The Liberator is a character-driven action miniseries based on the true story of World War II infantry commander Felix "Shotgun" Sparks, who led the members of the 157th Infantry Regiment of the 45th Infantry Division, an integrated group of white cowboys, Mexican Americans and Native soldiers drawn from across the west. Sparks and his battalion of "Thunderbirds" were classic citizen soldiers, and for over 500 days they led a special group of American soldiers from Italy to France to the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp, through some of the most grueling battles of the war, becoming one of the most decorated American combat units of World War II.[citation needed] The unit received eight combat awards for service in Italy, France, Germany and Central Europe [6]
The Thunderbirds' time in Salerno hits some very big bumps, particularly for Capt. Sparks, whose early days as the unit's commander are also explored.
2
"One Word: Anzio"
Greg Jonkajtys
Jeb Stuart
November 11, 2020 (2020-11-11)
With their flank exposed, the Thunderbirds face a brutal standoff with the Germans while defending Anzio. Sparks faces discipline for his actions.
3
"The Enemy"
Greg Jonkajtys
Jeb Stuart
November 11, 2020 (2020-11-11)
A rebuilt E Company, with now-Major Sparks, ships off to France. Initially it's a welcome break, but it soon brings another impossible mission. Sparks receives high honors.
4
"Home"
Greg Jonkajtys
Jeb Stuart
November 11, 2020 (2020-11-11)
As the Allies close in on increasingly desperate German forces, now-Lieutenant Colonel Sparks and the Thunderbirds bear witness to the atrocities of their enemy, and their fellow troops.
Production
Announced in November 2018, the miniseries's production was handled by A&E Studios and Unique Features with animation services by Atlanta-based studio School of Humans.[1] In January 2019, Bradley James was cast in the leading role of Felix Sparks and Martin Sensmeier was cast as Samuel Coldfoot.[7][8]
Filmed primarily in Poland, some additional scenes were filmed in Atlanta.[9]
The animation team behind the series launched Trioscope Studios, with the show as its first series in production.[10] The miniseries was the first to use Trioscope Enhanced Hybrid Animation, a technique that blends live-action actors with CGI. In a November 2020 interview, Trioscope chief content officer Brandon Barr stated that the project had been "particularly challenging", while arguing that anime opened the door for other visual techniques and styles.[11]
Release
The limited series was released on Veterans Day, November 11, 2020.[2]
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 69% of 13 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "The Liberator's eccentric animation gives it some creative gloss, but clichéd storytelling and stock characters keep this World War II tale from being wholly salute-worthy."[12]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the miniseries a score of 59 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[13]
Reviewing the miniseries for Rolling Stone, Alan Sepinwall gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars and said, "The Liberator more often than not is an effective reminder about why pop culture keeps revisiting World War II material again and again."[14] On contrast, Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter called the show a series which is "very watchable" but is infuriating due to its "inconsistent focus and narrative choices" even though his interest never wavered due to the interesting and "eye-popping" animation. Fienberg concluded that people should check out the show for the animation, for a commemoration of Veterans Days but to be prepared for frustration over "how much more complicated, and how much richer" the actual history is and how the show could have been better.[15]
