The Boondocks
Series, 2005, The mid-2000s, Set in Woodcrest
The Boondocks is #12 of 16 in release order and #12 of 16 in chronological order in the Adult Swim Classics.
The story
When Robert “Granddad” Freeman becomes legal guardian to his two grandsons, he moves from the tough south side of Chicago to the upscale neighborhood of Woodcrest (a.k.a. "The Boondocks") so he can enjoy his golden years in safety and comfort. But with Huey, a 10-year-old leftist revolutionary, and his eight-year-old misfit brother, Riley, suburbia is about to be shaken up.
The Boondocks recap
Ten-year-old Huey Freeman, a serious, radical thinker, and his eight-year-old brother Riley, who idolises gangster rap, move from Chicago's South Side with their grandfather Robert to the quiet, mostly white suburb of Woodcrest. The show is based on Aaron McGruder's comic strip and uses the culture clash for satire about race, politics, the media and Black American culture. Neighbours include Tom DuBois, a Black lawyer married to a white woman, Sarah, and their daughter Jazmine, who idolises Huey; Uncle Ruckus, a Black man who hates Black people; and Ed Wuncler III, a rich, violent grandson of the town's developer, with his partner Gin Rummy. Notable episodes imagine Martin Luther King Jr. waking from a coma in 2000 and send up R. Kelly and Tyler Perry. The show runs four seasons, from 2005 to 2014. McGruder is not involved in the fourth season, which is made without him.
The Boondocks ending explained
The final episode is "The New Black" (2014), in which Riley gets in trouble at school for using slurs and the Freemans team up with Reverend Rollo Goodlove. It is an ordinary episode, not a planned finale. A reboot was ordered by HBO Max in 2019, but after John Witherspoon, the voice of Granddad, died that year, it was reported cancelled in 2022 and has not been made.
Where to watch The Boondocks
The Boondocks is streaming on HBO Max in the US. You can rent or buy it on Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 8.5/10
Where it fits
- Release order: after Robot Chicken, before Moral Orel.
- Chronological order: after Robot Chicken, before Moral Orel.
Cast
- Regina King as Huey Freeman / Riley Freeman (voice)
- John Witherspoon as Robert Freeman (voice)
- Cedric Yarbrough as Tom Dubois (voice)
- Jill Talley as Sarah Dubois (voice)
- Gary Anthony Williams as Uncle Ruckus (voice)
- Gabby Soleil as Jazmine Dubois (voice)
- Jim Meskimen as White House Press Secretary/Detective (voice)
- Carl Jones as Civil Rights Protester (voice)
- Kevin Michael Richardson as Rev. Gibmo Dinero/Comedian (voice)
- Corey Burton as Eli Gorbinsky/Armstrong Elder (voice)
- Charlie Murphy as Ed Wuncler III (voice)
- DeRay Davis as V.J. (voice)
Created by Aaron McGruder.