I am a little bit less enthusiastic about these series than the majority of the viewers in IMDb who seem to be really enthusiastic. To be sure, this is one of the best series on TV based on old history but this maybe tells more about TV series until now. I am writing this after having completed the viewing of the second season, and my rating would be 8.5 for the first season and 7 for the second.
On the good side I would mention the effort made on reconstructing the life and landscape of ancient Rome, even if some limits of the budget may be seen especially in the dimensions of the set. The day-to-day life and the morals are however splendidly caught and the first episode in the first series shine on these. Then we get a little accustomed and nothing significantly new shows up. I also liked the script which makes of many of the historic characters real people, does seldom fall into rhetoric, does not hesitate to take distance from some of the classical approaches in literature and theater, and succeeds to stay credible and interesting for most of the time. The pair Titus and Lucius who run their parallel story of friendship in parallel to the intrigues of famous historical figures is greatly acted, human, and moving. All looks like a god soap opera set in ancient times, and I am using this term in a very positive way, because good soap operas catch the attention and make the viewers care about the fate of the heroes.
On the bad side I would mention the repeated use of modern day slang, which breaks the convention and hurts credibility. Whatever the directors or script authors believe, repeated use of four letters words does not fit well in a movie about ancient Rome, and having Mark Anthony call Cleopatra 'baby' is hard to take either. There are also some continuity problems like the change of the actor playing Octavanus, as well as some side conflicts especially in the second season that seem more designed to fill in time, and are less connected to the rest.
I am curious if there will be a third season. The final seems to leave this opportunity open, and there certainly are enough events and screen-worth stories in the history of Rome. I would certainly follow and watch them.
On the good side I would mention the effort made on reconstructing the life and landscape of ancient Rome, even if some limits of the budget may be seen especially in the dimensions of the set. The day-to-day life and the morals are however splendidly caught and the first episode in the first series shine on these. Then we get a little accustomed and nothing significantly new shows up. I also liked the script which makes of many of the historic characters real people, does seldom fall into rhetoric, does not hesitate to take distance from some of the classical approaches in literature and theater, and succeeds to stay credible and interesting for most of the time. The pair Titus and Lucius who run their parallel story of friendship in parallel to the intrigues of famous historical figures is greatly acted, human, and moving. All looks like a god soap opera set in ancient times, and I am using this term in a very positive way, because good soap operas catch the attention and make the viewers care about the fate of the heroes.
On the bad side I would mention the repeated use of modern day slang, which breaks the convention and hurts credibility. Whatever the directors or script authors believe, repeated use of four letters words does not fit well in a movie about ancient Rome, and having Mark Anthony call Cleopatra 'baby' is hard to take either. There are also some continuity problems like the change of the actor playing Octavanus, as well as some side conflicts especially in the second season that seem more designed to fill in time, and are less connected to the rest.
I am curious if there will be a third season. The final seems to leave this opportunity open, and there certainly are enough events and screen-worth stories in the history of Rome. I would certainly follow and watch them.