# HBO: Rome. Who's watching it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 28, 2005, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018 "2005-08-28T21:58:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/1 "2005-08-28T21:58:39Z")
I have just discovered this series will be on tonight (8/28) and I love all things Rome, however, I don’t have HBO. ☹☹☹☹ I am going to see if any of my neighbors can record it for me. However, this looks really good. HBO just does things right. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/2 "2005-08-28T22:00:48Z")
Tonight?? Dangit! I’m at work, and spaced on setting the DVR to record it… will have to try to call the wife during lunch to see if she can record it for me! ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/3 "2005-08-28T22:03:40Z")
Count me in. That is, if Hurricane Katrina doesn’t jog a bit to the left. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/4 "2005-08-28T22:45:14Z")
I’ll be watching Rome, and recording a program about B-movie monsters on Animal Planet. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/5 "2005-08-28T23:02:04Z")
I love HBO series. I will be watching it. My TiVo is ready to go. ---
**Author:** ![SlyFrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@SlyFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlyFrog)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/6 "2005-08-28T23:19:50Z")
I heard that after digitally imposing Livia, HBO realized that they could simply digitally impose roman clothing on the rest of the Sopranos and have a new series. ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/7 "2005-08-28T23:55:07Z")
I’ll be watching. I love “The Sopranos” and “Deadwood”, and liked the couple episodes of “Carnivale” that I saw. I suspect that “Rome” will be a real treat. (I also expect it will have swearing and boobies. This is, after all, HBO. :)) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/8 "2005-08-29T00:23:24Z")
Swearing? In Ancient Rome? Somehow I don’t think that would sound right. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/9 "2005-08-29T00:34:24Z")
> [@Astroboy14](#): > > Tonight?? Dangit! > > I’m at work, and spaced on setting the DVR to record it… will have to try to call the wife during lunch to see if she can record it for me! Can’t you do this over the internet? ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/10 "2005-08-29T00:37:45Z")
The “Making Of” special I saw indicated an enormous production ($100 million), with huge sets and an attention to historical detail that I wish more feature films would emulate. Lots of sex and violence, too. Even if the writing isn’t the best, it should be great to look at (though I’m hoping for good writing, of course). ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/11 "2005-08-29T00:37:45Z")
I’ll be watching, but the shadow of ABC’s disappointing **Empire** is gonna loom large. I read in _TV Guide_ that one of the co-creators of **Rome** , Bruno Heller, admits that he never watched **I, Claudius** , since he preferred **Starsky & Hutch** , which was aired at the same time. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/12 "2005-08-29T00:42:02Z")
I liked Empire at first, but it rapidly got sillier and sillier. I hope Rome is better. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/13 "2005-08-29T01:50:15Z")
Just finished watching – no spoilers. For me, it’s a good sign that when the 52 minutes have passed, I’m saying “It’s over already?” I have **no** idea if they’re getting the history right, but I found a lot to like, and it’ll just be icing on the cake if they did. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/14 "2005-08-29T01:52:34Z")
So far they are doing a pretty good job. Interesting characterizations, full frontal nudity, lots of blood…what’s not to like? 😃 I’ll be watching next week. ---
**Author:** ![Lochdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/edb3f5/32.png) [@Lochdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lochdale)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/15 "2005-08-29T01:59:43Z")
So far so good but their history seems a little suspect. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/16 "2005-08-29T02:07:10Z")
The history seems fairly accurate to me. The names and ages are about right and the political stuff between Caesar and Pompey is pretty much right on. Some of the characters are fictional, of coure, and I think that others are being imaginatively fleshed in more detail than what is actually known about them. I don’t think that Actia (the mother of Octavian and Octavia) was really that much of a conniving bitch, for instance. Octavian’s snobbery is in keeping with what biographers saidhe was like as a child, although they say he became much less of an ass when he got older. His speech about Julius and Pompey seemed a little implausibly canny for an 11 year old, though. So…we got decapitation, graphic sex, full frontal nudity, penis puppets, crucifixion, guys knocking the teeth out of corpses, blue Spaniards and spear battles. Not bad for a first episode. It was good enough to make me watch another week, at least. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/17 "2005-08-29T03:05:25Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > His speech about Julius and Pompey seemed a little implausibly canny for an 11 year old, though. It sure did. Easy to dislike him at first, what with slapping the slave, but if he’s gonna be the one to explain the politics to us unlettered folks, cool. HBO’s quick description of Octavian – “A strange, melancholic, watchful sort of boy, he is gifted with uncommon intelligence and clarity of vision.” Was the tattoo (Pompey’s name) on the guy’s head a slave mark? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/18 "2005-08-29T03:18:08Z")
Yep. Romans typically “branded” slaves on their foreheads or the palms of their hands. Given the significance that Octavian (AKA Augustus Caesar) will eventually have in Roman history, I guess they’re trying to forsehadow some political savvy and intelligence at an early age. Even if he were really that smart, I still find it hard to believe that he would give such an inside analysis of the upper levels of Roman power to a couple of mere Roman foot soldiers…especially someone as class conscious as young Octavian is being portrayed. ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/19 "2005-08-29T03:39:16Z")
Is it just me, or … oh hell, it probably is just me, since I’m a horrible pervert. Anyway, I suspect that ancient Roman pubic hair was not so nicely groomed. (As always, however, I am willing to be proven wrong.) Good show overall so far. I took Octavian’s analysis as part intelligence and part parroting what he’d heard from his mother. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018/20 "2005-08-29T03:51:25Z")
Re: grooming. Tweezers and pumice (!!!) were used in Roman times for removing hair. So, theoretically, it was possible to maintain a nice dragstrip. It just had a cost, you understand. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hbo-rome-whos-watching-it/319018.md?page=2)