The New Edition Story
THE RETURN: ACCLAIMED MINI-SERIES IS BACK ON BET BY PUBLIC DEMAND
A vibrant, fiercely committed threenight mini-series.
BET, which scored a ratings hit with the epic three-part mini-series earlier this year, will broadcast The New Edition Story over three nights from March 24 to 26 due to popular demand.
The applauded series follows the story of five boys, Bobby Brown, Ralph Tresvant, Michael Bivins, Ronnie DeVoe and Ricky Bell, starting from their Boston roots, singing in talent shows to international stardom. They experience the roller coaster of fame and learns the cost of success.
Part 1 of the mini-series shows the group’s rise to stardom, transitioning from young men eager to make it in the music industry to consummate young professionals. Part 2 chronicles the group’s burgeoning problems, as Brown leaves the group to go solo and Johnny Gill joins, along with rectifying financial arrangements with their label. Part 3 charts the group’s demise at the expense of coveted solo careers and a later attempt at a reunion tour.
The critics raved when it was aired earlier this year. The New York Times’ critic wrote: “The New
Edition Story is, by far, the best of the recent spate of black pop biopics. Of all forms of homage, attention to detail is perhaps the most loving. It requires not just knowledge and dedication, but also thoughtfulness. It prizes accuracy both out of respect to the historical record, but also to those who wrote it. It celebrates the vision of the original creators more than the disruptive instincts of re-interpreters. By that measurement,
The New Edition Story, a vibrant, fiercely committed three-night mini-series on BET, is overflowing with love; a jubilant celebration of a group that was preternaturally talented and rivetingly tortured.”
The Boston Globe echoed these views and stated that “The New
Edition Story, which credits all six members of the group as executive producers, tells the story with verve and charm, meticulously re-creating videos and photo shoots and, more notably, creating rootable characters.
Sylvia Obell of Buzzfeed praised the casting as “absolute perfection” and rated it an A+. The New
Edition Story airs as a six hour, three night event on March 24, 25 and 26 at 9.50 pm on BET (DStv Channel 129). – Citizen reporter