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The Borgias AVC1 CODEC @ 26Mbps (AWBR/Series) TrueHD 5.1 Audio 3 Discs |
For years, most of the major pay-cable nets have played catch up with HBO. HBO led the way with edgy dramas, tight stories, great direction, and high profile actors taking on weekly drama roles to make themselves a prized network. In a more competitive environment, though, the other networks have made a serious effort to play some catch up, trying to bring in their own talent – writers and actors who could fill the role and be seen as high profile finds that would lead to a surge in subscriptions for their net.
Over the last few years, Showtime has made this effort mostly with comedies. From Weeds to Californication to Nurse Jackie, Showtime has made some efforts to put out some well respected TV for their viewers. On the drama front, they had success with Michael C. Hall’s appearances in Dexter, but they didn’t really find companion pieces that would give them shows that went year around to flesh out their calendar and provide people a reason to subscribe.
This year, in an attempt to bolster their lineup, Showtime introduced The Borgias, a period drama based around the rise of Pope Alexander VI, the rise of the Borgia family and the war for Rome. Showtime took every effort to market this as “the original crime family”, but in fact, the drama holds together much more tightly then that simple tag seems to imply. Jeremy Irons, playing the head of the Borgia family makes for a more then effective presence in delivering the role as the new to be Pope, using whatever means necessary to hold onto the Throne of St. Peter.
The supporting roles are more than effective in their presentation; Colm Feore, providing the role of Cardinal Giuliano Della Rovere provides that element of an insider looking to unseat the new pop, who desires the title for himself; while he views Borgia as a pox on the throne, his self hypocrisy over his base lust for the title and lack of humility make for a great bit of wordplay at moments, and he plays the role very effectively.
The show’s cast does a very good job of fulfilling the requirements of their roles and I found myself scrambling through episodes quickly. This isn’t to say that the show is perfect – there are some moments where it teeters a bit too close to over the top (I’m thinking here of the French assault and cannon scene of gore), but it does it well enough that I never found myself pulled out of the story, and Irons is fantastic in his role.
I think about a lot of the period pieces of film and shows that I have enjoyed – from Rome & Spartacus to WWII epics like Band of Brothers. The one thing that the best of these period productions have is that they commit to a method of storytelling and stick with it. Those that fail often find themselves seemingly disjointed or unable to really present a common level of production values or filming (Camelot being a prime example). But here you have a very strong ensemble and a very clear method of how each of the episodes will be presented; plenty of plots, subterfuge, some killing and a rush of action here and there. And it sticks with this method of storytelling so well that it lets the ensemble build their characters to where you know them in large part with the elements of action they are associated with.
I found myself really enjoying The Borgias more than I expected, and a large part of it is due to the level of production and the fact that there is no real central character. It’s too easy to say Jeremy Irons is the central character, but in sheer screen time, it’s debatable whether or not the focus on the life of his family and children doesn’t carry as much weight – if not more – then the elements of the Papacy.
Video Quality 4.5/5
The video is presented in 1080P, 1.78:1 AR, and it is obviously shot digitally. The episodes have a near flawless look to them. The colors are bright and vibrant; the movement is fluid and frankly gorgeous. The glossy smooth look to this gives you a view that is at times surreal – the view of the art in that surrounds the characters as they walk through the early Vatican to the dank views of a lowly castle of a sitting lord. There is very little to complain about this transfer; and the high bitrate gives this title all the breathing room it really needs to work.
Audio Quality 4.5/5
The audio on The Borgias is presented in Dolby Digital TrueHD. I found the audio to be clear and solid; ambient music and sounds at time pull you into the screen – I found myself thinking a thumping sound was coming from outside of my house at one moment, and yet, there it was in the front right channel. I had been distracted because I didn’t understand it would be in the soundtrack, but sure enough a minute or two later, there were the tubs on the screen that we heard in the background. It’s not often that happens at this point. The dialog is crisp and clear and I never found myself straining to hear what was going on. This is a dialog heavy series; there are a few moments of open action – but it’s not an action film. But when those moments did occur, the effects were well delivered and paid off.
Special Features
It’s very hard to talk about special features here. There are none.. and there are some. There are no extras at all that have anything to do with the series. However, Showtime has included episodes of it’s other series.. the first two episodes of “Gigilos” (never heard of it, some reality trope that seemed wildy fake an unwatchable); 2 episodes of Californication Season 4, the Pilot for the upcoming “House of Lies” and the first two episodes of Dexter Season 6. You might call it the Promo pack for Showtime… ie, “please subscribe, these are other great shows” As a long commercial it’s not bad. Still, it has nothing to do with the series at all. There are supposedly BD Live portals that will work to add into this. I spent limited time checking these out, and they are interesting but thin. The casting gives us the general background but isn’t quite what I’d consider a full featurette, and probably not a lot more then you’d expect from Youtube.
Overall Score
While it’s easy to dismiss the lack of real extras, I think this is one of those titles you are going to want to own. Well filmed with great video and solid audio, the Borgias presents a real attempt by Showtime at period drama and one it succeeds at. It’s a drama with lots of twists and turns and an ensemble cast that works out. If you’re looking for a drama to gulp down on a winter break, this is a series you can breeze few in a few days and not feel tired. The performances are solid and the scenery is fantastic. A solid recommend.
