Reviewer Rating: 2.75/5.0
2.75
Which came first: Rome or Westeros?
From the heavy drumbeats and the opening credits of a river of blood on a white marble map of Rome, it’s clear which show influenced the first season of “The Dying.”
What’s unclear is how this soapy and surprisingly gory show about the scheming citizens of ancient Rome will compare to the long-running success of its spiritual predecessor.
It’s full of familiar action, deception, and inconsistent accents while also having a unique appeal.
History anchors fantasy in those who are about to die
A giant silver lion serves as the thematic stand-in for a dragon in this sprawling story, which features protagonists from all over the geographical locations of the Roman Empire.
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However, this event soon occurred in Rome, where the citizens were busy starving when they were not betting on chariot races.
Delays in food shipments and resulting food shortages were just one of the many causes of riots that occurred almost daily in the city.
Building an amphitheater “for the people” was sucking away funds that could have been used to meet the more pressing needs of the Romans.
Emperor Vespasian (Anthony Hopkins) has little time left to live but has yet to choose which of his two sons will succeed him on the throne.
Mount Vesuvius is spewing smoke.
It’s a violent social and political maelstrom in which a family from Numidia and three horse-breeding brothers from Spain find themselves caught.
But in reality, apart from the chariot races in the Circus Maximus, there seems to have been little going on in Rome.
The core characters of “The Dying Man”
The show centers on businessman Tenax (Ivan Rhynn), who seems to be betting mostly on chariot races, but is actually involved in a variety of unsavory money-making activities.
His friendship with star charioteer Scopus (Dimitri Leonidas) is mutually beneficial, and it’s fun to watch the evenly matched men bicker verbally and try to create their own racing faction. .
Tall, handsome, and smart, Scopus never lost a match. He likes wine and women, but not as much as he loves money.
Scopus was a reliable source of joy for much of the season, but then his character took a sharp turn toward corruption, which seemed to occur mostly off-screen.
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This prevents it from being truly effective (or believable) after he’s had such an active role for so long.
In other words, there are absolutely no angels in the city of Rome.
After all, every character is flawed to varying degrees.
Just here, in those depths deep.
The world’s unpredictable violence soon showed how rare it was for ordinary Romans to survive on any given day.
This helps us understand the moral flexibility and survival-first ethics of these characters, but as the series progresses it becomes dimmed by just how horrific some of their actions become.
Tenax is introduced as ruthless, but he’s actually more pragmatic than anyone else. In fact, he is weaker than he appears to the world.
While we all know Iwan Rheon can be menacing (hello, Ramsay Bolton!), here he delivers a full range of emotional beats for Tenax that are thrilling to watch.
With the exception of Domitian (Jojo Macari), no ruler or neighboring elite is particularly memorable. Anthony Hopkins has so little screen time that his Emperor barely notices.
A storyline that resonates with the dying
It’s easier for us to become emotionally invested in the main storyline where we spend the most time (although there may be too much chariot racing, even for a chariot racing show).
Tenax and Scopus, Kara and her daughter, Kwame and his gladiator friend Vigo: their respective stakes are clear, and we see enough of them caring about what happens.
Tenax was a solid central figure as he was involved in many different businesses in Rome that spanned class and wealth.
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His tragic backstory that appears later in the season is almost unnecessary because we’re already rooting for him based on the growth and changes we’ve seen him make so far.
Scopus is a less diverse character, as he only spends time in the arena, stables, and brothels.
However, his enthusiasm and humor made him indispensable.
At least until he turns evil. Before that, he was already great!
Carla’s storyline is deeply moving: she attempts to free her daughters from slavery and help her gladiator son survive, all while navigating the physical and social dangers of her new city.
She is smart, persistent, multilingual, and a gifted improviser. Not surprisingly, Tenax was attracted to Kara both professionally and romantically.
But how far can their alliance really go? we have left A bit It’s believed he won’t end up killing her, but the past ten hours have shown us how quickly that alliance can change.
Kwame’s storyline is perhaps the most heartbreaking in a show that almost ends in tragedy. I desperately hope his final fight with Viggo doesn’t end up like this, but it seems destined.
Violent behavior by someone who is about to die
It would be incorrect to say that this show is violent.
It explores a whole new level of gore, dismemberment and death on live television.
The deaths of children, in particular, are surprising.
The show’s historical framework might serve as a shield or justification for this, but it totally eludes me, especially on a non-cable channel.
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As for aldult Violent, it gets really creative.
Although it’s almost comical how many riders (and horses!) died in each chariot race, it wasn’t seen beforehand as being particularly dangerous like gladiator battles.
Much of this violence is attributable to Domitian, whose sadism is as potent as the gold-leaf crown his brother Titus would not give him upon his death.
Slow stretching exercises for the dying
This show has a perfect eight-episode season buried beneath it.
It starts to lose steam in its home stretch, and even the action set pieces in the final two episodes can’t erase the feeling that this show didn’t need to be this long.
There are filler characters (like Tenax’s childhood friend turned terrifying villain) and recurring blackmail schemes that kill momentum and force us to spend time away from our favorite storylines.
Just like in Game of Thrones, whenever anyone is looking for anything, they have to slowly browse the brothel.
This confusion is frustrating because despite the occasional silly and stilted dialogue, the show is entertaining and would be more effective at a shorter length.
Conclusion: Thumb…sideways?
Do you look at people who are dying? If you’ve done this, what do you think?
Let us know in the comments!
