There are certain television genres that will always thrive, simply because it is in our nature to watch them. These include Medical Drama, Crime Procedurals, Soap Opera Narratives, and of course, True Crime Narrative. And ever since The Sopranos went off the air, HBO has been trying to fill the void with a worthy successor that could once again grab the audience and get people to start subscribing again. And believe me, Boardwalk Empire is worthy. Very worthy.
Boardwalk Empire focuses on Prohibition and the Organized Crime that went on in the 1920’s in Atlantic City. It’s a rather simplistic interpretation of the overall structure of the show, but nonetheless, the series transcends period pieces — in fact, it’s a period piece for people who hate period pieces. Kind of like the same way Mad Men made us care less that it was in the 1960’s and more about the characters that inhabited that turbulent period of American history. And oh yeah, both shows are headed by people that used to be on the Sopranos — Terence Winter the creator of Boardwalk Empire, and Matthew Weiner the creator of Mad Men. They are basically the Justin Timberlakes of television: they’re bringing story back.
Boardwalk Empire will probably have plots where multiple characters and story arcs will fill out the show, but for the most part it’s centered around Enoch “Nucky” Thompson, the head hancho on the Boardwalk that has his fingers in basically everything, who is played by the wonderfully under-rated actor Steve Buscemi. I would dare say that this could be the role that gets him the Golden Globe if not the Emmy — but the Emmy might come in season 3 or something (or traditionally, in season 5 of a drama series).
Quick things to love about the series:
1. Dialogue — functional, period based, and strewn out with such veracity that it doesn’t even feel forced or written, which is usually a good sign of character dialogue.
2. The Set and Costumes — combination of soundstage and green screen, it really takes the viewer into the era. Then again, when you have Martin Scorsese film the Pilot , he sets the bar pretty freaking high in terms of art direction and design, so you’re going to be enjoying a “time-machined” period drama that’s gonna look and feel like you’re there.
3. Like a prequel to every mob drama you’ve ever seen — We get to see a younger version of Lucky Luciano, and even the youngest version of Al Capone that’s been on screen in ages. Again, knowing about mob history doesn’t detract from the experience, in fact, knowing what they’ll become just makes the tragedy of their criminal lives even more prolific.
4. Okay, there’s gonna be Sex — I will say this: Only Buscemi can make a sex scene sensual and comedic at the same time. If you’ve seen the first episode, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Hey, it’s HBO people — no prudes allowed. It’s not like people weren’t having sex in the 1920’s, right?
5. It works on slow boil — keeping people coming back each week is always the goal, and I don’t think they’ll have a problem in that area. They seem to have a great diagram of escalation, so expect the unexpected each week.
I’m not saying that Network Television has become a wasteland, but if they keep diluting the channels with reality shows and lukewarm dramas, Cable is gonna continue to pummel them into the ground in the ratings. But it’s still early in the fall television season, so we’ll just have to see. But trust me, if you’ve got HBO, time and or a DVR, make an appointment with Boardwalk Empire. You’ll thank me later… 😉
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