I must say I'm enjoying this season even more than the last as it's covering ground on the aftermath of Caesar's assassination that is fascinating, most notably, the politics. The Brando "Julius Caesar" did get into this history but, of course, in black-and-white and without the budget for the production design, it's being upstaged by this series. The depiction of the sumptuousness of the wealthy Roman's environs against the gritty, down-trodden streets of most of Rome is especially extraordinary.
This show is deffinately high on the rank of my all time favorite shows. If not THE best.
I'm currently craving season 2... Don't know when they will air it over here in Europe...
I wan't season 2. NOW!
Hope you get it soon, too! Finally, they do a full-on battle sequence when the combined forces of Octavian and Marc Antony meet the Brutus army in historical combat. Enter Cleo again soon.
Lightwizard wrote:Hope you get it soon, too! Finally, they do a full-on battle sequence when the combined forces of Octavian and Marc Antony meet the Brutus army in historical combat. Enter Cleo again soon.
Don't you think the scene with Brutus at the end of that battle was a little heavy handed on the irony?
On the other hand, I love that scene where Atia said to Octavia...."Are you just going to sit around and smoke hemp all day"?
kids
The writers seem to enjoy their own glib humor as well as their irony. I'm sure I won't hold it against them as enjoying writing the script comes through in every scene. The writing brings to mind "The Lion in Winter." I think I would be also tempted to inject irony in that same scene although Marc Antony is certainly not the character I would historically have in mind. He does have a twinkle in his eye while being humorously petulant. It's almost as if he has the suppressed personality of a queen hidden in there somewhere.
...and Cleopatra finally returns. Certainly that part of the story is handled very differently from the Elizabeth Taylor or Claudette Colbert movie versions.
Ah, the last episode in the series ended one of the most expensively produced TV series ever and the DVD isn't close at hand. I admire HBO and the BBC for sticking through to the second season. Ironically, the show began to gather an audience but the sets had been disposed of and the actors contracts expired. Certainly the demise of Antony and Cleopatra was tragic and the final scenes of Pullo and Lucius poignantly set in a historical context.
http://www.hbo.com/rome/watch/season2/episode22.html
Have you heard if there's going to be a thrid or III should I say, season?
I hope so.
Nope -- that's the end with Pullo and Caesarean walking down the street with, "Now let me tell you about your father." Of course, he'll find out he isn't of royal blood after all, at least not on one side.
This was a natural ending point for the story, because what follows is the long reign of Augustus ... a Golden Age of relative peace and prosperity. There was of course the birth of Christ around 4 BC, and a number of uprisings in distant provinces (i.e. the Tottenberg Forest massacre of Varus and his legions), but both Valerian and Pullo would have been too old to be participants. The Crucification and the destruction of Herod's Temple in the reign of Tiberius has good dramatic possibilities, especially if coupled with the death of Tiberius and the short reign of Caligula.
A new "Rome" series might run from just before the death of Augustus to the assassination of Caligula and the reign of Claudius. Of course, we would have to have an entirely new cast though the sets and costumes could be recycled if they still were available. Personally, I'd love to see another two seasons cast in the same mold as the two we've just watched and enjoyed.
Already really covered by the previous PBS series, "I, Claudius." Now restored on DVD.
I agree with Asherman, they could move forward years in Augustus life with a new cast, or use some of the same with makeup. An older Pulo, and older Atia.
I'd love to see what Augustus wife gets up too over the years, she was a piece of work.
Not everyone watches PBS, if Rome continued it would attract an entirely different audience.
I think it's doable.
Not to change the subject, but the Tudors is starting tonight, looking forward to that....ah, another thread :wink:
Atia would have been long dead, as would have Pullo before the time-frame of a likely new story series. It would be interesting though to follow Aeneas (Caesarian) Pullo in the reign of Tiberius. Unfortunately for our story, Caesarian (who was in reality killed in 30 BC at age 16) would have been 70 years old when Tiberius became Emperor in 14 AD.
Another problem is that the Roman Empire remained pretty stable and peaceful (Judea, aside) from 30 BC until Tiberius died in 37 AD, and Caligula began his three year reign of terror. That pretty much limits the dramatic possiblities to decadence and behind the scenes political intrigue with a sub-plot (?) revolving around unrest in Judea. Something could be done, but I'm afraid it would pale in comparison to our expectations. Oh well ...
