Satisfyingly very - blood, sex and speeches in equal quantities. The show begins with Caesar's final victory in Gaul, Pompey wielding power from the Senate in Rome, and in the space of this one season covers the overthrow of both amidst the machinations of dozens of others, including many known to us through Shakespeare and the history books - Mark Antony, Brutus, Cicero, Cleopatra...indeed, that's my main quibble with Rome, which I enjoyed a great deal (if a second season was made, I'll definitely seek it out): the way that everything seems to happen so quickly - major events, shifts, upheavals, all take place in the span of a 40 minute or so episode, and so something of a sense of scope is lost.
That said, one of the show's strengths is the emphasis it gives to the stories of the other personages making their way through Rome and its empire - particularly the centurion Lucius Vorenus and his family. And it deals well with translation issues, giving the viewer a largely unjudgemental take on society of the time and its mores...it's made me interested to learn more about all of its characters and the events it depicts - though I'll be surprised if I get beyond wikipedia in that regard...
(lent to me by Gian, ages ago)
