Grand Army (TV series) explained

Genre:	Teen drama
Creator:	Katie Cappiello
Music:	Morgan Kibby
Country:	United States
Language:	English
Num Seasons:	1
Num Episodes:	9
Producer:	Chris Hatcher
Runtime:	47–72 minutes
Company:	Westward
Network:	Netflix

Grand Army is an American teen drama television series created by Katie Cappiello that premiered on Netflix on October 16, 2020. It is loosely based on Cappiello's . In June 2021, the series was canceled after one season.

Premise

The series follows the lives of Joey Del Marco, Dom Pierre, Sid Pakam, Jayson Jackson, and Leila Kwan Zimmer at Grand Army High School, a public high school, in Brooklyn, New York. The students wrestle variously with challenges including rape culture, racism, sexual identity, bullying, violence, and terrorism.

Cast

Main

• Odessa A'zion as Joey Del Marco, a high school junior from Stuyvesant Town who is also on the school's dance team
• Odley Jean as Dominique "Dom" Pierre, a Haitian-American high school junior from East New York who is also on the school's women's basketball team.
• Amir Bageria as Siddhartha "Sid" Pakam, a closeted gay Indian-American high school senior from Jackson Heights who is on the school's swim team
• Maliq Johnson as Jayson Jackson, an African-American high school sophomore from Spanish Harlem
• Amalia Yoo as Leila Kwan Zimmer, a Chinese-American high school freshman from the Upper West Side who was adopted by a Jewish couple when she was a baby
• Alphonso Romero Jones, II as John Ellis, Dom's love interest
• Thelonius Serrell-Freed as Tim Delaney, one of Joey's friends
• Anthony Ippolito as George Wright, one of Joey's friends who is on the Grand Army High School's swim team
• Brian Altemus as Luke Friedman, one of Joey's friends who is on the Grand Army High School's swim team

Recurring

• Sydney Meyer as Anna Delaney, Joey's best friend and Tim's younger sister
• Keara Graves as Grace, Joey's other best friend who is on the school dance team with her
• Jaden Jordan as Owen Williams, Jayson's best friend
• Brittany Adebumola as Tamika Jones, Dom's best friend who is on the women's basketball team with her
• Naiya Ortiz as Sonia Cruz, Dom's other best friend, also on the women's basketball team with her
• Crystal Nelson as Tor Sampson, Dom's other best friend who is also on the women's basketball team with her
• Ashley Ganger as Meera Pakam, Sid's younger sister
• Marcela Avelina as Flora Mejia, Sid's girlfriend
• Lola Blackman as Rachel Finer, Leila's best friend
• Lindsay Wu as Wendi, Leila's classmate
• Tiffany Tong as Mei, Leila's classmate
• Jennifer Tong as Su, Leila's classmate
• David Iacono as Bo Orlov, Sid's rival teammate
• Micah Solis as Nick Rodriguez
• Diego Martinez-Tau as Chris Yoon
• Cole Bullock as Dante Pierre, Dom's eldest nephew
• Mercedes Slater as Odette Pierre, Dom's niece
• Osias Reid as Tristian Pierre, Dom's younger nephew
• Rachel Boyd as Natalie
• Kelsey Falconer as Christina
• Alex Castillo as Ms. Lisa Gonzalez
• Jason Weinberg as Principal Michael Metta, Grand Army High School's principal
• Katie Griffin as Rebecca Connely, Joey's mother
• August Blanco Rosenstein as Victor Borin, an out bi student college essay tutor who helps Sid and also a classmate
• Magaly Colimon as Antoinette Pierre, Dom's mother
• Rod Wilson as Matt Del Marco, Joey's father
• Ava Preston as Nina Del Marco, Joey's younger sister
• Deanna Interbartolo as Frankie Del Marco, Joey's youngest sister
• Michael Brown as Shawn Jackson, Jayson's father
• Raven Dauda as Nicole Jackson, Jayson's mother
• Geoffrey Pounsett as Mr. Knight, Jayson's music teacher at Grand Army High School
• Lynn Weintraub as Rabbi Sadie Schultz
• Zac Kara as Omar Biller, drama club member and assistant director to Meera's play
• Sagine Sémajuste as Sabine Pierre, Dom's older sister

Production

Development

It was announced in October 2019 that Netflix had ordered a 10-episode adaptation of Katie Cappiello's 2013 play, one that expands on the original work. The storylines are based on real life stories from her students.^{[1] [2]} On June 17, 2021, Netflix canceled the series after one season.^[3]

Controversy

On the day of the teaser release, writer Ming Peiffer stated on Twitter that she and two other writers of color had quit the project, citing racist exploitation and abuse allegations against one of the creators.^[4]

Casting

It was announced Odessa A'zion would play Joey Del Marco and Amalia Yoo would reprise her role from the stage production as Leila Kwan Zimmer. Also joining the main cast are Maliq Johnson, Amir Bageria, and Odley Jean.^[1]

Filming

Principal photography took place in both Toronto and New York City from May to September 2019, with most indoor scenes in Toronto and most outdoor and subway scenes in New York City.^{[5] [6]}

Release

The teaser was released as well as first look images in September 2020, followed by a full trailer in October. Fahamu Pecou painted the promotional artwork for the posters.^[7] The series premiered on October 16, 2020 with 9 episodes instead of the original order of 10 episodes.^{[8] [9]}

Reception

For the series, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 71% based on 14 reviews, with an average rating of 7.34/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Grand Army is an excellent showcase for its exciting cast of newcomers—even if its attempt at an honest approach to adolescence is too overwrought to make an impact."^[10] Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 68 out of 100 based on 12 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[11] In 2021, Ashley Ganger gave an interview for Vanity Teen magazine, following her appearance on the series, talking about her personal journey and the social influence of the series.^[12]

Kristen Baldwin of Entertainment Weekly gave the series a B− and described the series as "ambitious, often to a fault. Still, there are flashes of beauty—let me say again, Odley Jean is a revelation—amid the gritty teen boilerplate."^[13] Reviewing the series for Rolling Stone, Alan Sepinwall gave it 4 out of 5 stars and said, "In its best moments, Grand Army enters rare air for high school shows, elevating surprisingly close to the genre's thoughtful standard-bearer, My So-Called Life."^[14]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Netflix Adapts Katie Cappiello's Play 'Slut' As Drama 'Grand Army' With 'House of Cards' EPs Joshua Donen & Beau Willimon, Odessa A'zion Leads Cast. Deadline. Peter. White. October 21, 2019. September 2, 2020. June 17, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210617211119/https://deadline.com/2019/10/netflix-adapts-katie-cappiellos-play-slut-as-ten-part-drama-grand-army-with-house-of-cards-eps-joshua-donen-beau-willimon-odessa-azion-cast-1202764773/. live.
2. NYC teens strive to feel seen in first look at Netflix drama Grand Army. Entertainment Weekly. Marcus. Jones. September 2, 2020. October 10, 2020. October 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201010223858/https://ew.com/tv/grand-army-first-look-netflix/. live.
3. Web site: 'Grand Army' Canceled After One Season At Netflix. Deadline Hollywood. Denise. Petski. June 17, 2021. June 17, 2021. June 17, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210617205114/https://deadline.com/2021/06/grand-army-canceled-after-one-season-netflix-1234777434/. live.
4. Web site: Grand Army: Three writers quit Netflix series due to 'racist exploitation and abuse'. The Independent. Louis. Chilton. September 3, 2020. September 3, 2020. November 1, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201101011500/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/netflix-grand-army-racism-ming-peiffer-abuse-writers-karen-a9702381.html. live.
5. Web site: Where Was Grand Army Filmed?. The Cinemaholic. Tamal. Cundu. October 16, 2020. October 7, 2020. October 25, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201025231711/https://www.thecinemaholic.com/where-was-grand-army-filmed/. live.
6. Book: Young, Michelle. Filming Locations for Grand Army on Netflix. Untapped New York. October 27, 2020. October 29, 2020. October 31, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201031203244/https://untappedcities.com/2020/10/27/grand-army-filming-locations-netflix/?displayall=true. live.
7. Web site: Grand Army - In the Studio with Visual Artist Dr. Fahamu Pecou - Netflix. YouTube. October 9, 2020. October 10, 2020. October 18, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201018170443/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbCSgJla1rg. live.
8. NYC teens strive to feel seen in first look at Netflix drama Grand Army. Entertainment Weekly. Marcus. Jones. September 2, 2020. September 24, 2020. September 22, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200922184158/https://ew.com/tv/grand-army-first-look-netflix/. live.
9. Brooklyn Teens Ride the Highs and Lows of Adolescence in 'Grand Army' Trailer. Rolling Stone. Jon. Blistein. October 6, 2020. October 7, 2020.
10. Web site: Grand Army: Season 1 (2020). Rotten Tomatoes. October 29, 2020.
11. Web site: Grand Army: Season 1. Metacritic. October 29, 2020.
12. https://www.vanityteen.com/ashley-ganger-we-need-more-representation/ Ashley Ganger: we need more representation
13. Netflix's teen drama Grand Army is grim to a fault: Review. Entertainment Weekly. Kristen. Baldwin. October 7, 2020. October 14, 2020. October 13, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201013102047/https://ew.com/tv/tv-reviews/grand-army-netflix-review/. live.
14. 'Grand Army': The Kids Are Not Alright. Rolling Stone. Alan. Sepinwall. October 13, 2020. October 14, 2020. October 13, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201013195506/https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-reviews/grand-army-netflix-review-1073948/. live.