gwyn | All this wasted time!

How did I not know that Reilly: Ace of Spies was on DVD in this country? How did this escape me? If any of my friends knew this and did not tell me, you are dead to me, do you hear? Dead! It popped up on Netflix suggestions and I nearly fell off my chair that it was around.

If you've never seen Reilly, you are missing some seriously good TV. This was one of the first British television productions that actually looked as gorgeous and rich as a movie -- no filming on videotape or crappy 16 mil stock here, no sir. Stunning soundtrack, too, and the sexiest performance evah by Sam Neill as Sidney Reilly, the early-20th century uberspy who nearly took over Russia at one point, and on whom Ian Fleming is said to have modeled James Bond. It's sumptuous and haunting and thrilling and actiony and intellectual and romantic all at the same time, and is also unique in terms of many historical dramas about characters like this: it's very accurate. It has politics and guns and intrigue and incest and torture and all kinds of good stuff! Everything about it is the best of the best -- the writing, acting, set design, direction, costuming, you name it.

I so added this to my Deep Discount DVD and Amazon wishlists, fast as my fingers would carry me. Normaly I'd buy it because -- all that wasted time! But it's that time of the year so I have to practice restraint. I can be restrained. See me being restrained and not getting out the credit card.

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That's a *great* series.

It was. I am now filled with trepidation that A&E has butchered it based on some things a few folks said... I'll have to check it out to see, though.

They haven't - leastways, not the DVD set. I got them for my mom's b-day and we watched them.

oh god thank you for mentioning this. I tried recording the last few airings on PBS earlier this year onto DVD, but had missed the first few.

It's been a while since I've seen the series, but I still remember the women at the firing squad scene.

Oh, yeah. There were some truly haunting scenes in that, especially at the end. I can't wait to see this again, it's been a long time.

I actually daydreamed my very first slash about R:AOS. I have the videotapes - but a word of warning. When I watched them, it seemed to me that some of the sex and/or partial nudity (which was so titillating when it originally ran on PBS lo these many years ago) had been removed. So if that was part of your original enjoyment...some of it is missing, IMO.

I am actually a little worried about this, based on the things someone said on a site I found. They maintained that it was a wretched transfer, as well, since it's A&E. That wouldn't surprise me. I guess it's a question of something is better than nothing, but I'm a little worried.

I have the feeling that my tapes were through PBS. I've had them about ten years, though.

Oh boy - yes! this was absolutely wonderful - in fact, I still have my original videos of them from the first airing of the show. Sam Neill was gorgeous, sexy, dark and dangerous - and I hope that they haven't dumbed down the show or removed the more interesting parts in the DVD version. I remember how tragic it became and how accurate it was - something very rare in TV land. I still can't bear to watch the last 30 minutes or so - when they come to get Riley in his cell, I just tear up and have to turn the tape off.

I'm a bit worried about it. But I'm going to check them out and see. I'm figuring it's better to have something than nothing, but... you know.

You are more than welcome to borrow my tapes to copy if you want. They're old (from the original viewing) but they are complete. Just let me know.....

I, too, loved Reilly. Very glad to know that it's on DVD!

All this wasted time!

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Riley, Ace of Spies

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