Britannia premiers January 26th on Amazon Prime video. From the official description:
Britannia begins in 43AD as the Roman Army, determined and terrified in equal measure, returns to crush the Celtic heart of Britannia, a mysterious land ruled by warrior women and powerful druids who can channel the mysterious forces of the Underworld. Arch Celtic rivals Kerra and Antedia must face the Roman invasion led by Aulus Plautius as it cuts a swathe through the Celtic Resistance.
Judging by the trailer included in the article below (complete with stirring musical backdrop by Muse) this looks to be trying to capitalize on the mix of period setting, faction conflict, action and sexy time that make shows like Game of Thrones so appealing to mass audiences. The question is, are they trying too hard?
LOL, exactly. Hence my comment about trying too hard. Great premise and interesting concepts, I’m even on board with having some anachronistic diversity among the cast and like the idea of strong female characters…but then that trailer. It’s like they made it specifically to appeal to the lowest common dudebro denominator. Yikes.
Still, ROMANS and CELTS and DRUIDS and FIGHTING, so I am in for the first couple of episodes at the very least.
I mean, yeah. The premise is one I could enjoy. The execution is the pinch point.
And this doesn’t look to have it so that I would get prime to watch it. Pass.
I saw this advertised before The Last Jedi, thought it was a really odd, boring trailer and then it clicked when I found out it was a new Sky Atlantic series as it that kind of budget/feel to it. I guess its only on Amazon Prime in the US.
I’m not against the overall concept, but I found the music very jarring. If you’re having a series on Romans and Celts, I don’t want to listen to someone playing load electric guitar music during the show. It’s completely immersion breaking.
I don’t know exactly why, but this is how I feel whenever I see one of these shows from America or Britain. Historical k-dramas seem a lot more natural to me. I guess the characters act more like normal human beings in those and aren’t being 400% dramatic all the time.
Enter Britannia, which lives up to its name with an opening episode that’s a cross between Thrones, the Carry On films and the most debauched year you ever had at Glastonbury.
