Andra Fuller, and John Witherspoon. The series premiered on August 7, 2014. On December 10, 2014, the series was renewed for a second season,[2] which premiered on September 18, 2015.[3] Its third and final season premiered on September 21, 2019.[4]
| Black Jesus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Aaron McGruder Mike Clattenburg |
| Starring |
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| Composer | Jonathan "Jon" Jackson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 31 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers | |
| Editor | Jean Crupper (season 3) |
| Running time | 20 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Adult Swim |
| Release | August 7, 2014 – November 30, 2019[1] |
Premise
editThe scripted live-action comedy features Jesus Christ living in modern-day Compton, California, on a mission to spread love and kindness throughout the neighborhood with his small group of followers.[5]
Series overview
editCast
edit- Gerald "Slink" Johnson as Jesus Christ
- Charlie Murphy as Victor "Vic" Hargrove (seasons 1–2)
- John Witherspoon as Lloyd Hamilton
- Kali Hawk as Maggie (seasons 1–2)
- Corey Holcomb as Boonie
- Andra Fuller as Fish (seasons 1–2)
- Andrew Bachelor as Trayvon (seasons 1–2)
- Angela E. Gibbs as Ms. Tudi
- Antwon Tanner as Jason (main seasons 1–2; recurring season 3)
- Valenzia Algarin as Dianne (main seasons 1–2; recurring season 3)
- Dominique as Shalinka (recurring seasons 1–2; regular season 3)
- Jamar Malachi Neighbors as Ambro
International broadcast
editThe series premiered in Australia on June 8, 2015, on The Comedy Channel,[6] and in Canada on April 1, 2019, on Adult Swim.[7]
Reception
editAt Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the first season received an average score of 73, which indicates "generally positive reviews", based on five reviews.[8] Brian Lowry of Variety gave the series a positive review, saying: "Black Jesus is funny in part because it ventures so eagerly into areas most producers and networks, worn down by years of calls for sponsor boycotts and bad publicity, have simply decided it’s easier to avoid."[9] Robert Lloyd of the Los Angeles Times gave the series a positive review, saying: "I'm not saying it's particularly deep, and it is filled with language that cannot be reproduced in this newspaper, but it's good-natured and, compared with a lot of what's on television, the comedy is gentle and hopeful."[10] Soraya Nadia McDonald of The Washington Post said: "Like his earthly counterparts, Black Jesus doesn’t have a perfect track record, but he gets the big concepts and leads by example. If anything, it seems McGruder is trying to tell his audience that if Jesus is just like us, maybe it’s not so much of a stretch for us to be just like him."[11] James Poniewozik of Time stated: "You might expect McGruder, given his Boondocks history, to be out for pointed religious satire, but Black Jesus is really more of a stoner hangout comedy with a heart."[12]
As the series shows Jesus using several curse words, smoking marijuana, and drinking alcoholic beverages, several pastors called for its removal from broadcasting.[13]
References
edit- ^ "Shows A-Z - black jesus on adult swim". The Futon Critic. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
- ^ O'Connell, Michael (December 10, 2014). "Adult Swim Renews 'Black Jesus,' 'Mike Tyson' and 'Mr. Pickles'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
- ^ Henne, B. G. (September 9, 2015). "And on the third day, Black Jesus arose with its season two trailer". avclub.com. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
- ^ Steinberg, Brian (May 12, 2016). "Adult Swim Revives Samurai Jack As Network Courts Linear, Online Viewers". Retrieved March 23, 2018.
- ^ Goldberg, Lesley (March 10, 2014). "'Boondocks' Creator Brings 'Black Jesus' to Adult Swim (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Lynne Segall. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
- ^ "Foxtel in June: 200+ new shows including Orange Is The New Black, True Detective, Suits, PLL, Wimbledon and more". The Green Room. Foxtel. June 1, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "Canadian Adult Swim Channel launch lineup revealed, app gets discontinued". March 22, 2019.
- ^ "Black Jesus – Season 1 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
- ^ Lowry, Brian (August 6, 2014). ""Black Jesus" TV Review on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim". Variety. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
- ^ Lloyd, Robert (August 7, 2014). "Review: 'Black Jesus' on Adult Swim has good-natured stoner humor". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
- ^ Nadia, Soraya (August 8, 2014). "'Black Jesus' may drink, smoke, and curse, but he's still Messiah-ish". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
- ^ Poniewozik, James (August 7, 2014). "Review of Black Jesus on Adult Swim". Time. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
- ^ Gallop, J. D. (August 6, 2014). "'Black Jesus' stirs controversy among pastors, youth". Florida Today. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
Notes
editExternal links
edit- Black Jesus at IMDb