“Them,” set in the 1950s, centers on a black family who moves from their home in North Carolina to an all-white Los Angeles neighborhood during a period known as “The Great Migration.” The family’s new idyllic home soon becomes ground zero for racial prejudice, malevolent otherworldly forces, and other evils that threaten to ravage and destroy them.
Honestly, I didn’t make it through the premiere episode on my first try. I couldn’t finish it. I was left emotional and heartbroken. It took me several days to try again, this time I lasted through the end of the premiere and two more episodes before I folded and gave up again. My heart couldn’t take it. A day or two later, I was determined to see it through. I was left angry and depressed, and I couldn’t get it out of my head.
Billed as a horror series, the show is more about the horrors African Americans have faced than about scares or the supernatural aspects it features. And the horrors of racism are unrelenting in “Them.” It does deliver the horror and evil that humans have done and still do, which is more disturbing than some entity that goes bump in the night.
As for the series’ cast, which includes Deborah Ayorinde, Ashley Thomas, Alison Pill, Shahadi Wright Joseph, Melody Hurd, and Ryan Kwanten, they are phenomenal. Even the child stars nailed it, which is hard for young actors to do. The cast’s standout is actress Deborah Ayorinde, who played the role of the troubled mother, Livia ‘Lucky’ Emory. She did a fantastic job with what had to be a challenging role. The emotions this character has to go through are wild, and somehow, Ayorinde emotes each one with such intensity and perfection. I mean, wow! Someone give this lady an award!
“Them” was created, written, and executive produced by Little Marvin. He nailed it if he aimed to make a lasting impression and create a series that will leave you feeling a gambit of emotions. I think the series will stay with anyone who watches it. Hopefully, it will also make viewers take stock of how they treat others.
“Them” is a hate-fueled series that offers mostly sadness and pain. The point was delivered with all the gentleness of a sledgehammer swung by a strongman. It’s hate and pain piled on top of hate and pain. There’s very little hope given. I will say this: the series couldn’t have had better timing, being released during the George Floyd trial and helping to fuel the anger of the African American community. And they aren’t wrong for being angry and fed up. No one should have to worry about being pulled over and shot by a moronic cop who doesn’t know their gun from a taser, dying in the street with a cop’s knee on their neck, or being tased to death by three cops at the same time when their only crime is asking for a glass of water after walking 20 miles. Yes, people should be angry, and so should you, at the people who still think racism is okay.
Here’s my warning about “Them,” if you are easily triggered, skip it. The series is one of the hardest things I’ve ever watched, not because of gore or scares, but because of the enormity of the suffering of the show’s family and watching and hearing the racism spewed forth. If you watch it and it doesn’t leave you at least a little heartbroken and angry, there’s something seriously wrong with you. Would I still recommend you watch it? Yes, yes, I would. In a time when some feel numb, this series makes you feel something, many things, in fact. It’s so powerful and unsettling.
Season one of “Them” is now streaming on Amazon Prime. The anthology series has already been renewed, and the second season should premiere sometime soon.
