Horatio Hornblower - The New Adventures

In "Duty" we find Horatio taking a wife, and then off to sea he goes again. This time in search of a missing ship. Once again he must best Napolean's fleet and army. The return of the cast we loved in the previous episodes, aged a little along with Horatio, they are great to watch in action. Horatio returns to England finding good and bad news.

Great quality as previous DVDs in this series. Includes same features as other Hornblower DVDs. Any fan of seafaring movies like "Damn the Defiant" and "Captain Horatio Hornblower" will love this set.

In this latest production by A&E we see Hornblower become master of his own ship, with Lieutenant Bush and many of the earlier characters in the series at his side. In my opinion all of the leading actors, and for that matter the supporting ones, turn in exemplary performances. Ioan Griffudd continues to be magnificent as Captain Hornblower, and Robert Lindsay is fabulous as Admiral Pellew. Watch the series--I'm not too lavish with my praise--these guys really do a bang-up job. They do not over-act, and they are very authentic.

The effects in this series, while perhaps not as lavish as might be found in a big-budget movie, are nonetheless superb, and no improvement is needed in my opinion. A&E does a great job with the sets, costumes, and effects.

"Duty" and "Loyalty" in common with the rest of this series, depart significantly from the storyline of the novel ("Hornblower and the Hotspur") upon which these episodes are based. Now, I am a fanatical Hornblower afficianado, but I am here to say that this is OK--the A&E stories are excellent, and will not offend the Hornblower purist. Every time I felt that the story was departing completely from the original novel, it would suddenly revert to the novel's storyline. No spoilers here--just be assured that these are, in fact, Hornblower stories and not mere pastiches, at least in my opinion.

These episodes are as good as the very best movies, and are immeasurably better than just about anything else that television produces. The DVD is crisp and clean, and the sound is excellent as well. This is a great value that anyone will enjoy repeatedly. "Duty" and "Loyalty" belong in every DVD collection.