MetaChat - "John Adams" -- who else is watching/watched?

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01 May 2008

"John Adams" -- who else is watching/watched? We just caught the first two episodes as HBO started rerunning it. (Spoilers, I guess, if you don't know how the Second Continental Congress turned out.)→[More:]
I'm surprisingly convinced by Paul Giamatti as Adams, though in his grumpier moments he fleetingly makes me think of Harvey Pekar in a wig. Laura Linney is, of course, superb.

I also like how it drives home how insanely risky the revolution really was. I think the it's generally taught in school or discussed around the 4th of July, there's this certain air of inevitability about the whole endeavor, a sort of lowest-common denominator abstract mythologizing that surrounds the whole endeavor (e.g., George Washington = cherry trees, liberty, and dollar bills). But of course, the outcome was far from certain, and they all could have been hanged for declaring independence.

I have a few quibbles -- Thomas Paine, for example, is weirdly invisible, and so far Ben Franklin speaks mainly in aphorisms that appear to have been cut-and-pasted directly from Poor Richard's Almanac -- but have still been enjoying it quite a bit.

post by: scody at: 19:14 | 11 comments

The first two episodes were AWESOME, but I found it got progressively less interesting as the series went on. By the end, I found Adams downright whiny and unlikable. I did, however, shed tears over Abigail's death. I won't tell you why...we can discuss it after you've seen the whole thing.

posted by jrossi4r 01 May | 19:20

(Spoilers, I guess, if you don't know how the Second Continental Congress turned out.)

That cracked me up. :D

posted by BoringPostcards 01 May | 19:35

I loved how when he'd get home from a tough day he'd take his wig off. The fairy tale history lessons of grammar school made it sound like they'd wear the wigs 24/7.

I also didn't know he defended the British soldiers after the Boston Massacre.

Also, toward the end of the series, I liked his critique of the painted of the signing of the Declaration of independence. Again, put some reality into the mythology of the birth of the Estados Unidos.

posted by birdherder 01 May | 20:31

I will need to rent it. I liked the book, a lot. And I liked him, but I still can't abide the Aliens and Sedition Acts. That is his Iraq.

posted by danf 01 May | 22:30

I know Ford Flanigan, "Doctor"! Shot here. I hear it's quite good.

posted by rainbaby 01 May | 22:42

Yes, I'm not watching it, but I did want to say that that was the best spoiler warning I've ever read!

posted by occhiblu 01 May | 23:55

I watched the whole thing...to the point that I rented rooms in hotels to see the last two weeks. My quibble is that even with seven hours it felt superficial. I had to pack away the book when I moved, but so far I've had more a sense of him having visited his homes in Braintree than watching this.

posted by brujita 02 May | 01:45

I did, however, shed tears over Abigail's death.

Yeah, she's AWESOME. I love every scene with her in it. Is there a good biography of Abigail, I wonder?

posted by scody 02 May | 02:10

Amazon lists several, but I haven't read any. WHY didn't they make more of "remember the ladies"!

posted by brujita 02 May | 03:10

I watched the entire series and loved it, but I'm no critic.

I think the reason Thomas Paine was absent is because it was strictly about Adams and the people that surronded him. King George III was central to the American Revolution, but I think he was only shown once.

Maybe Paine was around Adams, but I don't think so. I suck at history.

posted by LoriFLA 02 May | 05:48

The biggest surprise for me was that Paul Giamatti could actually act. The series was very well done.

posted by Ardiril 02 May | 09:09

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