Yes, I know, it’s cutting it pretty darned close to wait until the last couple of days of January 2008 to run a Best of 2007 list, but that’s the problem with these TV DVD sets: there’s a whole lot of viewing involved to get through them, and you don’t want to give anyone the short end of the stick just because your schedule didn’t allow you to give their set a look. With the confidence that I’ve had a chance to check out the majority of the cool stuff that came out in ’07, however, I hereby present my personal picks for the Top 20 TV DVDs of last year. And when you’ve read through my list, check out Bullz-Eye’s Best of the Best staff picks for 2007! (Oh, and don’t forget to pop back by to tell us if we missed anything!)
Filed under: TV and TV DVDs and Reviews and TV Comedies and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and South Park and The Office and External Entertainment and External TV and Heroes and Battlestar Galactica and TV Sci-Fi Comments: None Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
NBC may not be King of the Nielsen Ratings just yet, but we know good television when we see it, and the Peacock has returned in full force with a dominating presence that includes the top three shows and five of the top six. HBO, on the other hand, is experiencing the opposite, with the departure of “The Sopranos,” “Deadwood” and “Rome.” Add to that the fact that our list features a whopping 10 new entries — five of which are freshmen — and you’ve got one heck of a Power Rankings shakeup. Much of this has to do with so many shows being on hiatus until next year, but whatever the cause, it’s nice to see some much-needed change to a usually familiar lineup. And, hey, don’t miss the list of our favorite shows which are currently on hiatus (and are therefore ineligible for the Top-20), our farewell to “The Sopranos,” and our stable of Honorable Mentions. Check out the list here, then come back and let us know how we did…or if we missed any of your favorites! Filed under: TV and Actors and Actresses and News and Reviews and TV Comedies and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and Lost and South Park and Prison Break and The Office and 24 and The Shield and The Sopranos and Rescue Me and Deadwood and External Entertainment and External TV and The Wire and Heroes and Jericho and Battlestar Galactica and TV Sci-Fi and Reaper and Journeyman and Friday Night Lights Comments: 2 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
 That’s it. That’s the last episode of “Rome.” I’ve said before, with all the jumping ahead in time, that this season felt awfully rushed, but the final episode provided a fitting conclusion to most of the show’s storylines. It starts with a great monologue by Mark Antony as the remainder of his navy rowed its way back to Alexandria. All my life I’ve been fearful of defeat. But now that it has come it’s not near as terrible as I’d expected. The sun still shines, water still tastes good…glory is all well and good but life is enough, nay? Then, in contrast, we get another monologue from Atia as she laments the news of Antony’s defeat: [Octavian] wasn’t like that as a child. He was a good, honest boy. I don’t know what happened. I’m to blame, probably. Probably? Antony’s meltdown in the palace is a brilliant piece of acting by James Purefoy. When Cleopatra pleads with him to come up with some military trick to win the war, Antony quips, “I’m a soldier, not a fucking magician.” Then, he has a “GoodFellas” moment when one of his guests laughs as he gets knocked down. Antony shouts, “I’m a fucking clown?” before killing the weakling in a swordfight. (I had visions of Joe Pesci.) That moment is Antony’s “lampshade” moment. You know, that moment when a partygoer partakes a little too much and their night spins out of control. I’d like to applaud the hazy cinematography of the scene. It really adds depth to Antony’s frame of mind at the time. He has another great line when Cleo’s slave comes to tell him of her death and to urge him to commit suicide: “Anything to cure this fucking hangover.” The suicide scene with Lucius was intense, and it was a nice gesture that Antony did not force Vorenus to follow him into death. Then there’s the matter of Caesarion. Though there isn’t any real-world evidence of this, the show’s position is that he is the son of Titus Pullo. When Lucius offers to take Caesarion to his father, Cleopatra asks, “Is he a good man?” Lucius answers, “Define good.” The negotiation scene between Cleo and Octavian was terrific, and I can see now why they wanted Simon Woods instead of Max Pirkis for the latter half of this season. Octavian was actually 33 when he invaded Alexandria, so casting Woods was a logical choice. Of course, Caesarion was 17 at the time, and the creators didn’t have any problem shaving seven years off of his age. It was good to see Atia get back to her old self. That was a terrific diatribe she laid on Octavian’s wife before the triumph. Now that the series is over, it’s comforting to know that the bitch is definitely back. Finally, there’s Titus and Lucius. Even with all its politicking and betrayal, the show is really about the friendship between these two men. It was sad to see Lucius go, but I’m glad he got his wish to see his children and that his eldest daughter decided to forgive him. Titus got his wish - a son - and appears to have finally found some happiness in his life. And, speaking of Titus, how’s this for the last line of the series? Listen, about your father… All in all, the finale did an excellent job of providing fitting conclusions to virtually every major character, but in reality, the only good thing about “Rome” ending is that we’ll finally get to see the last nine episodes of “The Sopranos.” R.I.P. “Rome.” We’re sad to see you go. Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 10 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Man, this show isn’t afraid to jump ahead in time! Apparently, “all these years” in Egypt has corrupted Mark Antony and it’s obvious that the spicy Cleopatra holds a lot of influence over him. After the dynamic duo multitasked by negotiating with a delegation from Rome while practicing their archery (on a slave, no less!), there was a great exchange between the Lucius and the representative from Rome: Roman representative: Is he always like that? Speaking of Lucius, he’s still in Egypt and is spending his nights having sex with scary bald prostitutes and dreaming about Niobe. He’s also charged with raising Caesarion, who is Titus’…er…Caesar’s son. Lucius certainly thinks it’s the former, because whenever the kid asks about his dad, Vorenus describes Titus. It was a cold move for Octavian to send his sister and mother to Egypt and it was even colder that Antony sent them packing without even meeting with them. I was a little worried that their ship might sink on the trip home, but when Lucius said it wasn’t a bad idea for Posca and Jocasta to stow away, I figured killing Atia and Octavia wasn’t a part of the “delicate mission” that Antony gave him. Once back in Rome, Posca provided Octavian with justifcation for war (Antony’s will), so now everybody’s happy. Titus had apparently been with Gaia for some time. The relationship felt rushed (as does the entire season), but the fight with POW Memio was still effective. You just knew that once Gaia confessed, the big fella was going to kill her. I thought Gaia was one of the more interesting (and more attractive) characters on the show, so I’m sad to see her go. But I have to say that she had one of the best sendoffs ever. That final shot of her drifting in the water was simply gorgeous. Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 2 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Quite a bit happened this week, and you can really sense that the series is getting ready to wrap up. Octavian is busy trying to clean up the morality of Rome, but is having difficulty keeping his own family in line. In reality, it’s his own fault since he tried to keep Antony and Atia apart and was oblivious to Agrippa’s affections for his sister. Regardless, his heavy-handedness resulted in Antony’s banishment to Egypt and Agrippa’s decision to break up with Octavia, but not before she could drop a pregnancy bomb on Agrippa’s head. Meanwhile, Octavian has his own marriage lined up, and it started with a great exchange: Octavian: Tell me, how would you like to be married to me? Wow. Maecenas was in the middle of everything this week and I was really hoping that Lucius would lay him out when they were questioning him about the missing gold. Down on the Aventine, Titus’ world is turned upside down as Eirene dies from a miscarriage caused by Gaia’s treachery. Gaia is scary-hot, and it looks like she might work her way into Titus’ good graces. The only thing that could blow that deal is if the alchemist decides to tell someone about what Gaia bought from her. Kudos to Chiara Mastalli’s work in Eirene’s death scene – it was amazing. You could literally see the life leave her body. Lucius’ discovery of his daughter’s betrayal leads to his decision to leave for Egypt with Antony. Titus was kind enough to take responsibility for his children and for the business, but it’s a lot to ask of the big man. Mark Antony had a great line when Lucius asked to come with him: “You’ll not turn to drink, will you? You stoic types often do when disappointed in life.” Memio’s makeshift alliance with the other captians runs into a brick wall on the Aventine. He underestimated Titus’ ferocity in the wake of his wife’s death. And did you see the way Gaia handled herself in the battle? She and Titus probably belong together. Even though she’s inherently evil and he’s inherently good, they both solve problems in the same way – with violence. Titus killed his competition when he murdered Eirene’s husband. Gaia did the same thing - only she did it intentionally. Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 4 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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One of the very first scenes this week set the tone for the entire episode. During Jocasta’s wedding, while Antony winks at a not-that-attractive slave girl, Atia mentions to him that she’d like to get married. The point? Men and women are rarely on the same page. Even though she’s an insufferable bitch, I actually felt sorry for Atia this week. First, Servilia lays the mother of all curses on her before committing suicide in front of her house. The real Servilia died of natural causes, but like Antony said, the fictional Servilia knows how to make an exit. Then Octavian arranges for his sister, not Atia, to marry Antony as a show of goodwill to the people of Rome. This, of course, does not sit well with Atia or Octavia. While in bed with his new wife, Antony had a great line that pretty much sums up the situation – “This is strange, isn’t it?” Even with the marriage, it’s clear that the conflict between Octavian and Antony isn’t resolved. Meanwhile, Eirene’s run in with Gaia led to a great scene between Titus and the slave girl. It seems that the temptress Gaia is looking to climb the social ladder, and she isn’t afraid to use all of her……um……assets to that end. When she laid the “she’s such a mouse of a woman and you’re such a lion of a man” line on Titus, I knew the big fella was going down. If nothing else, a man has needs and it certainly didn’t help that Eirene decided to withhold sex because the baby started moving. Just like Titus, I almost spit up my drink when Eirene said that he should beat Gaia the same way once a month to keep her in line. The Timon/Levi storyline ended unceremoniously when Timon stabbed his brother to keep him from trying to assassinate Herod. Other than Timon’s decision to release Servilia, this storyline hasn’t had much of an impact on the show. It will be interesting to see how much of Timon we’ll see now that this thread with his brother has come to a conclusion. The episode ended with Gaia buying a concoction that presumably causes a miscarriage. Obviously, she intends to use this on Eirene. But what’s her end game? Does she truly want Titus, or does she just want to screw up Eirene’s life? And how will Vorena’s actions affect Lucius? What will he do when he discovers his daughter’s betrayal? Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 4 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Since the dawn of creation — well, the creation of this feature, anyway — Jack Bauer sat atop Bullz-Eye.com’s TV Power Rankings, owning the #1 slot for better than a year and a half. Some would say it was only a matter of time, but now that it’s finally happened, the sudden fall from grace of Fox’s hit show “24″ is actually a lot more embarrassing than it is depressing. But the real-time thriller isn’t the only major shakeup in the winter 2007 edition of the rankings. HBO’s “The Wire” makes its grand (and, forgive us, long overdue) debut, while NBC experienced a big surge thanks to its fresh fall lineup. Of course, HBO still came out the big winner with five shows emerging in the Top 10 (four in the first six), proving once again that it pays to, well, pay for quality television. Here are a few entries from our list: 11. Scrubs (NBC): It shouldn’t surprise anyone to see that “Scrubs” has dropped so low in the rankings. Coming off one of the best years since its debut, expectations for the show were certainly higher than usual – especially when it was called up to the big leagues and given a spot in NBC’s highly coveted Must See TV lineup – but no one could have guessed that the sixth season would start out on such a sour note. Whether it was the accelerated progression of J.D. into adulthood (he’s got a baby on the way, with guest star Elizabeth Banks, no less) or Carla’s all-too-brief post-partum depression (a subplot added to accommodate Judy Reyes’ real-life hip injury), the first five episodes of the new season were particularly somber. Things were looking so bleak, in fact, that fans of the show were preparing to concede that the medical comedy was finally showing signs of wear, but with the much-publicized musical episode creatively rejuvenating everyone involved with the show, things are finally getting back on track. And as long as things remain this kooky and fresh (read: Kelso getting his own episode, or the Janitor using a stuffed rabbit as a salt and pepper shaker), we don’t see any reason why “Scrubs” won’t being making a triumphant return to the Top 5 in the very near future. ~Jason Zingale 17. Deadwood (HBO): Well, despite all the rumors, “Deadwood” isn’t quite dead…yet. Last year, HBO decided not to extend the options of the terrific ensemble cast, making a fourth full season unlikely, but the network and series creator David Milch agreed to produce two two-hour telefilms to wrap up the show’s loose ends. Season Three contained a myriad of intertwining storylines, but focused on the growing influence of businessman/asshole George Hearst, which put former adversaries Al Swearengen and Sheriff Seth Bullock in an unlikely alliance. “Deadwood” features stronger language than any other HBO show, and with “The Sopranos” and “The Wire” on the network’s roster, that’s saying a lot. The truth is that everything about the show – the language, the acting, the story, the sets and the costumes – is colorful, and whether or not HBO wants to admit it, they’re going to miss “Deadwood” once it’s gone for good. ~John Paulsen Check out the full list here. Filed under: TV and Rome and Lost and South Park and Prison Break and The Office and My Name Is Earl and 24 and The Shield and The Sopranos and Entourage and Deadwood and External Entertainment and External TV and The Wire and Heroes and Battlestar Galactica Comments: 9 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Once Octavian rose to power, it was only a matter of time before Lucius and Titus became directly involved in his organization. Octavian put what might be the first ever hit list together (1,000 strong!) in order to quell support for Brutus and Cassius. Interestingly, the writers’ decision to use Titus in the role of Cicero’s killer isn’t based on any historical fact. The assassination itself was quite brutal, which is a perfect example of how unusual this series is. Titus and Lucius do nasty deeds time and time again, but they’re somehow still completely likable. While most of TV deals with heroes against villains, “Rome” uses anti-heroes, and with great success. Even though Titus was used for such an important task, he wishes he were a soldier again. Eirene’s announcement that she was “preglant, or whatever you call it” was both comical and sad as the girl burst into tears. Titus seemed happy about the news, so it will be interesting to see if he sticks around for the child’s birth. Complicating matters, the temptress Gaia also has her eye on him, and it seems like she’s bound and determined to land a man in power, damn the consequences. Agrippa’s scene with Octavia was the lone bright spot in an episode of murder and mayhem. It looks like this relationship is headed for disaster, however, as Atia has made it clear that the two will not be married. Her daughter has already proclaimed her love for the young man, so it’s bound to get pretty ugly. We were treated to a gorgeous shot as the two armies clashed in the Battle of Philipi. In the real world, there were actually two battles, but for creative purposes, it was condensed to one. Also, in real life, Brutus fled the battlefield and committed suicide. But I’ll admit that his one-man attack made for pretty good television, especially since he died of multiple stab wounds, just like Caesar. The best line of the episode goes to Mark Antony, during the battle… Octavian: “What is happening? Do you know?” Filed under: TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 6 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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In the middle of last season, Cicero said that he wanted to retire to the country. For someone that was thisclose to retirement, he’s certainly back in the middle of things. After getting outsmarted by Octavian (which is becoming a trend, methinks), he tries to intimidate the young man by trumping up Brutus’ and Cassius’ army. He says they have 20 legions, but in reality, they have nine. Octavian realized that was enough to defeat his four, which is why Atia went to Mark Antony. If the two generals come to a truce, they could make life very difficult for Cicero and his pals. But I’m not sure why Atia went to Octavian in the first place. It’s clear by the shifty looks that she’s up to something. Maybe peace between her son and Antony is her end game, but it’s doubtful. After her fumbling of the Servilia situation, she definitely needs protection. Pullo’s wife admitted that she’s jealous of the bond he has with Lucius. That was a nice moment when Titus said that he’d definitely save her if the two were drowning. She seems to be warming up to him, and it’s probably a good sign that she’s jealous. At least he can be sure that she cares about him. I sensed that Gaia was into Lucius, and I don’t think that the two are quite done. There’s a good chance that she’ll create some conflict between Lucius and his third in command. (I still haven’t caught his name.) She seems pretty intent on not being viewed as a prostitute, so Lucius forcing her to take the money may come back to bite him in the ass. Finally, I loved the scene where Agrippa brought Octavia home from the orgy. Octavia’s drugged explanation was terrific – “So I was at an orgy. Who cares?” - and Atia’s mood changed from embarrassment to anger, and finally to amusement when Agrippa professed his love for her daughter. Looking forward, Brutus and Cassius intend to wait for Octavian and Antony to weaken each other before they step in to take control of Rome. Man, are they in for a surprise! Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 3 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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You have to hand it to HBO. When every other network either goes dark against the Super Bowl or has programming aimed at the fairer sex, HBO just goes about its business, airing new episodes of “Rome” and “Extras.” I also like how they edit the previews together at the end of each episode. It’s an art, really. Show enough to keep the viewers coming back but don’t show too much as to ruin the surprise. These days, it seems that there are very few series that follow these rules. Based on last week’s previews, I thought for sure that Atia would be poisoned, but they didn’t actually show her on the ground. One of her servants bit the dust, which allowed Atia to unleash her wrath on the assassin, and later, on Servilia. With the show delving into Timon’s life at home, it was clear that he was going to do something out of character. By letting Servilia go, he really put Atia in a tough spot. Of course, Atia made her own bed, so to speak. She had a couple of great lines during the scene where her men tortured the assassin, calling Octavia’s friend a “bad influence” (now that’s the pot calling the kettle black) and later saying, “it isn’t a legal confession unless there’s torture.” It’s just another example of how much times have changed. We met the new Octavian/Caesar, who is now played by Simon Woods. Max Pirkis did a great job building the role, and probably could have played it for a while longer, but Octavian’s break gave the show the perfect opportunity to make age. Agrippa appears to be Octavian’s most trustworthy friend. It looks like they are setting up an angel/devil scenario with Octavian’s two advisors. Agrippa’s budding romance with Octavia provided a few laughs, and is just another example of how little times have changed. It’s good to see Titus and Lucius together again, because at its core, “Rome” is just a buddy story. I knew it wasn’t going to end well for the slave boss when he took them down that hallway with all the little rooms. You’re not going to get very far in life pimping out Lucius’ daughter, knowingly or unknowingly. I’m interested to see how Lucius plans to deal with his bastard son. It’s clear he’s got too big of a heart to kill an innocent kid, but will he be able to deal with the constant reminder of his wife’s infidelity? Next week, Octavian and his army should return to Rome, which sets up nice conflict between he and Cicero. Speaking of the Senator, he sure has his swagger back, doesn’t he? Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 2 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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I was wondering about last week’s long, drawn out shot of the slaves in Octavian’s caravan, but that turned out to be Lucius’ children, who are actually alive. They weren’t on screen much prior to that, which is why I didn’t recognize them. Lucius is floundering right now, but expect that news to get him back on track. It’s tough to see his friendship with Titus in such bad shape, but he’s just lashing out at everyone who loves him, and at this point, Titus is the only person that falls into that category. Duro – the slave boy trying to assassinate Atia – turned out to be working for Servilia. On that subject, what’s with all the man rape? This week we saw Duro and his boss, heard about some child prostitution and saw another rape that starts a gang war. I can only take so much of that. Cicero sure got the last (cowardly) laugh on Mark Antony, though I wonder if that’s where the saying, “don’t shoot the messenger” comes from. The series jumped forward three months and Antony has fled the city (with Lucius). Now, he prepares for a war with Octavian, but my guess is that neither man’s blood will be shed. Speaking of Antony, he had a couple of great lines when he met Atia in the bathroom. When he arrived, he said, “Uh-oh, wine in the bath. This can’t be good.” When she questioned his tardiness, he quipped, “Revise your expectations and I will always be early.” I’m going to try that line on my wife next time I’m late getting home! Filed under: TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 5 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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About a month passed between episodes and Lucius is still mired in guilt over the deaths of his wife, children and Caesar. Titus continues to be a good and loyal friend, but it’s clear that his new wife doesn’t want to stay with Lucius any longer. Mark Antony has bit off more than he can chew and is quickly finding that the day-to-day responsibilities of consul are more than he can bear. He has to deal with Octavian, who justifiably wants his inheritance, with Cleopatra, who wants her son proclaimed to be Caesar’s, and with the gangs, who have all tried to fill the power vacuum present after Lucius’ antics last week. For the last bit, Antony enlists Lucius’ help, giving the soldier a swift kick in the ass in the process. Lucius takes to his new mission with vigor and declares himself a “son of Hades.” Titus continues to worry about the dark path that his friend is taking, but hasn’t shown any signs of leaving Lucius’ side. Atia’s loyalty to Antony has more to do with her underestimation of her own son than any true affection she has for the consul, though she did throw out a unreturned “I love you” early in the episode. She is still distracted by her hatred for Servilia, but has a new foil in Cleopatra, who has certainly caught Antony’s eye. Towards the end of the episode, Octavian made his move by promising to deliver the money that Caesar originally pledged to the plebes. He decided to borrow against his inheritance, which caused the throw down between he and Antony. Octavian has decided to leave Rome, and will no doubt return with an army and loads of support from the citizens of Rome. Now, for a few of the best lines from this episode: Atia: (to Antony) “I love you.” Antony: (to Cleopatra) “Your son will eat shit and die before I make him legal.” Antony: (to Lucius) “Look at the fucking state of you.” Cleopatra: (to Atia) “I have made a friend for life.” Lucius: (at the parlay) “I am a son of Hades and I fuck Concord in her ass!” Cicero: (to Servilia) “I doubt [Octavian] will be more than a nuisance to Antony.” Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: None Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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It’s been more than a year since we’ve had a new episode of “Rome” to watch, and I always find it interesting, especially with these shows on HBO, how our everyday lives roll on as the cast and crew work furiously to but together twelve or thirteen episodes to entertain us for three months before the process starts all over again for another season. Tonight’s episode picks up moments after Caesar’s murder, and all hell’s breaking loose in the city. For the most part, the creators did a beautiful job of seamlessly rolling the first season into the second. But Atia (Polly Walker) looks quite different to me, so much so that I almost didn’t recognize her when she first hit the screen. It’s possible that they wanted her character to look like she’s aged five to ten years and gained ten to twenty pounds, but something tells me that was an issue the creators had to deal with when they started shooting for the second season. This episode dealt with the aftermath of not only Caesar’s death, but Niobe’s as well. It’s not often that a show will kill off two of their main characters at the same time, but the parallel storylines make for compelling television. First, the political implications of Caesar’s death had to be dealt with and it was clear right from the start that Octavian was stepping up his role in the political realm. He’s extremely savvy, so it’s no wonder why Caesar bequeathed his estate to the young man, effectively making Octavian his son. As his mother tres to get the family out of the city, he quickly formulates a plan, and with Mark Antony’s help (and his mother’s approval), he effectively seizes control of the city. Brutus made the mistake of trusting Antony against the advice of all of his advisors, including Servilia. When she put in her two cents, his line – “You too, mother?” – was priceless. Meanwhile, Lucius is reeling from Niobe’s suicide, but it was clear that he was going to kill her anyway for having a child by another man while he was away at war. He made the mistake of cursing and banishing his children and almost immediately regrets it. Titus and his slave girl have a nice moment in the woods when he had the best line of the show: “I know I didn’t get us started off on the right foot, killing your man, and I’m sorry for that.” He proposes to her and she agrees to be his wife, but it’s clear that she’s having a tough time understanding that she’s a free woman now. Anyway, once someone rides by yelling about Caesar’s death, Titus hilariously knocks the guy off his horse and uses it to head back to the city. There, he finds Lucius in a serious tailspin, but helps his friend pull things together. Lucius is torn up about placing a curse his children and the two men discover that their old boss abducted them. After a bloody attack on the boss’ hideout, the man informs the duo that for Lucius’ past transgressions, he “f*cked them, killed them and threw them in the river.” And that was the end of that guy. It may take a while for Lucius to recover from he day’s events, and he’s not unlike the city of Rome trying to recover from Caesar’s death. Brutus has been sent to the country, so it looks like Antony, Octavian and Atia will control the city for the time being. Octavian and Titus also had words during the episode and it’s clear that kid trusts the big man. Over the season, Octavian is going to develop into more of a leader and it will be interesting to see what role Titus (and Lucius, for that matter) play in the future of the empire. All in all, it was a great premiere and I can’t wait to see more. Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and External TV Comments: 10 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Savor the moment, HBO. You currently own more than a quarter of our TV Power Rankings list, but with the imminent departure of “The Sopranos,” “Deadwood” and “Rome,” along with the TBD status of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and the oddly lengthy shooting schedule for the half-season “Extras,” the end of your reign as BE must-see TV could very well be nigh. For the moment, though, we heart you and wish you would ask us to the prom. Unless Jack Bauer’s still single, in which case we’re spoken for. Here’s a sample entry from our list: 13. Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO): It seems like a long time between seasons of this great comedy, and I often wonder during the show’s hiatus: What trouble is Larry David into right now? Last season, he had to decide whether or not to give one of his kidneys to Richard Lewis. Richard’s cousin, Louis Lewis, was (conveniently) in a coma and Larry kept visiting him in the hospital, secretly hoping that Louis would croak so that Richard could have Louis’ kidney instead. The other season-long storyline was Larry investigating the possibility that he was adopted, leading to several funny scenes with his supposed gentile birth parents. The show isn’t quite as fresh as it was in its first couple of seasons, but with episode titles like, “The Korean Bookie,” “The Christ Nail” and “Kamikaze Bingo,” how could you be? ~John Paulsen Check out the full list here. Filed under: TV and News and Reviews and TV Comedies and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome and Lost and South Park and Prison Break and The Office and My Name Is Earl and 24 and The Shield and The Sopranos and Rescue Me and Entourage and Deadwood and External Entertainment and External TV Comments: 4 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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After last week’s blog entry, a reader wrote in wondering why I didn’t discuss the violent arena scene in more detail. My answer: I don’t know. The scene certainly deserves mention as it was one of the goriest scenes HBO has broadcast, and it almost makes up for the awful strobe-filled “battle scene” we saw in episode 7. But the best thing about the scene was the great display of the brotherly love that Lucius and Titus have for each other. On to this week’s episode, which is also the season finale. Like another HBO franchise, “The Sopranos,” this series isn’t afraid to kill off a main character. Okay, everyone knew that Caesar was going to bite it soon, but who would have guessed that Niobe would take a header off a balcony? I’ll admit - that caught me by surprise. Servilia was the key that tied both storylines together. With the news of Niobe’s illegitimate son, she pulled Lucius away from Caesar’s side so that he wouldn’t be there to protect Caesar when the Senators made their move. It was actually quite brilliant. Even more surprising than Niobe’s suicide was Titus’ former slavegirl pulling a 180 and grabbing the big man’s hand at the end of the episode. You would think that killing a girl’s boyfriend wouldn’t be the way to her heart, but apparently, you’d be wrong. The girl’s ex has to be rolling over in his grave at the thought of his murderer tapping his love, but there isn’t much he can do about it anymore. Darwinism, at its finest. Looking forward to next season, it should be interesting to see how the new Republic moves forward and how Lucius deals with a boy that is not his own. Servilia’s threats towards Atia should provide material for another compelling storyline. Despite losing the considerable presence of Julius Caesar, the series is actually setting up pretty well for a second season. Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome Comments: 7 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Caesar is starting to show his true colors. Seemingly honorable and evenhanded, he indirectly hires Titus to assassinate an enemy of his, ultimately forcing Lucius to save Titus from certain death in the Arena. I doubt Lucius will be able to go back to being a magistrate after his public display of affection for his friend, but anything can happen in Rome. Things are also moving forward on the Brutus front. When graffiti depicting Brutus betraying Caesar appears throughout Rome, Caesar asks him to leave the city for a year to govern Macedonia. Brutus is insulted and vows to help Cassius do what is needed to remove Caesar from power. Anyone who paid attention in their high school English classes knows where this is heading. |
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Caesar is elected emperor by a castrated Senate and he celebrates by providing five days of feasting and games. He publicly executes one of his prisoners, the “King of all the Gauls” and the discarded body is later given a proper funeral by what I can only assume are Gaul-loyalists. Servilia continues to plot against Caesar and has enlisted the help of Pompey’s son, Quintus, along with an old friend, Casius. The three write an anti-Caesar statement and sign Brutus’ name to it, which pisses him off to no end. He’s mostly concerned with how Caesar will react, but the big man is cool with it. More and more, “Rome” is less about the politics of the time and more about the life and times of Titus Pullo. His fierce loyalty combined with his brutish decision making make Titus by far the most intriguing character in the series. Just when you think the guy is a big teddy bear, he goes and kills a slave because the guy was going to run off with who he thought was his girl. I was expecting him to react, but I wasn’t expecting him to REACT. Titus slams the poor boy’s head into a stone column five times before relenting, but it’s already too late. Now that his dream of retiring to the country with his slave girl is impossible, it appears that he may go over to the dark side, and take a job in Rome’s seedy underworld. Lucius is a fish out of water in the world of politics and is troubled when he learns that the magistrate elections aren’t on the up and up. If nothing else, the man is honorable, so it will be interesting to see how mired he gets himself in politics, which seem to be corrupt no matter what year it is. He seems especially hurt when he and Titus have it out (over Titus’ killing Lucius’ slave in front of his children) and Titus calls Lucius out on his political flip-flopping. Lucius banishes Titus and it appears that the friendship is over, for the time being anyway. Before Titus leaves he apologizes to his slave girl. It’s quite the statement about the violence of those times, that a man thinks that an “I’m sorry” is going to have any effect on a stunned widow. Poor guy, now we know why she looked so distant while they got it on last week. Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and Rome Comments: 6 Comments Digg this! Add to Del.icio.us |
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Just when you thought the show had covered every area of sexual depravity, they throw some incest at you. That’s right, Octavian is back from boarding school and Servilia enlists his sister (and her lesbian lover) to seduce him once she discovers that he holds the secret to Caesar’s ailment. Octavian is a bright kid and after he and his sister get it on, he tells her that he’s suspicious of her motives. A servant witnesses the morally reprehensible act and blows the whistle by telling his master, Atia – pissing her off to no end. Octavia only went along with this plan because she thought her mother had killed her husband (she did) and after confronting her, her mother lies right to her face. Later, Atia arranges for Servilia to get carjacked, leaving her naked and wailing in the streets of Rome – not a pretty sight. Meanwhile, Lucius comes thisclose to a dangerous confrontation with his old boss (over a slap to the face, of all things) before Caesar unknowingly saves the day by showing up at Lucius’ home and asking him to be his magistrate for a section of Rome. Lucius hesitates, but agrees and this sends Titus Pullo into a tailspin. The two most interesting relationships in the show are Titus’ friendship with Lucius and his budding romance with his slave girl. The latter is cranked up a notch when Titus ties one on and calls the girl out – literally. It’s tough to get a read on the girl; as the two start to get it on, she seems quite distant. I’m interested to see where this takes poor Titus – I think he’s in love. |
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It was all about Egypt in this episode, as Caesar took a small group of men to find out what happened to Pompey. The child king of Egypt is in a feud with his sister (none other than Cleopatra) and the king describes his relationship with her by saying, “I piss on her! I shit on her!” How’s that for a sibling rivalry? Once Caesar finds out that Pompey was beheaded he realizes that this boy ruling Egypt (for Rome) will not do and he sends out a couple of men – Lucius and Titus, of course – to find Cleopatra. The two men find her and actually save her life before Cleo orders Lucius to have sex with her because she wants to give Caesar a child, saying that her “womb is between floods.” Colorful imagery aside, you have to like the reasoning – Cleo is a deceptive one, for sure. Having a conscience, Lucius can’t pull the trigger so he orders Titus to do it. As expected, the big fella has no problem sexing up the beautiful princess, and an angry Lucius ends up suffering from serious penis envy. When they return the princess to Alexandria, Cleo seduces Caesar and nine months later, Caesar has his first son – or so he thinks. Titus doesn’t seem bothered by the fact that he may have a son that will never know his true father, but that is a secret that he’ll have to take to his grave, or else face the consequences |
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After last season, many of the networks scrambled to capitalize on the success of “Lost,” but I wasn’t expecting any of the characters on “Rome” to end up stranded on a deserted island. Such was the case for our heroes, Lucius and Titus, who find themselves in dire straits after their ship sinks in a storm. I half expected a polar bear to charge out of the jungle, only there wasn’t any jungle, or any water for that matter. “This is where we die,” proclaims Lucius, who later figures out a way to use the corpses that washed up as part of a raft to get off the island. Like the Guinness guy says on those commercials – “Brilliant!” Last week, I discussed Octavia’s budding relationship with Servilia, but I thought it would develop as more of a mother / daughter connection, with Servilia acting as a proper maternal figure that Octavia seems to so desperately want. But that’s not what we saw tonight. Regarding the lesbian love, I started to get suspicious when Octavia had to primp before seeing Servilia the first time and then more so after her strange reaction (post-masturbation scene) when Atia wanted her to visit Servilia the second time. There’s sort of a Melissa Etheridge / Portia De Rossi thing going on between these two. It should be good television when Atia finally finds out. I felt a little cheated after all the buildup to the final battle between Pompey and Caesar. The battle consisted of a few close up strobe shots of soldiers fighting. I hate the strobe effect – it is a cheap way to try to add drama to a scene that should contain more, and it is usually a sign of a show going the way of the dodo, or at least being dropped from my viewing roster. I am going to give “Rome” a pass on this one, but if this is really their idea of a battle scene, we’re all in trouble. Nevertheless, we have no idea how Caesar overcame horrible odds to be victorious until Pompey draws it out in the dirt later in the show. That’s just what I want to see, a semicircle in the dirt. I also wonder about the likelihood of Pompey arriving at the exact same spot on the coast where Lucius and Titus wash ashore. Talk about random. Caesar explains this convenient coincidence away in one of the final scenes by saying that our two heroes “have powerful gods on their side.” If you say so, Julius. If you ask me, it’s just uncharacteristically lazy writing. And how about poor, poor Cicero? The guy wants out of politics and just wants to sleep, whether it’s a proper retirement or a permanent dirt nap. He and Brutus surrender to Caesar and the chief welcomes him with open arms. Cicero tries to beg for Caesar’s mercy, and seems to be trying to put himself out to pasture in the process, but Caesar won’t let him get a word in edgewise. An overused Michael Corleone quote comes to mind – “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” The episode was saved by the final scene where Pompey lands in Egypt and is beheaded. Gruesome, violent, unnecessary – these are all words that come to mind. Man, I love HBO. |
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