John Adams (HBO Miniseries)

Every American should see this DVD!!! Makes us see our Founding Fathers as real people, not the stiff figures in the history books, not the comic figures in "1776" (although it was entertaining).

We see them as politicians as well as human beings. People haven't changed a lot since 1776 and the years following. This series is well done and will make you proud to be an American!!!!!

There are seven parts in the DVD HBO miniseries. We watched them in seven nights. We didn't want to skip a night.

It's all good, but the earlier episodes are better than the later ones. Why? I felt too much was skipped during the last few parts. Too many gaps. Naturally some events would have to be left out or the series would be 40 hours. Yet, it would have been better for them to narrow the focus on his earlier career.

In the final three parts it was hard to get a feel for the scope of what was going on in the country -- it became more of a personal story. And even in that context, it was hard to get a sense of all the big national events that were affecting John and Abigail personally, outside of family affairs. During John's presidency, I don't recall seeing any Congressional sessions, speeches, or proper cabinet meetings. If there were, they are minor.

Did the series capture John's and Abigail's character? As much as I know from my limited reading, yes, probably fairly well. I was surprised by the magisterial manner of Jefferson as portrayed here. His overwhelming sense of calm and thoughtful genius was appealing. I haven't read in detail enough about Jefferson to say if that was accurate. He had a great passion for art, collecting books, and of course architecture. But that passion does not seem to be evident in this portrayal. He's almost disturbingly Mr. Spock-like in emotional restraint.

The intrigues and battles between Jefferson as Vice-President when Adams succeeded Washington as President are given relatively small notice, as is the Sedition Act. Adams did start a navy and avoided entaglement with a European war. Most of the events of his single term are seen from the dreary setting of a still-under-construction White House in Washington, D.C.

Picky points:

Many famous quotes of the founding fathers are included in this series, not always in the context of which they actually uttered them.

The artificial aging makeup or lack of it, and the inconsistency of it, was a bit disconcerting. Sometimes John looked older in one scene, then younger in the next. This was handled poorly, and I don't know why, given today's state of the art. Neither John nor Abigail appear to age naturally. The bad dental work, pus, vomit, bloodlettings and barbaric surgery of the 18th century are represented with some realism, though, for what that's worth, plus the excessive facial makeup the French nobles (including men) used. Marcel Marceau would have fit right in.

In spite of these caveats, the miniseries is compelling. It's no substitute for David McCullough's book, though. Additionally, I'm not sure about replay value. I was enthusiastic about it while I was watching it, but now I wonder if I will want to see it twice.

The John Adams miniseries was the best made for TV production I have ever seen. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the history of the founders. It brought them to life as people we can relate to and appreciate the sacrifices they made. In the end, they were real people, real Americans.

Don't have HBO and relatives wanted us to see this series. So good I read the biography.

I ordered this video hoping to be able to watch it with my eleven year old son. It was very well done and seemed to be historically acurate, however, there were parts that I felt were not suitable for kids. These parts came in the later CDs of the series.