Characters

While watching a series like a ‘Lovecraft Country,’ the characters are sometimes secondary to the created world. Whereas in this series, the characters are defiantly the standout or at least on par with the world worldbuilding.

We start with Atticus Freeman, played by Johnathan Majors. An educated African-American, whose primary goal is to find his father, who has been missing for years. The reason why Atticus Freeman is a compelling character is not just because he is an educated black man in America. He is also character-driven. We see this characteristic when Atticus returns home, where we see how he is loved and respected by his community. Atticus Freeman is goal-oriented, we see this attribute throughout the episode, especially in the scene where he gives Jurnee Smollett character, Letitia guidance, and hope to get a task done.

Now, speaking of Jurnee Smollett’s character, Letitia. In ‘Lovecraft Country,’ Letitia is a multi-talented character from singing, dancing, being a photographer, and a track star. There are multiple reasons why Letitia’s style works on so many levels, but the main reason is because of one pivotal rule: show don’t tell. In her first scene, we see her singing and dancing with her sister, Rubi, played by Wunmi Mosaku. Also, it is shown why Letitia was a track-star in highschool by the end of the episode.

Last but not least, we have Uncle George Freeman, played by Courtney B. Vance. I know one-hundred percent that everyone is going to fall in love with George Freeman. Why? Two significant scenes highlight why you all will fall in love. In one scene, it runs more in a comedic sense where he, Letitia, and Atticus are rushing out a restaurant, and George reaches and steals a handful of candy. The second scene, which was more on the dramatic side, where he and Atticus talk outside while Letitia is arguing with her brother.

Mythology

Having Lovecraft Country be set in the 1950s and focusing on African-Americans is a brilliant idea. Meaning, not only does Atticus, Letitia, and Uncle George have to face racism in America, but not only do they have to face racism. Now, they will have to face dangerous monsters. If this is not a uniquely fun premise to learn about racial violence, I don’t know what is.

We are only in the first episode, and we have already seen a couple of the monsters, and they all look well designed. We got to see Cthulu in the dream war sequence at the beginning of ‘Lovecraft Country.’ We got to see a vampire Esque creature near the end of the episode and let me tell you that the end scene is horrifying.

I have not read the Lovecraft Country novel, so what I’m hoping we will get for the rest of this season is getting introduced to new creatures, not just evil creatures, but good creatures that will help Atticus, Letitia, and George. Also, I can not wait to see more of the character dynamics.

If you are not a fan of horror, this might not be a show for you, but at the same time, ‘Lovecraft Country’ is filled with many genres from mystery, drama, comedy, and Syfy Fantasy.