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Author Topic: Dracula series on Sky Living  (Read 4610 times)

Offline Cubs

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Dracula series on Sky Living
« on: October 31, 2013, 03:40:28 PM »
Starts tonight at 9pm. It looks intriguing, plenty of Victorian skulduggery and general bosom-heaving in tight corsets (although I prefer him in the traditional cape).

Hopefully it'll be better than the cut-price BBC effort a few years ago which was fatally miscast and had the budget of a village jamboree.

It really is the story (and genre) that keeps giving as regards scenario and skirmish game ideas. Anyone else remember the superb 'Fury of Dracula' boardgame? That was one of the most original and gripping games I've ever played. Just brilliant, and so easily transfered to the gaming table.
« Last Edit: October 31, 2013, 03:52:15 PM by Cubs »
'Sir John ejaculated explosively, sitting up in his chair.' ... 'The Black Gang'.

Paul Cubbin Miniature Painter

Offline Tehet

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #1 on: November 01, 2013, 07:45:51 AM »
First opinion...excellent.

It isn't the original Bram Stoker story but twisted into a steampunk version involving most of the original characters and a nefarious organisation called the Order of the Dragon. This is certainly going to be one of those series where you cannot define who are the good and who are the bad.

I especially love the the very Victorian way of being so polite to your most mortal enemies...before killing them!

Very stylish and well worth watching!

Offline Captain Blood

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #2 on: November 01, 2013, 08:33:20 AM »

Hopefully it'll be better than the cut-price BBC effort a few years ago which was fatally miscast and had the budget of a village jamboree.


The one with Marc Warren as Dracula? That really was abysmal. The viilage fete budgets of so many BBC dramas is what really pulls them down. When will they realise there are some things you just can't do on a shoestring. And that sometimes, if you don't have the resources to do something properly, it would be better not to do it at all  ::) (See 'The White Queen' and many more... )

Offline Cubs

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #3 on: November 01, 2013, 09:02:39 AM »
The one with Marc Warren as Dracula?

That was the turkey. No ammount of glowering can make a funny looking little blonde cockney dude into Dracula.

I haven't watched the episode yet, it's still on the planner, so we'll wait until the wee noise-maker is in bed tonight and make ourselves sick on leftover sweeties.

I do like the original book and the unusual way in which it's told through diary entries from each of the characters (which was quite popular at the time), but the story is necessarily told in a way that seems a little sparse nowadays. A bit of spicing up isn't always a bad thing, so long as it enhances the story. Besides, the journal style of the book allows modern writers to 'fill in' details that may have been left out by, or unknown to, the core characters.

Offline Cubs

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #4 on: November 01, 2013, 09:46:47 PM »
Just watched it.

I'm interested, I must admit. They've had fun with it and no mistake, no attempt to stay anywhere near the original story, with just a few of the names and relationships retained, but in a skewed fashion.

I'm not 100% sold on it, but certainly enough to keep watching because I want to see where they go with the plot.

Offline white knight

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #5 on: November 01, 2013, 09:51:03 PM »
I thought it was rather dull really...  :(

Offline scouts19508

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #6 on: November 01, 2013, 11:22:45 PM »
My wife liked. I thought it was ok. I also thought Dracula's American accent was rather weird.

Offline Slayer

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #7 on: November 02, 2013, 07:06:34 AM »
watched it last night and enjoyed it
the early bird may get the worm but the second mouse gets the cheese

Offline The_Beast

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #8 on: November 17, 2013, 04:16:31 PM »
Caught just a bit of this on 'merican TV; admit to being a bit of gobsmacked. Hadn't heard it was coming, wish I had, so I could have it a try. Might have gone either way on the characterization. Got the impression he was a bit TOO powerful for my tastes.

The one with Marc Warren as Dracula? That really was abysmal...

News to me; only place I've seen him that I recall was Hogfather. Nice menace there. Not sure for the Big D. Will be looking to see if on Netflix.

How was van Helsing?

Doug


Offline kidterminal

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #9 on: November 17, 2013, 08:34:18 PM »
Its showing here in the States on NBC its rather comic book like. The character I loved the most so far was the huntsman who got killed in the first episode. It has nothing to do with the book, stealing the books title and character names is a check against it in my book, though I'm still watching for now.

Offline Arlequín

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #10 on: November 17, 2013, 08:44:51 PM »
I like it. Sadly the one thing which grates is the use of the names from the book. I would honestly have watched this without all that, as purely a somewhat subtle tale of everyday Vampires and Steampunk folk. No doubt if they had though, people would be saying "That's totally a Dracula rip-off". Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

:) 

Offline white knight

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #11 on: November 17, 2013, 08:54:43 PM »
I've pinned down what irks me about the Dracula actor and it's that he looks like a bleached Prince (the singer, not the royalty). Once I got that image, I couldn't take him seriously anymore.

Also, in general it seems quite anachronistic, down to the characters behaving like modern people (especially the women) instead of products of their time.

Offline white knight

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #12 on: November 17, 2013, 08:56:10 PM »
I'm sorry, I keep being negative, but I really wanted to like this and it's just, well, bad.  :?

Offline kidterminal

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #13 on: November 17, 2013, 09:02:18 PM »
I'm sorry, I keep being negative, but I really wanted to like this and it's just, well, bad.  :?
I took it with a grain of salt from the start, but I do have do have to say that Everything about Lady Jane, here black leather trench coats, badly choreographed fight scenes are beginning to irk me.

Offline THE CID

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Re: Dracula series on Sky Living
« Reply #14 on: November 17, 2013, 09:36:16 PM »
One word sums it up DISMAL.   THE CID  >:(
Ive seen things you people wouldn't believe - Roy Batty.

 

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