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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed shows.
Rome
Season 2
EMAILPRINTSERIES: HBO, Sunday 9:00p (60 minutes)
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 18 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 98 votes
Read user comments
Rate this show >
Show Info
Genre(s): Drama
Created By:
John Milius
William Macdonald
Bruno Heller
First Air Date: January 14, 2007
Summary
Starring Kevin McKidd, Ray Stevenson, Polly Walker, James Purefoy, Tobias Menzies, Lindsay Duncan, Max Pirkis, and Kerry Condon
The second and final season of this joint production of HBO and the BBC picks up where season one left off: in the ancient Roman Empire, immediately after the death of Julius Caesar.
Episode Guide & More Info: More about this show at TV.com
Also On The Web: Official Show Site Television Without Pity Recaps
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Seattle Post-IntelligencerMelanie McFarland
Turns like this take the series further into Aaron Spelling territory than it ever was, an idea that may offend those who can't let go of the notion that HBO is supposed to be better than regular TV.
Read Full Review >Variety
This splendidly acted melodrama delivers a bloody good time barreling toward oblivion, delivering enough political intrigue, violence and sex to slake even the most debauched viewing appetites.
Read Full Review >Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan
Though every detail of this lush Roman epic feels palpably authentic, history lessons don’t loom overly large; what’s most enjoyable about it is how deftly it mixes soap opera with senatorial debates.
Read Full Review >New York PostLinda Stasi
What the series gains this season by giving us more history and more compelling storylines, it loses by repeating some of its, er, epic mistakes. Again, no battle scenes - some of the most important in all of history - are shown.
Read Full Review >Chicago Sun-TimesDoug Elfman
"Rome" treats viewers as long-term fans of deep terrain. To follow "Rome," it is required you keep up. If you do, you may be rewarded with a fine tale, proper acting and a better-told history lesson.
Read Full Review >Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
There's a danger that visitors to Rome may contract a mild case of Naughty Classy Cable Fatigue.
Read Full Review >Washington PostTom Shales
The production is nothing if not rich, awash in muted hues, populated with rivetingly complex characters and yet disappointingly low on spectacle.
Read Full Review >Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert
By the way, I don't mean the word "trash" as an insult. I enjoy well-made, quick-witted trash, and if you do, too, then you will find "Rome" as irresistible as ever.
Read Full Review >Hollywood ReporterRay Richmond
It remains a wholly impressive piece of work, stylish and graphic and bold in equal measure while at the same time greatly lacking a cohesive focus.
Read Full Review >People WeeklyTom Gliatto
As in season 1, the acting is rich and lusty, with no costume-drama fustiness. [15 Jan 2007, p.33]
USA TodayRobert Bianco
With each episode, the show seems to move further from real life and the real Rome and off into some sex-crazed, soap-opera fantasy version of a place that has never, thankfully, existed before or since.
Read Full Review >The New York TimesAlessandra Stanley
“Rome” is engaging even if it isn’t a swords-and-sandals version of “The Sopranos,” as HBO had hoped.
Read Full Review >The New YorkerTad Friend
The notion that the Empire ran on pillow talk and poison--the Great Woman theory of history-was also at the heart of the BBC’s 1976 "I, Claudius," but "Rome," with its spitting catfights, is closer in spirit to "Dynasty."
Read Full Review >TV GuideMatt Roush
It's like Deadwood in togas, a violent and bawdy tapestry of a vanished civilization.
Read Full Review >SalonHeather Havrilesky
The second season of "Rome" feels more than a little claustrophobic, and operates on a much smaller scale than might be anticipated for such an epic production.
Read Full Review >Slant MagazineLen Sousa
If only the creators sought fit to put as much detail into their character development as their history, the show might have earned itself a third season.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this show is 9.3 (out of 10) based on 98 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Susan L. gave it a10:
bigger than life characters in a bigger than anything empire. Costumes, splendour, grittiness -- they got it right.
Marcio P. gave it a10:
It was the best roman movies I have ever seen. I really hope they make the third, fourth, ... seasons.
Steve F. gave it a10:
Loved the show. The NY Times review and several of the other newspaper commentary are just ridiculous. What’s wrong with being historically accurate? That’s a big +, not a -. And criticizing the show for one-dimension characters? Livy, of their beloved "I, Claudius" was one-dimensionally villainous. The HBO Rome characters are much more three-dimensional.
Dan B. gave it a9:
I could have used more politics. Bit more intrigue and scheming and history. Though I'm not sure I'd have exchanged it for all the sex and the blood. The first season is probably better, but this is still fantastic. The only thing I didn't like was Octavian's muddy motivation. How an overly clever boy turned into a pathological man is either not well explained or simply handled way too subtly, as if his unblinking, gecko eyes are supposed to impart something to us? Anyway. The show is still great. Shame there'll be no third season.
John T R. gave it a10:
Best show to come around in years. I was a huge Soprano fan also. Why HBO keep awful series going like Curb Your Enthusiasm and lose franchise shows like Sopranos, Deadwood, etc. is beyond me. Pay the actors what they are asking, drop your dead beat shows ie Curb Your Enthusiasm, and make another season. I could take the remainder of the shows HBO has halted production on and make a powerhouse network. If you havent seen Rome rent seasons one and two and post a review yourself. Classic, gritty, exciting... A production for men as well as women, but make sure the kids are in bed.
ray a gave it a10:
This show is fantastic in everyway...espcially if you are interested in the period. So sad to see it end so soon.
A Kelly gave it a10:
Sad that it's ended. James Purefoy as Mark Anthony just rocks, and Pullo, as played by Ray Stevenson, is a fantastic buddy. The duel of hate between Atia of the Julii (Polly Walker) and Servilia of the Junii (Lindsay Duncan) is one no wise man would get between, so they don't :-) I have enjoyed every episode and will buy the two series on DVD because I suspect it will be a long time before anything as good is on TV again.
