Sisi

Make sure you read up on Emperor Fran's Josef and Elizabeth to learn their true story, because this series is not it.

That being said, it was a very good TV series, well done and entertaining. If you're a stickler for history it will grate for sure, but hopefully will spur viewers to do some research on these characters and the times, and that would not be a bad thing.

The true story of Sisi is actually far more tragic than this portrayal. She did influence her husband in certain matters, particularly in relation to Hungary but her experience as Empress was nowhere near that depicted in this show. She was beloved by the people but spent little time even living in Vienna, and she herself was assassinated when she was in her 60's.

Also interesting is that the Emperor Franz Josef would later be responsible for setting the wheels in motion that resulted in WWI, after his presumptive heir, Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, were assassinated in Sarajevo by a Serbian.

To me, the true story -or history - is almost always better than what these writers and producers feel they need to conjure up for whatever reasons. That's disappointing.

But it's a good TV series, "based on a true story", with good acting, and beautiful direction in a beautiful country. You'll just have to bear with the alterations of fact, something I'm not fond of watching happen but as I said hopeful folks will be intrigued enough to do some research and find out the true story.

I'd recommend watching it but with those caveats.

I saw this already the third time. It is Not a Romy Schneider remake. It is a completly new fiction series. Yes it is fiction, But Shows more complex charakters- more like the real Sisi was. You can feel how many passion was put into this.

I definetly Love it. As a kid I loved the Romy Schneider films. You have to be open minded to really enjoy this Show- But then I promise you will:)

I'm sick of reading "it's historically inaccurate" in every review about historical drama's. This is not a documentary, it's just a show like any other.

I think the creators didn't want to retell a story that has already been told so many times. Maybe not everything that happened in this series is based on true events, but in my opinion that's what makes it interesting. It's new and refreshing and I'm here for it!

The series was visually very beautiful. It was well filmed and the shots were really nice. I'm not sure if the costumes were historically accurate, but they were beautiful for sure.

What I loved most, was Sisi's character developement. In the start she was this cheerful and happy person, but you could see how she felt less happy each episode. The prince's emotions were good portrayed as well. I could feel his sadness and anger by just looking at him.

The only thing that bothered me, which is propably the most important thing too, is the storyline. It just didn't have a good continuous storyline. I can't really explain what exactly is wrong with it, but it most certainly isn't perfect.

Overall it's actually pretty good. Yes, the storyline could've used some more work, but it was still very enjoyable.

The cast is excellent, a viewer can really feel the chemistry between Franz and Sisi. But unfortunately the plot lacks historical accuracy. Franz Joseph is depicted as the most horrible, emotionally unstable husband, healing every personal tradegy or political defeat by escaping into heavy drinking and having sex with prostitutes, leaving his wife suffering alone (for example, after the death of their daughter).

Season 2 started very promising but lost track soon after part 1. The character of Marie doesn't seem to have a logical place there; it is somehow forced and innatural to the development of the story. And when the "Hungarian" part of the story kicks in, the imagination of the screenwriters went very very very wild (here, they got completely off the track as far as the historical facts go).

On the flip side, the scenery is beautiful and some shots are breath-taking. I feel really sorry for the actors, they would deserve a better-written story. The public as well.

Got to admit that I wasn't expecting anything out of it, and yes this isn't for everyone because it's historical BUT the cinematography and the fact that the actress that plays Sisi were great!