Comanche Moon

I must have seen a different version than the first person on the user comments section.

It's really, really good...Steve Zahn and Karl Urban are great together. Val Kilmer's character is much like he was in the novel, although the emphasis is on Gus and Call and the Comanches. We get to see what happened with Call and Newt's mother as well. I won't spoil it, but it gives a lot of insight into Call's character.

All the actors did a really convincing job. Steve Zahn had the biggest challenge, I thought, to follow Robert Duvall! There's a lot of action, humor, tragedy. It's got something for everyone. I can't wait until it airs, my family are all jealous I got to see it early!

Things I like. Steve Zahn as Gus, nails the part, copies Robert Duvalls mannerisms which makes him feel comfortable to Gus fans. (some of the other actors copy their predecessors style in this series as well). Karl Urban, looks grim and tough, but can crack a joke and smile too, which T.L.Jones did in original series. The gear, the guns, the clothing, all accurate, or very close to period accurate. I'll never forgive Costner and Duvall for having a nylon lariat in their chuckwagon in Open Range. The Comanches, they are actually riding bareback, rather than hiding a modern saddle under a Navajo blanket. And they aren't painted as politically correct peace loving pastoralists, but as a proud warrior people. There are some dumb scenes, but it beats the heck out of yet another variation on doing something stupid to not win a million dollars reality game shows.

When I started watching this mini-series I was not expecting much as I loved Lonesome Dove and I figured this would be a cheap prequel of it. I was very wrong. The acting is spot on in this mini-series. I would very much recommend watching Lonesome Dove first, and then watching Comanche Moon. If the viewer watches the series in this order then the viewer will have a much more enjoyable experience with Comanche Moon because really it's about Gus and Woodrow(Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones' characters in Lonesome Dove).

So in this mini-series, it's still about Gus and Woodrow when they were younger. Gus and Woodrow are brilliantly played by Steve Zahn and Karl Urban in this one. Spot on performances too, the best role I've ever seen Steve Zahn play as Gus. If one watches Lonesome Dove first and then Comanche Moon, the viewer then gets to see all of the little nuances of Gus and Woodrow of when they were younger. The performances by Zahn and Urban were extremely well developed and very thoughtfully played in staying true to the characters that we fell in love with that were portrayed by Duvall and Jones in Lonesome Dove. Zahn and Urban really did their homework with exploring and playing these two iconic characters. A real treat it was to watch this mini-series. I loved it.

I can't forget to mention Val Kilmer too. Kilmer is a laugh out loud riot in this film. He is so funny and it's well worth watching, also/or, for Val Kilmer's performance. I highly recommend this film.

What has hurt this film is everyone and their Aunt Matilda is comparing it to its illustrious predecessor, which is always going to hurt any show. If you take it as a western, it's a darned good show. We discover how our characters in 'Lonesome Dove' wind up in the situations they start up in (Such as: Why do two Texas Rangers, who live on adventure, wind up in a dead town? And how did Gus manage to lose the love of his life?) The performances are very good, and we see the exact same mannerisms the characters will have down the road. The actors did a very good job. The cinematography was superb, and while the music didn't live up to the legendary score of nearly two decades past, that was an impossible task, and it was still fine.

It also helped that we had three episodes, which you just don't see in a miniseries anymore. Heck, it's downright impossible to see a two part telefilm these days.

Fans of the western, rejoice!

While I would agree that this is no Lonesome Dove, I did find it to have a few good scenes. The cowboy scene where they discuss what a genius is was one of them. However, the greatness of the original was how the characters were written and developed. I don't really see that with this installment, but keep in mind, the first part of Lonesome Dove paled in comparison to the 2nd and 3rd parts. I have always been a fan of Steve Zahn. It is never easy to take on a role made famous by someone else. I thought Zahn had many of the mannerisms that Duvall used down pat. I noticed the Gus finger wave and the head shake. However, the writing wasn't good enough to make me stop watching the actor and start paying attention to the story. I wouldn't call it a waste of time, since westerns are few and far between, but I wouldn't call it great TV either. I'll watch the rest.... if there isn't a game on.