A beautiful review from Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323549204578317973458049146.html?mod=wsj_share_tweet#

A very good one from NYT with an - in my eyes - very accurate and fair comparison with DA.

http://tv.nytimes.com/2013/02/26/arts/television/parades-end-with-benedict-cumberbatch-and-rebecca-hall.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&

I watched it last night. Oh dear, oh dear...what the hell did they do to poor Ben's mouth?  That was so unnecessary.  It distracted me terribly.   

Lovely piece to look at; but unfortunately I'm not warming up to the characters or any of their privledged, conflicted issues so far.  I do like Ben best - especially in that scene where he comforts the little boy back to sleep and when he gently introduced him to that gorgeous little pony.  Otherwise, I'm not loving it as much as I wanted to.  Well, tonight is another 2 episodes.  Maybe I'll change my mind.

KeepersPrice wrote:

I watched it last night. Oh dear, oh dear...what the hell did they do to poor Ben's mouth? That was so unnecessary. It distracted me terribly.

Lovely piece to look at; but unfortunately I'm not warming up to the characters or any of their privledged, conflicted issues so far. I do like Ben best - especially in that scene where he comforts the little boy back to sleep and when he gently introduced him to that gorgeous little pony. Otherwise, I'm not loving it as much as I wanted to. Well, tonight is another 2 episodes. Maybe I'll change my mind.

I'm with you on both counts. Ben sounds like someone punched him in the mouth and he is also walking like a gorilla

So far after watching first two hours I can see why it is so hard to cram 800 pages of book into five hours. But I will reserve final judgment until I have seen it all. It is a bit disconcerting to see stuffy Ben fall for Valentine a boyish imp of a waif who seems about half his age. Personally, I see no chemistry there at all. i do like the nutty Reverend Duchemin. He is hilarious

Well Christopher was actually supposed to pudgy  and a bit ponderous in his movements.

I utterly loved Parade's End. If asked for my favorite between Sherlock and PE, I would be hard-pressed. But then, I'm a fan of English literature from the late 18th century to the early 20th century, and a fan of English period dramas on film (both on paper and on film : Cranford, North & South, Wives & Daughters, Jane Eyre, P&P, The Barchester Chronicles, I capture the castle, Brideshead revisited, A room with a view, Vanity Fair, etc etc!). Far from not being able to get into the preoccupations of privileged people in Edwardian days, I'm fascinated by them. I loved BC's acting and was quite (Ok totally) swept up in his romance with Valentine. I loved the humour in the show as well as the poignancy and the unabashed romantism. The other day at the coffee machine, a girl who has seen and enjoyed Sherlock (the only one in the office who knows the show apart from me) said she saw the first episode of PE and found it quite boring. Inside I was like "how can you??..". I guess it just goes to show again, how different we all are.

I just caught up on PE through episode 4. It's awesome - so quick, I can't believe it's only an hour long. Most of it I kept thinking to myself, so much of Chrissy reminds me of Sherlock - the fact that his wife secretly loves how he knows everything, for one. The cheeks are distracting though - I find myself thinking, how is he drinking tea or eating in some scenes if he's got those plumpers in his mouth? (and how is he projecting his voice so deep with them in his mouth?? I can barely speak when I've got gum in one side of my mouth).

Just finished viewing Parade's End  (finally ended,  here in the U.S.)-  it was a fine adaptation I thought.    And to look at its details,  in many ways it was as lovely or lovelier than Downton Abbey, and so fascinating to watch a spin on a similar backdrop of the ending of an era,  beginning of a new one.

Not an episodic soap opera like Downton,  I found it faster paced,  more of a twisted look into some fairly damaged people,   much more universal in its themes,  and very real in its sadness,  with some great nuanced performances.

Airing on Een in The Netherlands starts Thursday 12th March.

Woohoo!