Romulus season 1 – Not watching it, is a CRIME.

 

RATING 09/10 

 

It is easy to get access to a lot of great show in this damn age of streaming services and it is also easy to get lost in the shuffle for that same reason. And if the series in concern is not an English-speaking one then, that even plummet the chances of its discovery and then its appreciation, however great it might be. That being said, Romulus season 1 by Italian television channel “Sky Italy” is just TOO GOOD to be missed.  

Too Good? 
The show roughly follows the legend of the formation of Rome by two brothers who were raised by a She-wolf. Unlike the popular interpretation, the creators of ‘Romulus” reconstructed the legend in as much realism as possible which could set off many purist and history buffs. But the sense of more realism made the world of “Romulus” Bleak, unforgiving and Frightening in an entertaining way. Mind you, despite of its Reality, the series is not devoid of magic and mysteries but that too could be broken down to illusions and misplaced faith.  

The series would be compared to Netflix’s Barbarians for being a contemporary series dealing with Roman empire and also because of the authenticity of linguistic efficiency that it is trying attain. Much like Barbarians, the characters in Romulus use legitimate verbiage that was supposed to be in use in the given area at that part of history. All of the narrations and dialogues in Romulus are done in archaic Latin that was reconstructed by the linguists and the historians who were brought in, to match the form of Latin that was spoken in eighth century B.C.  This part of the show was really exceptional, as It made you forget the fact that the people inside your screen are speaking in Latin, because of the smooth flow of the dialogues without any rigidity. It is also tremendous achievement by the actors, for the entire cast to the deliver the dialogues with emotion in a language that is not their first language, much less a language that’s been not in use for centuries.   

By the way, all this talk on “linguistic efficiency” may seem intimidating but not a single bit of fun is taken away from the show even if you do not enjoy that aspect of it. The characters are well written, the motivations are clear enough and the performance are great as they can be. where no main character out shined by the other, as all of them are equally excellent. And, when we as audience are sympathetic to the protagonist and root for him, you know that the series has done much of it right. 

 

Verdict 
The series is an epic historical adventure, a clear rival to “Game of Thrones” in terms of representing its brutal archaic world that is grounded on reality. It also captures the authenticity of ancient world by making all of its narrations and dialogues in Latin while putting a less popular but nevertheless entertaining take on the legend of Romus and Romulus. And even without the publicity and marketing constantly drumming “best” in your ears, Romulus has the “best” written all over it.