I wrote a number of individual episode reviews of Blood & Sand. I was frankly blown away, it was not merely some of the best entertainment I had ever seen, it was in a class by itself, a sort of take-no-prisoners approach to TV drama. (Sorry for the bad pun) I spent time with this second season, packaged as a prequel, because of the excellent reviews.
I agree ... but I don't.
First of all, in my reviews of B&S I did indeed commend the performance of Hannah on multiple occasions. He is superb.
But to me this season speaks to the star power of Whitfield. It is generally acknowledged that, if not for his unfortunate circumstances, a career upgrade was in store. He was not merely the star, he was also the draw, the glue, the eyes through the audience learnt to evaluate the story, scene by scene in real time. Every time he approached Hannah and said "Dominus" part of the fun was guessing what he really wanted to say,,, That is missing here. The truth hurts. Without Whitfield, you have an above average production. With him, you had a great one.
I agree ... but I don't.
First of all, in my reviews of B&S I did indeed commend the performance of Hannah on multiple occasions. He is superb.
But to me this season speaks to the star power of Whitfield. It is generally acknowledged that, if not for his unfortunate circumstances, a career upgrade was in store. He was not merely the star, he was also the draw, the glue, the eyes through the audience learnt to evaluate the story, scene by scene in real time. Every time he approached Hannah and said "Dominus" part of the fun was guessing what he really wanted to say,,, That is missing here. The truth hurts. Without Whitfield, you have an above average production. With him, you had a great one.