Those About to Die

Those About to Die reminds me very much of a BBC historical drama wrapped up with a 2010s Prince of Persia style Hollywood movie.

Some of the acting and dialogue is a tad painful to watch and the CGI is very ropey. The scenery itself is quite stunning, but, as a soon and chariots start racing, the often used panning out shot has the riders looking like Duracell Bunnies with whips.

The giant white lion, although impressive in size, is again underwhelming in it's overall appearance.

I did enjoy parts of the story but in general was left frustrated and irritated by alot of the character interaction.

A series with a lower first season budget like Vikings did alot better of a job drawing the audience into a historical timeline. Whilst adding drama, humour and excitement.

Not bad but could have been alot better.

Is the show perfect? No. Is it entertaining? Heck yes!

I've seen complaints that 'it's not as good as hbo's Rome'. My brothers and sisters, nothing will ever be as good as Rome, simply because it was an era of terrific shows, masterpieces of golden age, with a gigantic budget that ultimately led to cancellation.

I've also seen complaints about the CGI. Yes, I agree, in a couple of scenes it was super clunky. But all the rest? Come on!!! Chariot races looked spectacular, the city looked spectacular, wide shots were beautiful. Even animals looked ok - the last rampage of a lion was terrifying, I don't care what you say, it looked and sounded real.

Interior design was masterful - those marbles! Colors! Burning lamps and flames! Emperor palace rooms! Gods, it looked amazing and DEFINITELY not cheap.

Some claim that 'it was all CGI'. Nah. There were beautiful sets built, houses, streets of Rome, and underbelly of Circus Maximus. From wide shots to little details, it was - dare I say - almost as immersive as 'Rome'.

Iwan Rheon is terrific as always. What a fascinating character Tenax is! Love love love. Sara Martin is excellent. Domician is a delightfully creepy guy, Scorpius is hilarious (up to a point), spanish horse carers are adorable.

Yes, the script is clunky here and there. Especially in the first episode. So please give 'Those about to die' a chance and stay for the second episode - and further. It gets better and better with each episode, with an excellent, excellent last one.

Maybe it's not for the highest of taste, but hey - it's a great, meta, plebeian entertainment for those who want to be entertained.

Started off slow, some of the scenes seemed unnecessary and somewhat poorly written, although as it progressed I became more and more embroiled in the characters and drama. I'm most definitely the target audience, as I love shows based on Ancient Rome and violence. I'd suggest giving the series a chance to at least over half way to fully appreciate the character development. I can't wait for season two now, I really hope they actually continue it. Some of the reviews claim it's tacky/cringe/a-historical, which at some points it can be, but if you're interested in Ancient Rome I'd definitely suggest watching! A strong 7-8/10 for me.

Those About to Die started a little slow but got better with each episode. I just found out about this show just a few days ago. I can't believe Peacock didn't promote this more considering how much it cost to make. Peacock never promotes any of their original shows very well but if they were to ever do it this is the one. I need to start off by saying that I love this genre so I may be a little biased, shows like Spartacus, Rome, Game of Thrones, etc and movies like Gladiator, Troy, etc are among my favorite shows/movies of all-time. While this isn't close to as good as those shows I just mentioned it's still worth watching if you're a fan of this genre. It's not exactly historically accurate but who cares, just enjoy it for the entertaining show it is. When an episode ended I couldn't wait for the next one and that's exactly what you want from a show.

When I first saw the trailer for Those About to Die I knew this show was for me. I'm definitely the target audience when they approve shows like this and I have to say even though it probably could've been a little better, I still really liked it. While I don't think it will win any awards but I promise you that at the very least you'll have a good time watching this. If you have a problem with violence or nudity then you should pass because this show has a plenty of both. The show takes place during the height of the Roman Empire as it explores the dark side of the city while also providing plenty of political drama too. I binged through this series as fast as I could (there's not a bad episode) and I pray they renew this for at least another season because there were still a lot of stories unresolved.