WWTBAM Bored

I do not get HBO and did not know anything about this mini-series until I saw an ad last week. It looked really well made and I love American History (as do my kids), so I ordered it from Barnes and Noble. It arrived a few days ago. I've watched the first two episodes and I am not disappointed at all. It is fantastic.

Anybody else seen this? Anybody else purchase it?

IIRC, Kazoo was the first to mention this series, saying that she was enjoying it immensely. Others have said the same. I don't have HBO either, but it will come around one way or the other.

I should get it--my son's history teacher had a couple of parts. A lot of locals were used as extras.

Giamatti is fantstic usually, so I don't see this being much different...

BackInTex wrote:I do not get HBO and did not know anything about this mini-series until I saw an ad last week. It looked really well made and I love American History (as do my kids), so I ordered it from Barnes and Noble. It arrived a few days ago. I've watched the first two episodes and I am not disappointed at all. It is fantastic.

Anybody else seen this? Anybody else purchase it?

I watched it on HBO "live". Actually, they are still showing it in bits and pieces. As mini said, Paul Giamatti is fantastic.

I rented all episodes from Netflix. It remains fantastic throughout. What I especially liked was the attention to all the diplomatic efforts going on in Europe during the war. These points had been rather glossed over in various classes I'd taken.

Yep, I watched it on HBO. Excellent series!

Saw it on HBO. Great stuff.

Actually, I've been reading the book the miniseries is based on. I'm nearly finished with it. It's really interesting, and I've been learning stuff about John Adams that I didn't know before.

I'll have to check and see if my library has the DVDs, so I can watch it-sounds good.

Apologies to Kazoo -- I mis-remembered her post. It was the book she brought up, not the mini-series.

Is he running for President?

What party?

Kazoo65 wrote:Actually, I've been reading the book the miniseries is based on. I'm nearly finished with it. It's really interesting, and I've been learning stuff about John Adams that I didn't know before.

That's what I'm reading, too. I bought the book in an airport a couple of years ago and started reading it on the plane. After that trip, however, I didn't open it again right away. Now I'm finishing it, and I'm mystified about why I put it down in the first place.

And as I have mentioned before, but worth repeating since I am so proud, Brother#21111 was involved in the production.

So of course it was great!

I found everything about it entertaining and educating. The performances are tremendous (Giamatti is great, sure, but equal props go to Laura Linney as Abigail), and as others have mentioned, there are some things I didn't know that I do now.

And for those who toss around the phrase "they oughta be tarred and feathered" lightly, the first episode, in which that practice is graphically demonstrated, should prove particularly illuminating.

I was able to catch only up to the episode when G. Washingon was inaugurated - up to then it was compelling but I would have even liked to have seen more (it felt a bit compressed but I can understand why the didn't want a 100 part series and avoid the Tristram Shandy effect) - I'm assuming it stayed compeling to the end - is it worth getting for the remaining episodes?

---Jay (Mr. Adams, you are obnoxious and disliked that cannot be denied...but he did manage to get the same number of people to sign the famous document as there are number of days remaining until my show airs!)

frogman042 wrote:is it worth getting for the remaining episodes?

Definitely. His reconciliation of sorts with Jefferson, losing family members including Abigail, his reaction to seeing the inaccurate Declaration of Independence portrait, his reflective conversation with his son shortly before taking to his deathbed...all this and much more makes for riveting viewing.

I found it so riveting and awesome that, after episode #1, I could have sat there all night and watched every episode w/o missing a beat.

IMHO, one of the very best things on television in many years.

If the mini series is 1/10 as good as the book, it must be fabu.



BTW

Just finished "Team of Rivals". It is better, IMO, than "Adams".

Loved the miniseries. It has spurred me to try to finish the book, but my reading habits are cyclical, and I'm at a low ebb right now. I'll finish it one day!

See, this is what bugs me about HBO. They have the STINGIEST On Demand service of ALL the networks. John Adams should be on the On Demand network NOW when people have time to devote to a mini-series. Instead, we're getting the 800th reruns of Sex and the City. Be like SHOWTIME and when you have a series run it ALL at once.

bazodee wrote:I rented all episodes from Netflix. It remains fantastic throughout. What I especially liked was the attention to all the diplomatic efforts going on in Europe during the war. These points had been rather glossed over in various classes I'd taken.

Thanks for the mention of Netflix. After reading your post last night, I zoomed over to Netflix and added them to my queue. I was surprised and not surprised that there wasn't a LONG WAIT for them.

dimmzy wrote:See, this is what bugs me about HBO. They have the STINGIEST On Demand service of ALL the networks. John Adams should be on the On Demand network NOW when people have time to devote to a mini-series. Instead, we're getting the 800th reruns of Sex and the City. Be like SHOWTIME and when you have a series run it ALL at once.

They want to sell the DVDs now.

I watched the whole series on-demand.

dimmzy wrote:See, this is what bugs me about HBO. They have the STINGIEST On Demand service of ALL the networks. John Adams should be on the On Demand network NOW when people have time to devote to a mini-series. Instead, we're getting the 800th reruns of Sex and the City. Be like SHOWTIME and when you have a series run it ALL at once.

It WAS on HBO on Demand while the series was originally running. They must have taken it off when the dvd's came out.

Oops. I just repeated what Bob J said. My bad.