The 1992 film A League of Their Own has gone on to become a bonafide classic as it demonstrated the ins and outs of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). The film, which starred Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell and Tom Hanks, became a huge hit and sparked a short-lived spin-off TV series that aired in 1993. Almost 30 years later, Prime Video has put its own spin on the film with a new series that features different characters and was created by Will Graham and Abbi Jacobson. The duo along with executive producers Desta Tedros Reff, Jamie Babbit and Hailey Wierengo re-imagine the movie with a strong look at the challenges all women dealt with in the early 1940s.
The show starts with Carson (Jacobson) running to get on a train so she can make the AAGPBL tryouts in Chicago. She meets two other prospects, Greta (D’Arcy Carden) and Jo (Melanie Field), and the three end up being selected to the Rockford Peaches. But during the tryout, another girl named Max (Chanté Adams) shows up with her friend Clance (Gbemisola Ikumelo) and asked the coaches if she could show her skillset. However, the coaches don’t allow her to try out because she’s black, but Max shows what she can do by throwing a ball from the outfield to the stands behind home plate.
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Carson and Max are the vital characters in the A League of Their Own, and while they are on different paths in their baseball careers, the two help each other to find out who they are. Carson left everything to live out her dream of playing baseball, and Max is risking everything to show everyone that she belongs.
And while baseball is the storyline in A League of Their Own, the off-the-field challenges are something that was not examined in the film other than sexism and World War II. The series hits hard with those topics along with racism and same-sex relationships, which play a big role throughout the series. One of the more fascinating and disturbing parts of the series is seeing how people treat those who are in same-sex relationships, which is why those relationships were not made public at that time.
It’s likely that fans will compare the Prime Video version of the Rockford Peaches to the movie version. And while there are some similarities, Graham and Jacobson created some strong original characters. Carson is like Davis’ Dottie Hinson as they both play catcher and both are leaders. But Carson has a mind for baseball that Hinson doesn’t, making her a likable character. Greta also has qualities like Hinson as she’s an emotional leader who stands up for those who attack her teammates. Other Peaches like Jo, Lupe (Roberta Colindrez), Esti (Pricilla Delgado), Jess (Kelly McCormack) and Maybell (Molly Ephraim) give the series a spark that the film didn’t. And then there’s Dove (Nick Offerman) who is the manager of the Peaches, Dove is a former MLB pitcher who comes to help the Peaches become winners. He’s similar to Hanks’ Jimmy Dugan but something happens to him that changes the direction of the Peaches forever.
A League of Their Own has high expectations since the movie was loved by so many. It’s a series that has been talked about for years, and now fans will get to watch it on Prime Video starting Friday, Aug. 12. The series doesn’t capture the same magic as the movie but with strong performances from Jacobson, Adams, Carden and the rest of the cast, it hits a home run when it’s all said and done.
