I Was There

A bit overdramatic, but overall it goes into several very interesting spots in history, and the historical recreations are great! I especially liked the H. H. Holmes episode, and the one about the Johnstown flood. Those are two little known but absolutely riveting pieces of history!

This is such a tight, streamlined show without lots of boring, meandering filler. It is able to methodically break down and explain how historical events happened, step by step, in an entertaining and educational format. The episodes are nicely condensed and get right to the core of what happened--why, when, and how--with the advantage that time, distance and hindsight provides. Of course, you will learn more in a 10-hour miniseries. But if you have 20 minutes to spare, you will come away with greater knowledge than before, which may pique your curiosity to learn about history in even more depth.

The narration and interviews that underpins this over dramatised retelling of historical events is off putting to the point that I just can't bear the watch an entire episode, despite my passion for such stories. Less of the drama and entertainment and just gives us the scholarly facts.

They are half hour episodes that have re-enactments, it is titled I Was There because it tries to take you there. That aspect is fun to see the recreation. On the other hand thirty minutes is not enough time to cover some stories and seems like too much for other stories. The episode on the Salem witch trials covers through the first trial and then skips the trial and says this is the first person to be hanged. Ending the episode with 20 people died and the standard of evidence for courts changed forever after that. It literally skipped over the actual witch trials and focused on the events leading to them. That episode should have been longer than 30 minutes. Where as the Hindenburg episode was mostly speculation because nobody truly knows what happened. I don't feel a need for a half hour show devoted to theories that have no impacted on today's world. The Hindenburg was a tragedy but I don't know that it left any lasting effect on society. So it's a mix some episodes are good others are too short and others seem too long.

Great breakthrough hosting by Theo Wilson! This show uses creative ways to tell historical events. Have you ever read a piece of history or seen a historical even and asked yourself, what would I have done if I would've been there, what would I have seen, how would I have reacted? Well this series gives a honest attempt to put you in that situation. I actually use certain episodes of this series in my child's homeschooling class to "switch it up". It definitely holds her attention and she remembers more than just reading, and she gets to "experience" the events in addition to her imagination. So it's definitely worth a watch if you find history interesting or you want something different.