Robin of Sherwood

There is nothing more I can add to what has already been said about the entire series. As well as taking me back to a time in my life when the words "mortgage" and "bills" meant anything to me - and when Saturday night prime-time entertainment didn't involve reality TV, people wanting to be pop stars and hour-long programmes to pick lottery numbers when I could do it myself in ten minutes at the most) - there is no other TV show or movie about Robin Hood that even comes close to being on a par with "Robin Of Sherwood."

Every member of this young cast brings their character to life, and the Merry Men are perfectly written and acted. The Sheriff Of Nottingham breaks away from the usual mustache-twirling, scenery-eating bad guy, and has more in common with a corrupt politician than his previous incarnations.

Michael Praed's Robin Of Loxley was certainly a better Robin than Jason Connery's, but that isn't to take anything away from Connery. Praed's swansong in "The Greatest Enemy" is one of the best episodes of any TV show I have seen in such a long time.

Richard Carpenter's knowledge of both the legend of Robin Hood and beliefs in England at that time clearly show here - and it goes without saying that if the people behind "Prince Of Thieves" had this much insight and knowledge of the source material, their "Raw-bin Hood" would not have been so dismal. Blatantly stealing elements from RoS, and yet ignoring others make this film merely a pale imitation of RoS.

Without wanting to sound harsh, Connery seems to have been chosen to garner a little publicity for this often under-rated show; the son of a former incarnation of Robin Hood playing a modern-day Robin Hood. Connery handles the part extremely well, but isn't the actor Praed was. That said, I do prefer the third season episodes and stories to the first two series'. No one would envy having to follow in the footsteps of a role made famous by someone else for two series, and there is - as in all the series' - an excellent camaraderie and relationships - between Robin, his Merry Men and his Merry Woman.

The addition of the "old religion" trying to continue, while the new religion of Christianty tries its hardest to stamp it out. It's ironic that this reminds me of "Prince Of Thieves" in relation to RoS: borrowing a lot of elements from the original, and tweaking them a little. Still, though, the old version prevails over time.

Clannad's soundtrack works excellently alongside the programme - and I doubt RoS would have been the success it was without it. If you don't already have Clannad's "Legend", go out this weekend and treat yourself.

All of the stars appear on the DVD boxsets and everybody has good memories and making this show. Now a huge star, Ray Winstone seems genuinely pleased to take time out to talk about his experiences and love of the show.

Whoever suggested in this discussion that Carpenter should bring all of the Merry Men back together as older, wiser outlaws is 100% right. Do it now.

"Nothing's Forgotten. Nothing Is Ever Forgotten."

This is one of my favorite series, all categories, all time.

I was fortunate enough to get a hold of the whole series on VHS a few years ago. I loved it when I saw it back in -91 -92, when I was about 12. I love it as much, or more, today, which is remarkable considering my (hopefully) improved film appreciation and criticism skills. Most of the movies I liked back then I'm not that fond of today, besides for the nostalgia factor. That factor is present here as well, but there's so much more to Robin of Sherwood than nostalgia.

There are only a few bad things about this series. First, the picture and sound quality is so-so, at least in the first couple of episodes. Fortunately, it gets better. Secondly, you could have wished for a bit more blood and realism in the fighting scenes, although I know that was not an option in this case.

So, on to the good things! And there are a lot of them. First of all, Michael Praed IS Robin Hood. I don't think I have seen him in a single role since then, which only strengthen this fact for me. He delivers such a believable performance as Robin. Jason Connery had an impossible task replacing him. The fact that Michael Praed hasn't become a bigger name as an actor is unbelievable. Or perhaps that was his fate, to do this one role perfectly, then disappear.

I love Nickolas Graces Sheriff of Nottingham. He is really not a complex character, but totally rotten. The relation between him and Gisburne is just hilarious. Actually, just looking at de Rainault sitting in his throne, bored, glaring, makes me laugh even before he has said anything. Another actor that deserves extra praise is Ray Winstone as Will Scarlet. You can really feel the sadness inside of him as well as his hate for the soldiers who killed his wife. Winstone is an actor that finally has gotten his well deserved Hollywood breakthrough (in films as The Departed and Beowulf). There are a lot of other great actors here, too.

I love the portrayal of the Robin gang. They are having fun, playing, laughing, you really get a feel of the camaraderie between them, the closeness that comes from a tight bound group such as this. Those bonding scenes are so important.

I think that it being UK produced with British actors really made it better, compared to for example the -92 feature film version with Kevin Costner, that just feels fake, fake, fake. (Christian Slater as Will Scarlet, come on..) The cast being able to speak English with British accent makes it more believable, and I get the feeling that the actors, as well as the director and writers, behind the series can put themselves much more into the shoes of the Robin Hood gang than an American crew could have. The music is wonderful, Clannad is perfect for the feel of the series. The music is another of those things they just nailed.

An exciting addition also is the fantasy and magic spice that is put in there. It's not over the top, but believable and just makes the whole thing better and more interesting. I also love how nicely the mix of comedy, adventure and drama is blended.

Those are a few of the things that makes this series so alive and so genuine. It's by far the best Robin Hood version I have ever seen. I won't wrap up with the "Nothing's forgotten" quote. But one thing that never will be forgotten, for me, is this fantastic Robin Hood retelling. See it.

This retelling weaves myth and magic with the Robin Hood legend and, indeed, Robin becomes associated with the forest god, Herne the Hunter reinforcing the idea that Robin is a medieval incarnation of The Green Man (the 'foliate head' of the old religion which is often found carved on many churches).

The scripts were were well written, the plotting well thought out and the characters - and ensemble cast - excellent. In particular, congratulations to Mark Ryan - who became Nasir the Saracen. Due to be killed off at the end of the the first episode, he was so good, that he remained as a permanent cast member.

Ultimately, though, the series' immediate appeal was due to the amazing on-screen chemistry between its two leads, Michael Praed and the beautiful Judi Trott as (the first) Robin and his Marion. Praed's youthful, dark, good looks had an almost 'fey' quality which made the magical element entirely believable. (And by 'fey' I don't mean to imply any loss of masculinity.) The first two seasons - with Praed - were by far the best.

In the third season, Jason Connery had a hell of a task following an actor so perfect for the Robin role, but he did reasonably well and the strong ensemble cast carried the change of lead well. Richard Carpeneter's wise decision to make the new 'Robin Hood' a completely different character with a completely different background was a very wise move.

I suppose any review should mention the immense debt Costner's Robin Hood Prince of Thieves owes to Robin of Sherwood. Some might say that 'debt' was putting it mildly! Costner not only retained the Saracen (who until Nasir had never been a Robin Hood character at all) but he filmed in many of the same locations; used the same horsemaster (Stevie Dent) and clung to the magical elements - though being a good old American boy stuck to the idea of Christianity good - old religion bad, whereas Robin of Sherwood often showed the political corruption of the Church (historically accurate)and the simple spirituality of the old religion (unrelated to 'black' magic). Alan Rickman's OTT sheriff was a wilder version of Nickolas Grace's sly characterisation.

What more can I say? If you've never seen Robin of Sherwood, rush out and buy the complete thing on DVD - I guarantee you'll watch it again and again for the lovely filmic quality of the camera work, the leisurely but never dull pacing (which invests in the attention span and intelligence of its audience), the acting, the ideas, the very real emotional kick and (much praised) the delightful music by Clannad.

And did I mention Michael Pread...?

This is THE best fantasy series ever, particularly the first two seasons which are flawless. The scriptwriting is beautiful, the performances never bettered- Michael Praed is the most charismatic Robin Hood yet, and Judi Trott's Marion is head and shoulders over all others, but the acting laurels have to go to Ray Winstone as Will Scarlett- watching his intense performance as a man on the verge of psychosis really drives home the fact that Christian Slater was a pale imitation of him. The direction is, perhaps, consistently better than any other series, and that music...

Above all, it is the fact that it is the only programme that I watched as a kid that seemed BETTER when I saw it as an adult. If there is one TV series that deserves to be released on DVD it is this one.

Robin of Sherwood was part of my whole teen years and in a way after all these years and seeing it again on DVD now, it has not lost anything in all these years. My fascination is still there. I have never seen another Robin Hood story that had all these great color effects, the castles in the mist with red filter, the atmosphere it created. And for sure it is a series that tried to show how it could have been at that time, no beautiful styled castles, but you see the dirt and the fog in it. It has its own charm, and for me will always have. The mystical elements and also the two stories of Robin Hood that are shown here (Robin of Loxley and Robert of Huntingdon)have never been shown that way again. I love both Robins but personally I prefer Jason Connery as actor in this role.