Deadwood: Season 3

I am late in arriving to Deadwood as I do not subscribe to HBO. That being said, this series was probably the best television I have ever watched.The writing, story line progression, acting, historical content, sets are all excellently done. Keep in mind this in not the typical "western" full of cowboys and such.Set in Goldrush Era South Dakota, Deadwood presents a different picture of the West. The series presents the gritty life of those who came west to seek their fortune. It is best described as muddy. As for the characters, I love the development of "bad guys" that are so complex that you end up cheering for them and sympathizing with them. In the same light, the "good guys" are so complex that they make you angry and disappointed. There are no clear good guys and bad guys. The secondary characters, such as Jane and Richardson, are captivating and sad and as complex as any of the main characters. In the end they were among my favorites. Jane's story is tragic when you can see her good heart at the same time she is self-destructive and sad. Richardson is sweet and harmless and yet kicked around by nearly everyone. Ellsworth is a man of character and ethics and is [spoiler alert] cut down for his troubles. I am not a scholar but the entire series struck me as a modern day Shakespeare play.The style of dialogue feels like it was written by the bard himself. The soliloquies that are rarely seen in modern drama are a common tool in Deadwood that offer insight to the character's mind. The "side kick" characters, in pairs or trios, offer commentary on the passing events and tools for a main character's means. I'm sure that a Shakespearean scholar could offer a better comparison than I. In the end, the ultimate tragedy is that Deadwood was never allowed to finish telling the story. HBO in their judgement of fiscal needs over dramatic integrity chose to cancel the show before it could accomplish a true wrap up to the story. This proves that the entertainment business is solely about money and not about the story. They did a disservice to the fans, the writers, the directors, the creator of the series and everyone else connected to the project. That being said, the 3 available seasons are certainly worth watching. It is a refreshingly brilliant change from the usual dribble on television.

"Deadwood" either is your cup of tea or isn't, and if it isn't, then you probably have no business even considering prchasing these DVDs; the third season in't gonna change your mind. If it IS your cup of tea, and you're just wondering whether or not the third season meets the high marks set by the first two seasons, allow me to answer: it does. In some cases, it even surpasses them. The third season finds the camp in a general tizzy about the upcoming elections for mayor and sheriff, and Al Swearengen in a bit more specific tizzy about the impact the arrival of George Hearst has had on his life and livelihood. In a sense, the entire season is about the power play between these two titans, with Cy Tolliver trying to edge himself into the mix somewhere and Seth Bullock trying to figure out what his place is in the whole mess. Amongst the other plot threads explored in this season: Jane's growing friendship with the increasingly troubled Joanie Stubbs; Alma's opening a Deadwood bank; the feud between Steve and Hostetler; the oddly touching relationship between Trixie and Sol; Elsworth's marriage to Alma, which may not prove to be the bed of roses he had hoped for; the appearance in town of the Earp brothers, and of a troupe of actors; and, of course, Seth Bullock's ever-present willingness to be grumpy with the wrong person, Farnum's weasly nature, and Merrick's desire to write about it all. The plots don't matter much, though. The dialogue and the acting are what make this show great. "Deadwood," in its three seasons, had so many iconic moments that it makes most other shows look like film-school projects in comparison. In addition to the regular cast standouts -- Timothy Olyphant, Ian McShane, W. Earl Brown, William Sanderson, Brad Dourif, Molly Parker, Powers Boothe, Robin Weigert, and so on, ALL of whom do Emmy-caliber work -- I think special mention needs to go to Gerald McRaney, who turned up right at the end of season two but becomes an integral character in the third. His portrayal of Hearst is just awesome. Not that he's better than anyone else on the show; he just immediately fits in with the tone of the show, so much so that it really feels as if his character had been there all along, lurking in the shadows somewhere. Much has been written about the fact that HBO decided to cancel the series, and pretty unexpectedly; but don't fret too much about the show ending on a cliffhanger. Not all plot points are resolved, but there is at least a sort of closure; it's like the first two seasons, where it feels as if a chapter has ended, but the novel will continue. Well, it looks like the novel WON'T be continuing -- HBO has claimed that there will be two two-hour movies to wrap things up, but no filming dates seem to have been set, and it's been months since anyone had anything to say about that project -- but if the series has to end with the close of the third season, I won't feel as if I was cheated too terribly badly. I'd prefer it had run for ten or twelve years, but hey, we're lucky the doggone thing ever even got made.

Deadwood is one of the best series produced by HBO IMHO. It is also one of my favorites. We have watched the entire series 3 times doing so once every couple of years. It is a great story line with a lot of action and it seems to realistically follow life in the old west in a gold rush area. The story is based on true characters and real life adventures. What makes the series so good is not only the storyline but the very high quality of acting. If you like westerns then this is a great series for you. It is full of crude language and and the harsh realities of the wild times which it depicts. It is a rough story so if you don't like that type of story then you may want to pass on this one. If you like good realistic stories then this is an excellent series to watch. This is the third and final season and the action and climax to the story is very good. I enjoyed it so much that I have watched it over and over. I watched this using my Amazon Prime Account.

Great series

Nachdem die zweite Staffel durch Al's Krankheit sehr stark anfing und einen klaren Fokus hatte, geht diese Staffel (wie die erste) wieder eher etwas 'lahm' los. Der Fokus entwickelt sich erst langsam: Es ist die Ausneinandersetzung zwischen dem 'Gold-Mogul' George Hearst, der die Mine der Ms. Ellsworth kaufen und irgendwie auch die Kontrolle über die Stadt übernehmen will, auf der einen Seite und Al Swearangen bzw. mit der Zeit zunehmend dem ganzen Camp auf der anderen Seite. Daneben und hineingewebt sind kleine weitere Episoden, Skizzen, Themen eines Goldgräbercamps in dieser Zeit: Drogensüchtige, Theaterleute, homosexuelle Neigungen, Aufbau eines Schulunterrichts, Wahlen. Man braucht ein bisschen um reinzukommen, aber mit der Zeit erkennt man, was es ist und dann ist es absolut grandios: Es ist großes, elegisches Theater. Rein szenisch war es ja schon immer ein Markenzeichen von Deadwood, dass sich alles auf kleinem Raum abspielt. Wie auf einer Drehbühne mit vielen kleinen Spielorten. Auch die Sprache erinnert sehr an Theater. Huldigte bisher aber noch - v.a. in der ersten Staffel - die Dramaturgie etwas mehr der '1 Episode - 1 Plot'-Philosphie des Fernsehens, so wird das hier völlig aufgegeben, zugunsten einer literarischen, langgestrickten, elegischen Erzählweise. Das Ineinander von Personen und Geschichten, das Sprunghafte, das Vielfältige erinnert an eine Mischung aus Shakespeare, Opernlibrettos des 19.Jahrhunderts und Tolkien's "Herr der Ringe". Zugegeben: Man fragt sich oft, wie jetzt alles zusammen passt und was einzelne Elemente wie z.B. die Theaterleute jetzt eigentlich sollen. Das Tolle ist aber, dass man es sich fragt (und nicht immer beantworten kann), aber trotzdem nie das Gefühl hat, dass es nicht passen würde und oft kommt man mit der Zeit auf die erzählerische Idee. So ist der viel kritisierte Einbau der Theatergruppe für mich die Verdeutlichung des bühnenhaften und dramatischen, was sich im Verhalten der anderen Hauptfiguren abspielt. Der Theaterdirektor interpretiert Swearengens Verhalten als das eines antiken Heldens, die 'Amatuer Night' zeigt die Poesie, die hinter den einzelnen Figuren steckt. Ganz, ganz groß. Diese Staffel ist Weltliteratur! Man muss sie allerdings auch so sehen, d.h. man muss vor allem länger dran bleiben. Eine Episode bleibt in der Luft hängen und man kommt nicht hinein in die langgewobenen Erzählstränge. Gönnt Euch mindestens drei am Stück und Ihr werdet belohnt. Noch zwei Einzelaspekte: - Ich sage das ungern über Filme/TV-Shows, aber die muss man echt auf Englisch hören mit deutschen Untertiteln. Nur der Slang, die Sprachmelodie, das Timbre passt zu den Figuren, zur Atmosphäre und in die Landschaft. Man bekommt sonst keinen emotionalen Zugang. - Die hier verschiedentlich kritisierte Gewalt sehe ich nicht so ausgeprägt, v.a. ist sie nicht schlimmer als in den ersten beiden Staffeln, ich finde fast weniger. Sicherlich ist einiges an Gewalt am Spiel und vielleicht auch mehr als im echten 'Wilden Westen'. Aber wie gesagt, es ist ein großes Drama und es ist weit weniger blutig als Richard III, Hamlet oder die Schlachten im Herrn der Ringe.

Contrairement à l'opinion du commentateur Cicéron,cette troisième saison de Deadwood est sans aucun doute la meilleure des trois...! Les dialogues sont tout simplement Shakespeariens..d'ailleurs l'arrivée d'une troupe de comédiens est plus que symbolique de sa tournure et de son état d'esprit .!Bien sur cela peut surprendre plus d'un d'entendre des bandits de grand chemin sortir des phrases extrêmement chatièes puis 5 minutes plus tard jurer comme des charretiers....mais justement c'est tout le charme de cette fascinante série que de concilier les contraires...de nous faire admettre que la lie peut côtoyer la grandeur et la noblesse d'esprit dans les lieux les plus improbables... Cette saison ,la moins violente et la plus philosophique des trois est aussi la plus humaine ,les méchants paraissent moins méchants ,les gentils encore plus gentils et elle atteint vraiment des cimes dans les 3 derniers épisodes qui nous font vraiment regretter qu'il n'y ai pas de suite,et oui c'est fini ,quel dommage... Bon ,si vous n' aimez que les westerns genre Sergio Leone cette série n'est certes pas pour vous ,mais si vous voulez revivre l'époque de la ruée vers l'or ou la vie ne tenait vraiment qu'à un....filon ,ou les filles de joie , l'alcool ,la promiscuité,et tous les autres péchés capitaux avaient force de loi,cette série vous rendra addictif pendant un bon bout de temps..

Excellent service and great show

An utterly brilliant third season for a series sadly missed. I have no doubts a fourth season would have been even better, had it been made.

muy bien igual que las dos primeras temporadas. una serie prodigiosa que sigue la estela de las grandes series de la HBO.