Rome

[wombat1138]

Nearly done with several days of mainlining DVDs of the HBO/BBC Rome series. I def'ly think the second season (possibly starting from the end of the first) does a shark-jump of ignoring/rewriting actual history for the mere purposes of ridiculous melodrama. It's not as if Shakespeare or Graves were completely accurate about historical details either, but I suppose they've been grandfathered into artistic acceptability and they don't seem quite as histrionically ridiculous.

As I partially remarked to the wombat-consort last night, Rome's second season makes me envision a history of the Hundred Years' War in which the war was begun by Joan of Arc setting herself on fire to burn down London, in revenge for the Black Prince dumping her from their long-term arrangement of kinky sex.

(Bonus random historical snafu: while I was waking up this morning, the local call-in radio show's segment on Afghanistan had someone (thankfully a caller rather than a guest) praise the Marshall Plan's success in pacifying the violent tribalism of the shoguns [sic] and provincial warlords who had led Japan through WWII. Alas for the metaphorical structural integrity of both my head and my desk.)

Comments

[jennifer3dtd.livejournal.com]

I like your version of the Hundred Years' War.

[wombat1138.livejournal.com]

Who knows, maybe Philippa Gregory has already written that book :b

[jennifer3dtd.livejournal.com]

Noooooooooo don't give her any ideas!

(Although now I'm wondering which author would do the best job of your version of The Hundred Year's War. Hm... It'd almost have to be a trashy romance novel author. Can you imagine the cover for such a book? Joan of Arc in a ripped bodice. HA!!!!)

[wombat1138.livejournal.com]

Joan of Arc in a ripped bodice on fire :D

[infinite-nemo.livejournal.com]

Rome! I love Rome! Got both seasons for cheap around Black Friday last year. Also - it's a good thing I never really bothered learning Roman History. Even though I was like, uh, supposed to. :X

Whatever. But yeah - it's off but they try to skate by using the secondary/fictional characters. I so could/would have gone for more. Sad, pricey canceled show.

[wombat1138.livejournal.com]

Supposedly the writers are trying to pitch a theatrical movie version, but it could be a bit tough to pull together the cast and characters again and rebuild the sets etc.

I'm surprised at some of the things they *didn't* mention in the pop-up historical notes (and the few audio commentaries that I listened to)-- I guess those has to do with not breaking the dramatic frame of some of their more, um, inventive character interactions and omissions, but they're pretty obvious by comparison to I, Claudius and would cause some problems with continuing the story into Augustus' reign, esp. his and Livia's children (none together, but one from each of their first marriages): Augustus' daughter Julia first married her cousin Marcellus (the son of Octavia's first marriage), then Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, then finally Livia's son Tiberius (who'd been forced to divorce Agrippa's daughter Vipsania for the purpose).

[infinite-nemo.livejournal.com]

Hmmm I may have heard film rumors- but yes it seems unlikely, especially since the show itself was too expensive.
O_O Gah. Roman history. :X Kinda makes my brain melty. I know a bit more about Roman Life - and know *way* too much about mythology. [Heh and now I've presented myself as obtuse and dull. WIN!]