BBC's Atlantis - what do you think? (Spoilerific thread)

[Chilari]

So a new fantasy series has begun on the BBC called Atlantis, in which the hero Jason goes looking for his missing father and finds himself transported to the ancient city of Atlantis, where he meets Pythagoras and Hercules.

The first episode was, hmmm... well. Where do we start? You have to assume that all the Greek myths have been thrown in the mixer, chopped up and patched back together, because nothing resembles any complete myth. Add to that the real, historical character of Pythagoras thrown into the mythical world of minotaurs and oracles, all mixed up with the variously real civilisation of the Minoans and given the name Atlantis instead of Knossos.

Sticking to the source material is clearly not this team's strong point. Case in point: the same people made Merlin and we know how that turned out.

But ignoring all the bastardisation of myth (and the presence of archways in a setting presumably at least 1000 years before arches existed), I found last week's pilot reasonably enjoyable. Mark Addy played Mark Addy as he always does, of course, but the actor who played Jason was nice to look at, there were a few funny lines and visually it was pretty good. Exciting, well-paced, but a bit boy's club.

Hopefully this evening's episode will be just as enjoyable, and hopefully not trample over too many myths.

 

[PaulineMRoss]

My daughter and I watched it, expecting the worst, and were pleasantly surprised. No attempt whatsoever at plausibility, just 'here we are in Atlantis', and a chase scene through a city obviously exceptionally well supplied with watermelons. And away you go. Highlights: 'Release the hunting lions!' That had us in fits (there were goats loose in the streets, why would they chase the humans???). And in the labyrinth, there was a giant crevasse, bridged by a plank which was then removed. Later, after Jason (spoiler, spoiler), our heroes miraculously reappear in the city, having (presumably) flown over the crevasse. Minus a hundred for historical accuracy, plot coherence, character development, etc, etc, but incredibly funny, and not always intentionally.

 

[Chilari]

Ha! I hadn't noticed that plank thing. Oh dear. But yes, "hunting lions" was rather amusing.

 

[Feo Takahari]

I hear the show's Facebook page is advertising the Jason/Pythagoras ship as "the new Merthur." I might actually give the showrunners some respect if they have the guts to make it canon--it's ancient Greece; you can get away with having gay guys!--but I have the feeling they're gonna push this just far enough to bait the fangirls without ever confirming it, like a genderflipped version of bait-and-switch lesbians.

 

[Steerpike]

Didn't Atlantis supposedly sink something like 1000 years before Pythagoras even lived?

 

[CupofJoe]

I think I'm out of touch with BBC commissioners...
I didn't like Atlantis. Just about all the bits [actors, acting, locations, FX etc.] are okay but together; it just didn't work for me. I know it is family entertainment and it's up against a juggernaut like the "X-Factor" in the Saturday schedules and money is tighter than it was so I wasn't expecting "I Claudius" or even "Rome". That said, it just seemed to be light and predictable.
I'm sorry to say that I won't be making plans to watch it again. But I won't turn it off if its on... its pretty good wallpaper for a takeaway.

 

[topazfire]

My husband and I have been watching Atlantis since the first episode and we have quite enjoyed it. We were big fans of Merlin (with a huge degree of suspension of disbelief and disregard for any history). I hope, as Merlin did, that it gets better as it goes on. The creators of Merlin had a 5 year plan and were able to see it through. Hopefully it will be the same with Atlantis.

There is so much myth to play with (and screw up), but there are some good character interactions. The writers obviously have a plan (Jason's dad was/is obviously important and there will be a big reveal at some point) and while the production value and continuity (among other things) are sometimes questionable, there is some heart to the story.

Merlin got much better after they added the Knights (and not just for the extra eye candy...) so I hope with a few more episodes, the periphery characters will be better fleshed out. I just hope the show will be given the chance to have it's run and finish whatever story they are trying to tell.

 

[Chilari]

I'm not so sure about Atlantis at the moment. It seems to have become episodic with the central mystery we started with forgotten. But they did the same with Merlin - they just had episodes where, at the end, nothing of note had really changed, and in the end (in my opinion) they failed to deliver on promise. It's starting to look like Atlantis will follow a similar line.