US
Adventure
TV Miniseries
2003

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When the original Hornblower series came out, I fell in love with it. I loved Ioan Gruffud as Horatio, I loved the old-fashioned adventure of it all, I loved many of the quirky supporting cast. When I saw A&E was adapting more CF Forrester's books, Loyalty (disc 1 of the two-disc set), I eagerly awaited the debut.

Alas, Loyalty feels more like A&E taking advantage of the hoopla over Master & Commander: Far Side of the World than a heartfelt endeavor for more adventures.

There's nothing exactly wrong with Loyalty, but there's an element missing from it as well. Hornblower remains as dashing and daring as before, the tricks and turns as clever, and the explosions just as big. I think for me, the problem is that Hornblower never faces any real emotional challenge until the very end, when his abrupt proposal to Maria. Then, the issue is so forced it feels tacked on in order to keep you watching for the second episode of the miniseries (Duty).

Overall, I enjoyed it, just not as delightedly so as the original set of episodes.