Lovecraft Country: Everything you need to know about Uncle George

Here’s everything you need to know about Lovecraft Country’s George Freeman. 

Warning! Spoilers for Lovecraft Country episode 2 follow below.

HBO’s Lovecraft Country is full of unique characters with their own strengths, weaknesses, and special quirks. And because of that, it’s worth breaking down and analyzing all of the show’s main characters to understand more about them.

Last week, we talked about protagonist Atticus Freeman. And today, we’re taking a look at his uncle, George Freeman. Be warned, if you haven’t seen episode 2 of Lovecraft Country, there are spoilers relating to the last two episodes of the series — especially after that major twist at the end of episode 2.

Read on below to learn more about the character Courtney B. Vance portrays in

Lovecraft Country

, Uncle George.

Uncle George Lovecraft Country character profile

Uncle George: Introduction and overview

George Freeman is a pretty marvelous guy, a publisher of The Safe Negro Travel Guide, helping black travelers cross the country safely without getting harmed, hurt, or (worse) killed. He’s also a fond husband to his wife, Hippolyta (Aunjanue Ellis), an encouraging father to his enthusiastic comic book writer daughter,  Diana (Jada Harris), and a father figure to his nephew, Atticus (Jonathan Majors). As they’re in Chicago and on the road to Ardham, George cares about his family and friends.

We all fell in love with Uncle George’s calm, cool, and wise personality, but he died within the last few minutes of the second episode. (Why? Why, hurt us like this?)

Relationships

As mentioned, George Freeman is the brother of Montrose Freeman and the uncle of Atticus Freeman. George is married to Hippolyta and has a daughter nicknamed Dee. From the beginning of episode 1, we see how much George loves his wife, Hippolyta, when talking about their guide book. George and Hippolyta worked together for the Travel Guide for Black travelers.

George supports his daughter Dee’s love for drawing comics — he even lets her add her comics in his travel guide. George’s relationship with his brother, Montrose, is strange but has some nice moments. For example, he recalled watching the Negro League players roll into town together, cheering them on, and holding welcome signs for their favorite players. And it’s easy to tell George was protective over his brother, in spite of not knowing their dad used to physically abuse Montrose.

Atticus and George have to be my favorite because of how close they seem to be. When Atticus came to town, George decided to go along the ride with Atticus to find his brother. Their relationship is the father/son relationship Atticus wanted with his dad. But on the road, the unique relationship we were hoping to explore more of this season was Leti and George’s friendship. Letitia and George’s friendship was brief, but they did have some funny moments together. When Letitia, Atticus, and George finally realized they were under a spell at the Braithwhite household, for example, George bravely reminded them of who they are — especially Letitia, referring back to Letitia stating her whole name on a car chase in the first episode. Their relationship was special, and we wish we could have explored more of their friendship in the upcoming episodes.

Motives

George’s goal was getting out of town for his tour guide until his nephew Atticus returned home from the Korean War. When Atticus started talking about the reason he was in Chicago and how he was going to Ardham to find out the truth, George helped his nephew search for his father Montrose with Atticus’ childhood friend Leti.

George wanted to be able to find his brother and discover what family secret he found about Atticus’ mother, Dora. After fighting off horrible creatures, he ended up at the Braithwhite household dancing with his favorite books on the shelves. But the fun didn’t last long. While traveling through the town, George discovered that Montrose was being held underneath a scary tower. He realized they’d have to come back later to try to bust him out. It’s clear George wanted to be a good big brother to Montrose, remembering how he protected him from their abusive father.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This character’s knowledge of books comes in handy when figuring out the truth behind Atticus’ legacy. Uncle George was the one who remembered that Atticus’ mother was a descendant of an enslaved woman who escaped the Braithwhite house after Titus set it on fire doing the Garden of Eden ceremony.

Unfortunately, George is also haunted by past traumas, secrets, and heartbreak. George danced with Tic’s deceased mom Dora (which implies that Tic could be his real son), but he quickly realized that she’s not real. His weakness for Dora and the relationship they secretly had almost jeopardized his quest to figure out why Atticus, Leti, and he were brought to the Braithwhite home to begin with. George’s secret has had an impact on his relationship with Montrose, Hippolyta, and his nephew Atticus — even admitting on his death bed to Montrose that Atticus may or may not be his son.

Uncle George’s future

Although George died in episode 2, you still have to wonder if he will reappear by the end of the season somehow. There are a lot of unanswered questions that should have been answered throughout the season, but with George’s death, it makes you wonder if he will make an appearance later in the season — there is magic in this show, after all. This was a devastating loss that felt not only real on an emotional level but seems to put a drastic shift on Atticus and Montrose’s relationship going forward — from trying to figure out if George was Atticus’ father to what his relationship with Atticus’ mother was really about.

Did George have a relationship first with Atticus’ mother before Montrose? Will Atticus find the truth about George and Dora’s relationship? We’ll have to wait to find out.

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