The four-part series, Oct. 14 -- NEW YORK - Mike Tyson says nobody can be the hero of his own story, and Netflix has handed him four hours to show it. Whether Tyson delivers that honesty is the argument now dividing critics, a day after the series premiered on the platform.

The Boston Marathon Bombing, runs four hour-long episodes and draws on interviews with Tyson and his confidants and colleagues, according to Netflix's announcement. The streamer describes it as an unflinching look at the triumphs, controversies and personal cost behind one of sport's most polarizing figures.

Tyson framed the project in that announcement as an exercise in self-scrutiny. He said people must "face the man in the mirror" to give a full account of their l...