Gakh! I really have to doff my cap. You are so much braver than I. Thank you oodles for this detailed analysis! I am deeply impressed by your ability to look beyond the shortcomings of the shows and delve head-first into such a close reading of patterns and relationships. I find your thoughts highly illuminating!
When the shows started, I was panicking at the sheer amount of nonsense they seemed willing to perpetrate, sacrificing the (wild as it is!) story of the historical Borgias on the altar of sex & gore & infamy. I recall a particularly jarring moment before the Fontana show debuted; a big media event for public telly, of course, so the network (was it ARD or ZDF, I forget?) ran selfcongratulatory features in advance, repeating in their "Anmoderationen" the usual incest/crime/simony crap... So BR2, my favourite culture radio (of all places!) interviewed Volker Reinhardt on the subject (one of those dreaded "Expertengespräche"): he blithely punctured all their hot air balloons and pretty much answered "nope" to all their suggestive questions, re: crime family, worst pope EVAR, etc. - and the hosts would hear none of it! I was stunned. So here you have your bona fide expert, and you hear none of what he says, because you want the Borgias to be bad, bad, bad. My conclusion was, right: if even a quality media outlet can't be bothered with getting the facts right, the audience will absolutely believe everything they'll see in the series. And that was my prelude to the Fontana. I think I gave up the moment Andrea Sawatzki (as Adriana de Mila) was hell bent on "excorcising" Lucrezia. I never tried again, I was squirming too much. I just... couldn't. (Haha, says the person who happily read "Cantarella" some 18 years ago...) Respect to Isolda Dychauk as Lucrezia though, in this one! I had only seen her in "Faust" before, and had an inkling she might do well in "Borgia". I am happy to read that she did the character proud and had a decent character development.
Let me repeat, YOU ARE SO BRAVE!
I watched all seasons of the Jordan. Sometimes with a feeling of, ummm, guilty pleasure (comparable to watching "The Tudors"). As in: I know it's more of the old maligning, but at least done lavishly, like? The first season was quite enjoyable, I thought (after getting over my usual "BUT IT'S CHARACTER ASSASSINATION, WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE HISTORICAL FACTS, THEY NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU? WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!?") - and I share your misgivings about how and when the series derailed. I admit to having a soft spot for François Arnaud, who as Cesare had lovely moments of emotional bewilderment, combined with a proud hotheadedness that was fun to watch. And Sean Harris's Michelotto was a lovely study in "dysfunctional attachment with no moral compass" that really grew on me; I liked him in his hardbitten, shifty, hurt ratfacedness. Also, the series bloopers that later popped up on YouTube! Seeing that the actors actually had fun did wonders to reconcile me. :)
That said, again, I marvel at your patience in unraveling both series down to their very weft, in comparing their arcs and structures, relationships and character development. (I also read your linked post with great interest.)
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When the shows started, I was panicking at the sheer amount of nonsense they seemed willing to perpetrate, sacrificing the (wild as it is!) story of the historical Borgias on the altar of sex & gore & infamy. I recall a particularly jarring moment before the Fontana show debuted; a big media event for public telly, of course, so the network (was it ARD or ZDF, I forget?) ran selfcongratulatory features in advance, repeating in their "Anmoderationen" the usual incest/crime/simony crap... So BR2, my favourite culture radio (of all places!) interviewed Volker Reinhardt on the subject (one of those dreaded "Expertengespräche"): he blithely punctured all their hot air balloons and pretty much answered "nope" to all their suggestive questions, re: crime family, worst pope EVAR, etc. - and the hosts would hear none of it! I was stunned. So here you have your bona fide expert, and you hear none of what he says, because you want the Borgias to be bad, bad, bad. My conclusion was, right: if even a quality media outlet can't be bothered with getting the facts right, the audience will absolutely believe everything they'll see in the series. And that was my prelude to the Fontana.
I think I gave up the moment Andrea Sawatzki (as Adriana de Mila) was hell bent on "excorcising" Lucrezia. I never tried again, I was squirming too much. I just... couldn't. (Haha, says the person who happily read "Cantarella" some 18 years ago...)
Respect to Isolda Dychauk as Lucrezia though, in this one! I had only seen her in "Faust" before, and had an inkling she might do well in "Borgia". I am happy to read that she did the character proud and had a decent character development.
Let me repeat, YOU ARE SO BRAVE!
I watched all seasons of the Jordan. Sometimes with a feeling of, ummm, guilty pleasure (comparable to watching "The Tudors"). As in: I know it's more of the old maligning, but at least done lavishly, like? The first season was quite enjoyable, I thought (after getting over my usual "BUT IT'S CHARACTER ASSASSINATION, WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE HISTORICAL FACTS, THEY NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU? WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!?") - and I share your misgivings about how and when the series derailed.
I admit to having a soft spot for François Arnaud, who as Cesare had lovely moments of emotional bewilderment, combined with a proud hotheadedness that was fun to watch. And Sean Harris's Michelotto was a lovely study in "dysfunctional attachment with no moral compass" that really grew on me; I liked him in his hardbitten, shifty, hurt ratfacedness. Also, the series bloopers that later popped up on YouTube! Seeing that the actors actually had fun did wonders to reconcile me. :)
That said, again, I marvel at your patience in unraveling both series down to their very weft, in comparing their arcs and structures, relationships and character development. (I also read your linked post with great interest.)
Thank you for answering this for me! :D