‘The Comeback’ Review: Healing Red Sox Nation’s Hearts

Want to forget that this year’s Dodgers-Yankees World Series matchup is a Bostonian’s nightmare? You’re in luck — Netflix has just released a show set to heal Red Sox Nation. “The Comeback: 2004 Boston Red Sox” is a three-episode Netflix documentary covering the 86-year Curse of the Bambino that haunted Fenway Park, as well as how the 2004 Red Sox team overcame a 3-0 deficit against the Yankees in the American League Championship Series and finally brought the Commissioner’s Trophy back to Boston. The limited series is a love letter to the team that gave Boston fans hope again — and it’s everything that a sports documentary should be.

“The Comeback” pulls out all the stops, including interviews from almost every person involved in the 2003 and 2004 Red Sox seasons, which gives the series authenticity and excitement. While two notable figures — shortstop Nomar Garciaparra and the now-deceased knuckleballer legend Tim Wakefield — are absent in the documentary, the show grants access to interviews with players from Big Papi to Curt Schilling to Pedro Martinez. The series also features broadcaster icon Joe Castiglione, most of the 2004 managing staff, current Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, and even everyday fans explaining the horrors of watching the Red Sox lose over decades. The varied voices give attention to the experiences of fans and managers as well as players, resulting in a narrative that holds more weight. Through this technique, it becomes obvious that the 2004 baseball season wasn’t just about the stress of a handful of million-dollar players, but the hopes and dreams of all of New England.

The first episode of the documentary does an excellent job of setting the scene for the 2004 ALCS. The episode details the Curse of the Bambino, the pressure that weighed down on the 2003 and 2004 teams, and Boston fans’ decades-long pain. For those of us who don’t remember the drama of 2004 ourselves, it is crucial to understand how hopeless Boston Red Sox fans felt. Ever since the Red Sox had sold Babe Ruth to its archrival, the New York Yankees, Boston had been without a World Series win. Theo Epstein’s rise to the general manager position brought some hope to the team, but building a team wasn’t easy — especially when the Yankees had a team featuring Derek Jeter, A-Rod, and Jason Giambi. The first episode builds up the drama of this moment perfectly, portraying the difficulties of filling out a 25-man roster and giving insight into how both players and managers work together to create an effective team.

The second episode goes on to show how the 2004 team blossomed into a chance to prove 86 years of sports history wrong. In that year, the Red Sox were forced to trade their star shortstop, Nomar Garciaparra and Boston fans continued to stress over the team’s uncertain future. Despite this setback, the Red Sox were coming together as a team, and tensions were high with the Yanks — from A-Rod and Veritek’s iconic fistfight to Martinez’s hilariously brazen habit of hitting Yankees batters with pitches. The documentary illustrates the Yankees’s villainous position in Red Sox lore with flair and humor, featuring realistic depictions of the Pinstripes’ skill and funny compilations of Sox players narrating their thoughts during brawls. “The Comeback” never lets its audience forget that its subject matter is a ball game — a refreshing element in the sports documentary genre, which can tend toward the melodramatic.

The third episode is where the real miracle — the 2004 ALCS comeback — unfolds, supported by the cast’s memories and plenty of game footage. As David Ortiz says, the team’s switch to greatness was simple — they just “got hot.” While great athletes occasionally have trouble describing how they performed in a certain moment, the Red Sox team has excellent memories, describing their emotions from 2004 with a clarity that showcases their grit, dedication, and personality. The comeback itself is epic and exciting, despite the fact that viewers already know where the series is heading. Surprisingly, the series finale ends on a somber note instead of a celebratory one, as the cast reflects on Tim Wakefield’s recent passing and what he meant to each of them. The choice to honor Wakefield felt perfectly representative of what “Red Sox Nation” can mean — a community that encompasses both highs and lows.

Colin Barnicle, the series director, obviously had a vision for how to highlight these firsthand perspectives of this pivotal moment in Red Sox history. The documentary intersperses game footage, interviews, handheld video, fan perspectives, and sports graphics to make every second engaging. Of course, the cinematography is limited due to the sports and documentary genres — there were only so many ways to film an event on a baseball field 20 years ago. Still, the technical elements perfectly highlight the narrative, bolstered by the Nation’s many voices.

“The Comeback” is everything that a sports documentary needs to be — exciting, endearing, and emotional. The show is the perfect 20-year World Series anniversary present to the Sox fans who have stuck with the bean-eaters for 123 years and counting. And, most importantly, it’s an excellent way for Red Sox fans to forget that Dave Roberts is enjoying Los Angeles instead of Boston this October.

—Staff writer Hannah E. Gadway can be reached at hannah.gadway@thecrimson.com.