Ever since the release of The Tudors, it would seem that Showtime (producers of shows like Dexter and Weeds) have been waiting for a chance to fill the void left by the shows ending – waiting for something to come along that replicates the sex, scandal, gore and a host of British actors to maybe give it some “class” that made the Tudors so popular. So now we have The Borgias – Showtime’s latest period drama to hit Sky Atlantic. There’s been a lot of build up of this show, almost to levels of A Game of Thrones in the last few months, so you can imagine that my expectations are high.
Now, I admit my history of the Borgias isn’t as great as many historians may be, so I’ll just give you what I know. The Borgias were a Spanish born family that lived in Italy around 1400’s. Eventually, Alexander VI of this family would go on to become arguably the most controversial and wicked popes of all time – ruling through fear, simony and corruption. There are many stories about the Borgias, of which I don’t know which are true and which are just fabricated, but really – these guys would make The Soprano’s look small time from what I heard about them.
If truth be told, I was actually looking forward to this show. It’s always been an interest of mine how someone could be so entirely corrupt – yet still believe they are doing God’s work. I’m not religious myself (I’m agnostic if anything), but I always saw religion as a way of doing good in the world – so it kinda upsets me how people can take this and completely misinterpret it as a means of doing evil (just ask the Phelps family!) And let’s not forget this series stars Jeremy Irons and is written, produced and directed by Neil Jordan, who gave us classics like Angel, The Company of Wolves and, of course, The Crying Game. Hopefully we are in good hands here.
As it’s a premier, we get a double episode, detailing Pope Alexander’s rise to power – then just a clergyman in the Vatican. When it seems that no other members of the clergy can get the required number of votes to get through, Alexander bluffs his way through to the position of Pope through simony. Now the most powerful man in the world, the series details his rise to power as they spread the word of God through questionable means. However, there are many people who are unhappy with having a Spanish Pope and this leads to a power struggle.
Honestly though, there isn’t much to talk about in the first two episodes. Mainly because the story moves very, very slowly. Each episode lasted about an hour, but it almost felt like I was watching a 3 hour epic. Most of it was just people talking and plotting, which is fine... but after about an hour I was hoping for the story to move on. There were a few moments where the action took a move in the right direction, but they were few and far between. It made it a little boring to watch if I’m being honest.
Speaking of being bored, let’s look at Jeremy Irons, playing the main role of Pope Alexander VI, a role you’d think he’d eat up like candy – but to be honest, he just ends up looking bored for most of it. In fact, he underplays his role so much that he seems like he’s going to fall asleep. Even his role in Dungeons and Dragons had more energy than this. Come on, Jeremy! You’re playing one of history’s greatest monsters, have a bit of fun with it! The rest of the cast is made up with relatively lesser known, but recognisable actors. In fact, most of the time you’ll probably be spending it looking at the cast and thinking “oh, where have I seen him before?”
So, based on this, you’d probably think this is a dull show right? Well actually, no. In fact, despite all this, I do actually think there is a good show in there. After all, it’s colourfully shot, the sets and costumes are nicely put together and fit in with the theme and time period – and I actually think the plot has some deviant twists in it – such as a double agent assassin that finds himself in the employ of the Borgias. It’s a show that you need to give it a chance to get going, though it’s clear you will need a lot of patience given the current pace.
SUMMARY:
Despite a rather rocky start, I have to say it’s not the worst drama to come out recently. It’s not a bad show to begin with really and has a lot of potential. I would say that this show is ok, but a lagging story stops this from being a brilliant show. The plot needs to develop significantly and the pace really needs to pick up to stop itself from being boring. I actually do want to see how this show goes on as it has all the potential to be a great drama. Just so long as we can stop our main character from falling asleep.
I give this one a moderate recommendation. It could be so much more but it has a long way to go just yet.
Agree? Disagree? Did I miss anything out? Let me know by leaving me a comment or sending me a mail.
The Borgias are owned by Showtime
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