Domina

Just finished watching the final episode of the first series of Domina, a very smart new show from Sky, based on the life of Liva Drusilla - wife of Augustus Caesar. I really liked it, mainly because it continued the theme of complexity and double-dealing initiated in the character by Sian Phillips, who played Livia in the series I, Claudius. I saw that when it originally broadcast in 1976, and have seen it a couple of times since.. This version of her story presents a much younger version of Livia, but I found many similarities and links which enhanced both series. You do need to concentrate to keep up with her, but its a worthwhile effort . . . Give her a watch!

Started out okay. Stuck with it as it gradually got better and better. I found it both clever and entertaining. At the end and I'm already anxious for the next season. I've seen some criticism concerning language. Seems a silly critique. They are speaking English for a modern audience. I can't imagine sitting through a lengthy series listening to the entire cast speak Latin just for the sake of being historically correct.

Deals with the tough time Livia and her son Tiberias had before her rise. And believable.

Not always accurate. Freed slaves were Freemen or Free-women and Roman citizenship was not lightly given. Also Dictator was a respectable office held for a limited period to overcome great dangers. It ended after Julius Caesar made himself Dictator for Life.

Octavius was probably more dependent on Agrippa than is shown, but is a convincing character.

It needlessly skips over the complex politics that had Cicero sponsoring Octavian against Marcus Antonius, before they became allies.

But it's the most accurate drama I've seen. Much more so than the earlier series Rome.

A dramatic and tense portrait of the personal and governmental affairs of the Julio-Claudian dynasty starring the main empress, Livia. Developing the complex life and difficult rise to power of Livia Drusilla, the powerful wife of the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar. We are introduced to a brave heroine, Livia Drusilla, beginning with a vignette in which she smashed an attacker's head with a stone, showing that Livia was not a damsel in distress but a strong, willful woman who controlled her own destiny. Following Livia's journey from a naive young woman whose world falls apart after the assassination of Julius Caesar, and the tragic death of her father, but she becomes the most powerful and influential empress in Rome. The world inhabited by Livia Drusilla explodes caused by the assassination of Julius Caesar, then Rome is bleeding into a civil war between those who want to return power to the people and those who advocate respecting Caesar's orders and plotting to avenge him. And after going through a hell of obstacles, young Livia undoubtedly made use of her enormous intelligence and beauty to recover everything that had been taken from her and become the wife of the man of the moment, the one who would be the first emperor of Rome: August. In principle, Livia's secret objective is the reestablishment of the republic, following the wishes of her father, but her exercise of power alongside Augustus is intoxicating. Together they would form an unrepeatable duo that would shape the social and political future of Rome, and while she was crowned in the shadows as the true empress and Augustus would become the great emperor of Rome and also a God.

This series follows the history of the Roman Empire, from the first triumvirate: Crassus, Pompey, Caesar, following the death of Julius, while Livia is the cunning empress who little by little gets her son Tiberius to take the throne. This tangled story is about the Roman Julia-Claudian dynasty, during the bloody civil wars and the long Pax Romana ruled by Octavian Augustus that was replaced by worse emperors such as Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius and Nero. Octavius Augustus, nephew and heir of Julius Caesar, forms the second triumvirate with Mark Antony and Lepidus. Antony is married to Octavia, Augustus's sister. After that, Antony marries Cleopatra and they are defeated by Augustus at Actium. Augustus married Livia, who had previously given birth to a son named Tiberius. The daughter, Julia, was born in a previous marriage to Octavio, and with a husband named Marcello who is suddenly poisoned. Then Julia married General Agrippa, a friend of Octavio, they had two children: Gaius and Lucius, who died prematurely. Agrippa, Germanicus and Drusus also die and Tiberius will inherit the Roman Empire.

This television hit within the historical framework was produced by Sky Atlantic that gives Ancient Rome the sex and swords treatment of "Game of Thrones" with many scenes of love, violence and confrontations. Interesting heroine and eye-catching production values elevate this tour of ancient Rome. So it has a great cast, a good budget and is full of killings and backstabbing. Sex and violence on the Roman scenarios in this peculiar crossover between ¨Rome¨ and ¨Game of Thrones¨, turning out to be quite entertaining. This epic series dealing with the extraordinary rise of Livia Drusilla who overcame adversity to become the most powerful woman in the world was created by Simon Burke (¨Fortitude¨, ¨Strike Back¨, ¨The Kaiser's Last Kiss¨) and starring Kasia Smutniak (¨Devils¨, ¨Silvio and the others¨), Matthew Mc Nutty (Versailles¨,¨The Rising¨, ¨The Musketeers¨) as Augustus, Nadia Parkes (¨Starstruck¨) as young Antigone, Earl Cave ( ¨The Unusual Pilgrimage of Harold Fry¨, ¨The End of the World¨), son of Nick Cave, and Liam Cunningan (¨Game of Thrones¨) as Livia's father.

Starts out the first couple episodes and looks like it's going to be some millennial thing for the CW, but then it gets pretty good. Historical femme fatale material, but of course they have to make her less vicious and give her a cause being the woke era and all. Still pretty good though since she is one of the more overlooked historical women and there is a lot of story left if they continue on until her end. They could get a good 3 or 4 seasons out of this at least at the pace they are going and still keep things alive.