Rise of the Raven

As a fan of historical films and series, and as a Hungarian, I've been waiting a long time for a series that finally brings our history to the screen in a similar fashion -so I'm genuinely thrilled about Rise of the Raven.

While it's not a perfect show, it has plenty of strengths that make it well worth watching, especially for those interested in Central and Eastern European history. The pilot may be the weakest episode, but the finale - Episode 10 - is easily the strongest. That's why I recommend that if the trailer or the premise caught your interest, but the first couple of episodes leave you unsure, give it at least until Episode 4 before making up your mind.

The first three episodes focus more on the private lives of the main characters, while the political and military conflicts unfold slowly in the background. But from the middle of the season onward, the story truly finds its stride - with richer political intrigue, battles, and unexpected twists.

The show's biggest weakness might be its pacing, which likely stems from the challenge the writers faced: compressing John Hunyadi's eventful life and the era's political complexity into just 10 episodes due to budget constraints. (Fans of similar historical dramas - imagine trying to tell the full life stories of Ragnar Lothbrok, Uhtred of Bebbanburg, Henry VIII, or King Taejong in just 10 episodes... You get the idea!)

There are a few other minor flaws as well: some weaker dialogue here and there, occasional theatrical overacting, and a handful of historical inaccuracies. (One of the most notable is the use of a German translator for Sigismund of Luxembourg, despite the well-known fact that German was his native language - a detail that drew criticism from Hungarian viewers.)

That said, I honestly can't stay mad at the show for its imperfections, because the effort behind it really shines through. And its strengths - like the strong performances, the visual production, well-crafted story moments, and professionally executed action scenes - more than balance things out.

If I had to rate the episodes individually, most would be either a 7 or an 8, but I wouldn't hesitate to give the final episode a solid 9. Overall, I'd give the series a confident 8 out of 10.

On a personal note, I'm genuinely happy that a Hungarian historical series of this quality has finally been made. So thank you to everyone involved in its creation! :)

I'm really rooting for a second season-hopefully centered around King Matthias, who led an equally eventful life like his father - ideally told over even more episodes. :)

It's fun to watch a series about yor neighbours and especially historical one which is more or less on point. Well, emphasis on more or less.

And doing that exactly from the town that was historically of high importance for the main character. Town of Celje (Cili), town or the Counts of Celje especially Ulrik II. Who is actually depicted in this series.

It's a bit sad that our Hungarian friends didn't invite any Slovenian actor to play Ulrik as they did for the Serbian counterpart (although he is not serbian actor) with Serbedzija. But ok.

So far so good for a non Netflixian production and money. Without any real big financial backer, this series does actually a great job.

Still think that a good and tenacious fact checker can't be that expensive, so they should have hired one, but ok.

I'll give it a go. After first three episodes i am intrigued. Let's see where the Raven takes us!

Big congrads to Hungary and Ostereich (ORF).

Finally, finally, a challenging and satisfying historical series. I was skeptical at first, after so many bad experiences. But this one fits the bill: content, form; you can tell the team put a lot of heart and soul into it. Great! Rise of the Raven can certainly compare to Shogun and Spartacus: War of the Damned. And even if you know a bit more about Eastern European history, the details and context here are truly instructive, and it's not annoying when the director takes unsatisfying historical shortcuts or detours.

The landscapes and locations are well-integrated and cinematically simply fitting and beautiful.

The performances and cast are also well-suited; the Ottomans, despite their antagonism, are not portrayed in a distorted way. The Wallachians fare a bit worse ;-) but I think they're still historically justifiable. The political infighting isn't stereotypical, nor are the relationships; a little less sex and longer social scenes or story building would have been fine, but the surroundings aren't neglected either, and the sex scenes aren't formulaic, but occasionally feature a twist. Hunyadi's character isn't as superior as, say, Spartacus, but despite his human weaknesses, it's still clearly evident from time to time why he leads the country through charisma and integrity, even at the expense of himself or his family.

And unexpectedly for me (because Hungary is what it is), both the female roles are modern and strong (but not generalized), and LGBTQ people aren't neglected either.

It's just a shame that the multilingual approach of the original wasn't replicated in German :-(

I'm looking forward to the sequels, hopefully until the last Hunyadi, who was robbed of his legacy...

The series stands out both in its story and execution. From an international perspective, it is a true high-budget quality production. It is worth noting that the story is based on a historical fiction novel series, so the plot is not entirely historically accurate, but the series does not aim to be a documentary either. Regardless, the events are mostly historically accurate. At several points in the plot, modern elements also appear, particularly in terms of the series' strong female characters.

A special merit is that the female characters are truly strong, and this is not due to today's cheap, forced narratives in modern western entertainment. Throughout the plot, every important female character undergoes severe traumas, and rising from these, each of their personalities changes in a unique way. Therefore, we can consider this a positive example of "strong female characters."

The plot is also interesting and full of twists. The first three episodes are mainly introductory, but from the fourth episode onwards, the major political events kick off. The story features interesting character developments (e.g., Sultan Murad, Mehmed, Elizabeth of Luxembourg, or Miklós Újlaki) and layered characters (e.g., János Hunyadi or his real rival, Ulrich of Cilli), making it easy to captivate viewers who are attuned to the style of the series.

Since Rise of the Raven features many interesting characters, the main character Hunyadi often takes a backseat, but this does not detract from the quality of the plot; on the contrary, it enriches the narrative with new threads. Because of this, it is strongly felt in the series that it could have accommodated several more seasons. Nevertheless, the 10-episode format also works. The series gets better with each episode, and its conclusion is epic. The visual world is also of high quality, and the frames presented to the viewer often have a painterly quality. The actors are also excellent, and I would particularly highlight Gellért L. Kádár, Vivien Rujder, Mariann Hermányi, Murathan Muslu and Ulascan Kutlu, but the list could go on.

Another great merit of Rise of the Raven is its international style. The characters (more or less) speak in their own native languages, which makes the series' world even more authentic and complex.

Overall, it is an internationally high-quality production that takes place in one of the most important regions and cross-sections of world history, namely Central and Eastern Europe as well as the Balkans, which are often overlooked in the Western entertainment industry. From this perspective alone, the series pays off an important debt. If you love quality historical fiction (or drama) series like Vikings, Rome or The Last Kingdom, I highly recommend it to you.

I was pleasantly surprised by this series. It starts strong, then slows down a bit, but by episode 4 it sucks you in and you can't stop watching. What I liked most is the strong emotions it stirs up and that all sides are portrayed as likeable, yet imperfect humans. And of course there are the battle scenes, the executions that seem that you are right there with the characters. A couple of times during the series I thought the film was pure genius, but I don't want to give away the plot. Episode 10 is epic, I watched it many times. Don't miss it! I hope for a sequel. At least now I know why church bells toll at noon from Europe to Latin America to all over the Christian world.