Deadwood - The Complete First Season (DVD, 2005, 6-Disc Set)

I am a very big fan of a good western and Deadwood is the best I've seen. I read so many reviews that just complain about the nudity, the horrible foul language and even the gore. This HBO Masterpiece just doesn't hold back in depicting what the west was REALLY like in the 1870's. Deadwood is so authentic in every way. The characters, the wardrobe, the architecture, the whole set! All of it. It's truly like taking a trip back in time. Oh, and the character development. extraordinary! I have seen very very few Westerns with such authenticity. To name the few, the is "Unforgiven" with Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman is the only one that comes to mind with the level of authenticity of Deadwood. "Wild Bill", with Jeff Bridges and "The Outlaw Josey Wales" again with Clint Eastwood come close. And finally "Tombstone" almost does it, but was a bit too Hollywoodish. But Deadwood has it all. From the production, direction, writing, wardrobe, character development, casting (Which is ingenious to say the least) and every other part that goes into the making of Deadwood is incredible. HBO's done it with "The Soprano's and now with Deadwood and I haven't even seen their other series shows which I'm sure are also fantastic. So if you want first rate entertainment and a look at what the old west was really like, Deadwood's your show.

Deadwood - The Complete First Season (DVD, 2005, 6-Disc Set)
Great acting and some real history makes for a great start on this TV show. In making a good TV show the writers do take liberties with history. It does how ever make for 'I got see the next show' feeling. The thing I wish for was more of Keith Carradine as 'Will Bill'. It was some Keith Carradine best work ever, I was hoping to see him in the hole first season's shows.

I am a big fan of Westerns and Deadwood does not disappoint. David Milch is a brillant & somewhat tortured writer that puts his whole heart & soul into this project. Very graphic is an understatement when it comes to this show,but it is the Old West. Dirty , violent ,funny and very entertaining.
The cast is outstanding and Western sets & costumes are top notch.
The only problem I have with this series is that there was only 3 seasons. It wraps up pretty good but you want more. Milch said he was going to do 2- 2 hour movies but that has never happened. One thing I can tell you is once you watch the 1st season you will be looking for the second season right away.

Here's the browns, ochers, earthtones. Muddy streets and the unwashed slogging through that muck.
Perfect.
Here's gutter language as a cornerstone of communication. Here's the best of the human spirit demonstrated by murderous thugs and the most base flaws revealed in heroes. Here's rampant bigotry and misogyny alongside equality in the face of adversity and respect for the customs of others.
Perfect.
This is the reason that network TV is dead. This is the reason that the moral majority and their narrow minded defenders are neither moral nor the majority. Here's a taste of people on the raw edge of surviving, slaves to their lowest desires and still capable of altruism. Here's the advent of civilization raised out of the mud and muck. Here's a class of humans, rapists and pillagers of the earth for her mineral wealth receiving art, technology, spiritual growth and community into their lives.
Flawed, you bet. It's a serial and the formula of serials means that stories are open ended. It's ensemble cast consists of more than a dozen regular characters and the quality and quantity of the individual characters tends to wax and wane. The storylines are occasionally formulaic and sometimes suffer from holes in the backstory.
This is a fantasy world contrived to provide a backdrop for the message. Fair enough. Was the West like this? Sure, why not?. These stories are old as dirt. While there were genteel Victorians in the West and the devout and the agrarians and the intellectuals, the mining camps no doubt attracted few of these. HBO, to their credit let the stories be told with attention to detail, an unwavering love of the spoken word with all it's beauty and warts and the message that the human experience is of heroes with black hearts, wounded souls capable of great deeds, men and women of virtue compromising their values for some greater reward or a paycheck.
Don't let your kids watch. Don't make your auntie watch. This is an acquired taste. For the uninitiated, be aware, the violence is both graphic and by the offhanded way in which it is resorted to it is intended to upset the sensibilities of a sterile society, the sex is perfunctory, blatant and loveless, the language is vile and pervasive.

This was one of the best shows on television. It is not for family viewing. The story is real and the characters are wonderfully cast and performed. I bought this for a family member who never saw it and he is hooked now. Reruns are still on HBO once in a while, but it will never get to regular TV. The Wild Bill Hickok character is terrific. If you are offended by adult language and situations, this is not for you. That material is woven into the story so well that it is impossible to imagine those days in that town without the debauchery that is shown. I would rate it 5 out of 5.