The 10-part series is seen as the perfect thing to fill the sports-less void during the pandemicNBAE/GETTY IMAGES
ESPN on Sunday will debut its highly anticipated 10-part series "The Last Dance" that chronicles Michael Jordan's last NBA title run with the '97-98 Bulls, and for basketball fans "thirsty for intrigue amid the shutdown of all sports, the documentary certainly delivers on the hype," according to Rohan Nadkarni of SI.com. The series, directed by Jason Hehir, is "incredibly compelling" (SI.com, 4/16). In Chicago, Richard Roeper gave the series 3 ½ stars (out of 4) and wrote some "might question whether even one of the great team sports dynasties of all time merits such a lengthy treatment," but "each episode left me wanting more." Hehir “wisely eschews voice-over narration in favor of straightforward graphics and animated timelines framing each episode and putting events in perspective” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/15). Also in Chicago, Phil Rosenthal wrote at a time when ESPN is “struggling to fill the sports-less void” caused by the coronavirus pandemic, “The Last Dance” is “exactly what fans need.” It is “both a perfect diversion and a tribute to shared sacrifice.” For viewers “too young or who somehow failed to pay attention at the time, it’s a terrific primer on just how special those Bulls teams and the rivals that tried to stop them were.” The “much-ballyhooed, previously unseen trove of behind-the-scenes material captured by an NBA Entertainment crew embedded with Jordan and the team all season is not as integral as expected.” Instead, it is the “interviews, both Hehir's and archival ones, that hold this thing together” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/16). Also, ESPN has compiled content from the series and other Jordan-related clips in a YouTube playlist.
DIRECTOR DRAWS KUDOS: In Chicago, Jim O'Donnell wrote if the “initial eight episodes that ESPN made available to reviewers this week are an accurate gauge, Hehir succeeds far more than he air balls.” Hehir “elects to template each episode as a month of that campaign … followed by a flashback and then a concluding step forward.” Hehir has indicated that he “had close to 10,000 hours of video to shape into slightly more than eight hours of flowing, narrative programming.” O'Donnell wrote the “editing is confident and almost always crisp” (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 4/15). In Phoenix, Bill Goodykoontz writes Hehir "keeps the pace brisk, even as he bounces back and forth between that fateful season and earlier seasons" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 4/17). VANITY FAIR's Christopher Rosen wrote sports fans will find the series “especially riveting.” While there is plenty of archival footage shown, it is the “present-day Jordan interviews, conducted by Hehir, which are the main event” (VANITYFAIR.com, 4/16). In Chicago, Rick Telander wrote the series is “something to behold.” The "genius" of it is "Hehir himself and a core group of a dozen helpers at ESPN, all of whom worked like sled dogs to do something monumental” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/14).
THE JORDAN RULES: The SUN-TIMES' Telander wrote while Jordan “did not have editorial control, he became the central character.” There were 106 people “interviewed in the series, but Jordan is the crown jewel” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/14). The SUN-TIMES' Roeper wrote Jordan is “candid to the point of being blunt, self-reflective, quick with a wisecrack, brutally honest when assessing [then-Bulls GM Jerry Krause] and deeply emotional -- at times welling up with tears as he looks back on some painful memories” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/15). SI.com's Nadkarni noted Jordan was “more than just a participant,” as he also “helped oversee the project.” However, Hehir indicated that Jordan "'never once' told him to remove something that could be considered unflattering." Nadkarni wrote the result is the “fullest portrayal of Jordan and the Bulls yet, with input from both friends and foes” (SI.com, 4/16). The DAILY HERALD's O'Donnell wrote it serves as the “most epic video ordering of the life and career of Michael Jordan ever produced” (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 4/15).
WATCH YOUR MOUTH! In Utah, Herb Scribner noted ESPN will air “two separate versions” of the series: one for “mature audiences and one appropriate for families.” The uncensored versions that contain “strong adult language” will air on ESPN, while ESPN2 will air a censored version (DESERET NEWS, 4/16). NBCSPORTS.com's Kurt Helin writes, "Expect a lot of FCC complaints because some people will flip out" (NBCSPORTS.com, 4/17).
WHAT'S NEXT FOR ESPN DOCS? NEW YORK magazine’s Will Leitch wrote “The Last Dance” will be the “biggest documentary event for ESPN since 2016’s Oscar-winning ‘O.J.: Made in America,’” and it will likely “end up being even more massive.” It also is "considered the next step" for the "30 for 30" series, though it is "not part of the series at all." The question is whether “The Last Dance” signals a “change for the ‘30 for 30’ format, or a larger change for ESPN itself.” Leitch: “Is the fact that it’s not under the ‘30 for 30’ banner a shift away from the franchise and more toward deals like the one with Netflix?” (NYMAG.com, 4/14).
