Those About To Die Transports Viewers Back In Time

Those About To Die is a truly epic transportation back to the Roman Empire as it explores the dark and gritty underbelly of the city.

How often do you think about the Roman Empire? Well, no matter your answer, you are about to start thinking about it a lot more. Those About To Die is an epic series that transports viewers back in time to explore the underbelly of the city. It is packed with action, as well as emotional story beats. The series also boasts massive set pieces, incredible costumes, hair, and makeup, and stellar performances.

Rome Like You’ve Never Seen It Before

Focusing on the dark and bloody side of gladiatorial competitions and chariot races, you have never seen Rome like this before. This series is unafraid to get gritty. It doesn’t take long for viewers to realize that Rome is not going to be glorified by any means in this, in fact, it never shies away from what is likely the truth of how these competitions were run.

Gladiators would fight one another, not many volunteered for that. Instead they were forced to do so. Many were slaves, something that Those About To Die does not shy away from either. This series sheds light on how events like this were run, including the fact that citizens would bet on who would win, treating these men like animals at times.

The fight sequences are some of the best on television. They are extremely well choreographed and thanks to the set design, feel extremely real. It is hard to find yourself rooting for certain gladiators right along with the Roman crowd.

Emotional & Dramatic Storylines

Those About To Die might be all about the dirty, bloody, spectacle of it all, but it still delivers some truly emotional storylines as well. Parents in particular will relate to Cala (Sara Martins) and what she is going through when it comes to her daughters and son. That said, the family drama is sprinkled everywhere throughout this series, keeping things interesting and viewers on their toes.

The entire cast is incredible, really bringing their all to the characters they are portraying, however Iwan Rheon (who plays Tenax), Jojo Macari (who plays Domitian), Moe Hashim
(who plays Kwame), Dimitri Leonidas (who plays Scorpus), Tom Hughes (who plays Titus), and Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson (who plays Viggo) are the standouts. These characters will provide the audience with a wide range of emotions, and are sure to become fan favorites.

Of course, Anthony Hopkins as Emperor Vespasian is phenomenal on screen, as expected.

Overall Thoughts

Those About To Die works as well as it does because it really feels as if you are transported back in time. It is easy to become lost in it all thanks to the incredible production value and the captivating plot points. The ten episodes of the season fly by thanks to the well thought out pacing.

That said, there are a handful of missteps, when episodes slow down a bit too much, but this is always done so that important pieces of information can be delivered with time for viewers to digest it.

Those About To Die is packed with action, heart, and a whole lot of fun. You’ve never seen Rome like this before. And trust me, you want to.

A truly epic transportation back to the Roman Empire as it explores the dark and gritty underbelly of the city. This is Peacock’s answer to Game of Thrones. It is not as good yet.. but it has the potential to be.

All 10 episodes of Those About To Die premiere Thursday, July 18 on Peacock.

NEXT: Those About To Die Cast Discusses The Roman Empire

About Those About To Die

Those About To Die is an epic drama set in the corrupt world of the spectacle-driven gladiatorial competition, exploring a side of ancient Rome never before told — the dirty business of entertaining the masses, giving the mob what they want most…blood and sport.

Those About To Die premieres on Peacock on July 18th.