Everything Game of Thrones did, the HBO series Rome did well – including not investigating the final | Culture

A Too many heroes wrong. Epic writings. Additional sets. A family hero whose definition of good is distorted by the cruel world in which he lives. Opening theme songs with catchy music. Blood, guts, sex and inbreeding: everything Game of Thrones he said, Rome did better.

Roma was one of the most expensive TV shows ever made when it launched in 2005; His two-year run was shot in a large, immersive outdoor recreation of the old city in the famous Cinecittà studios in Italy, and he did not spend money on costumes, props or fake blood. When it came out half a decade later, Game of Thrones followed in the footsteps of Rome with its conspiracy wheel of factions and alliances, surprising betrayals and Shakespearean dialogue with bombastic c.

Although Thrones had its labyrinthine origins in the novels of George RR Martin, and in England’s 15th century Wars of the Roses, both shows made their civil wars compelling on television by focusing on the choices and weaknesses of people. Thrones has also recruited a number of Roman directors, including Tim Van Patten, who saved Thrones from early death by almost remaking the show’s terrifying first episode.

Beginning with the end of the first triumvirate and Julius Caesar’s usurpation, Rome wrote the history of an empire that was at its peak and the people who wanted to rule it. The great opponents of history such as Julius Caesar (Ciarán Hinds), Mark Antony (James Purefoy), Brutus (Tobias Menzies) and Cleopatra (Lyndsey Marshal) are written as ambitious, power-hungry and flawless; Antony is very persistent as a political activist who prefers the political bullet to Caesar’s crossbow. Her other half, Polly Walker’s Attia, manages and manages her way from wealthy widow to mother of the Emperor, and she enjoys doing it more than Cersei Lannister.

But Rome’s greatest power is something that the Thrones never had: the common people. In the middle of this history, the most prominent in the show are the foot soldiers, taciturn Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson). After rescuing Augustus (Max Pirkis) the ruined youth in the first episode, Vorenus and Pullo are basically Forrest Gump through the history of Rome. Sometimes they are responsible for the greatest moments in history, but they remain ordinary Romans, all the great people they claim to represent. Vorenus and Pullo are a fascinating study of modern and classic masculinity, in their constant struggle to return to normal life. Their ride-or-die relationship is the heart of the show; loyal to each other to the point of brutality, and often murder.

The purpose of Vorenus and Pullo allows Rome to show the daily life of the Romans – how they lived, loved, ate, slept, worked and prayed in a city that felt both foreign and familiar. We can no longer rely on augurs to read omens and predict what is to come, but political graft and phallic writings endure.

The brutality of Roman life hurts because it is so ordinary. Vorenus, a lovable and honest man, settles into a slave trading business and seriously contemplates killing his wife’s adopted son. The sexual violence that Thrones was accused of is also present in Rome, but it is taken for granted, and nudity continues. equal opportunity.

One of the great joys of watching Roma again now is seeing the players, who have matured over the past two decades, sink their teeth into the script. Long before Prince Philip became the Crown Prince, Tobias Menzies brought a way for the politically challenged Brutus, plotting the death of his father (and possibly real father) Caesar. Polly Walker, now known as Bridgerton’s Lady Featherington, plays Attia as a smart political player, catty society maven and Milf. Stevenson, who died in 2023he never found another role that allowed him to transform his skills as Titus Pullo, the iconic middle finger of the “noble Roman soldier” archetype.

One thing about Game of Thrones that Rome didn’t have time for. Roma ended two seasons into a five-part series, leaving the last few episodes running and tying up the ends of history – after all, the last season of Roma’s run was better than thrones. Purefoy later laughed it off he and McKidd won’t accept a role on the throne because it “stole” their show – but perhaps the last triumph of Rome, after 20 years, is that they are still visible again.

• Rome is available to stream on HBO Max in Australia, the US and the UK. It is also available to rent or buy on Apple TV or YouTube. Find out more about what you can follow in Australia here