Marco Polo (TV Series) The Wayfarer (2014) User Reviews

Very promising

[tlfirth · 8/10 · 15 December 2014]

Historical inaccuracies aside (there's always going to be some compromises), Marco Polo makes a very good start to its (hopefully) first season. Some strong performances from the prime cast and some superb location filming and directing make for great drama and suspense.

The first half, however, is a little uneven and is confused in the rush. Slipping back and forth in time was perhaps not the best way to start the story, but nevertheless, the second half made up for that with a build-up of action and intrigue. The show has gone for the no-breaks style of storytelling, following on from show's such as Game of Thrones. Otherwise, it's very successful and I'm already interested in what happens next.

In particular what made it for me was Benedict Wong's performance. It was suitably intimidating and balanced cunning and leadership nicely. Can't wait to see more of his portrayal as the series goes on. Hundred Eyes is another intriguing character who's physical dexterity may be reminiscent of most historical action dramas, but if it's suitable for the show, I have no complaints.

A very promising start overall. The cliffhanger did what it should do, get me excited about the next episode! The good thing about this show is, Netflix provides the audience with a means to watch the whole thing instantaneously without the wait of one week each installment, and that could be to the show's advantage.

Decent pilot, a bit confusing

[JustHavingALook · 7/10 · 11 April 2022]

They did a fairly good job introducing the main characters, their goals, values and conflicts, even though it can be confusing overall.

Using flashbacks to highlights the relationship between Marco and his father works for me, but they could have avoided the scenes in Venice, since the focus should stay on the Kublai khan court. I would have expanded on Marco's torments for being left behind and jailed.

Historically accurate? Of course not. Do we care? Not really.

Very cool cinematography and smooth editing.

Cliffhanger at the end of the pilot is well crafted.

Feels a bit rushed, but otherwise a very nice start!

[KaDaWe · 12 December 2014]

To be honest, I was really scared that the series is a huge disappointment after I read numerous reviews this morning of people saying that it's ludicrous and dull. Thankfully, it seems like these "experts" watch something completely different than I do.

"Marco Polo" looks great in its pilot, mostly by the great editing, cinematography and music. But the relatively unknown (I didn't know anyone) actors show their talent off as well. The plot is like I expected it to be (and as you've been able to see in teasers): Marco Polo and his dad are travelling to Mongolia and are meeting Kublai Khan there. He's keeping Marco, so that the dad can travel on the silk road. In the meantime, they want to conquer the south of China where the Song dynasty still prevails.

From what I know, the pilot is mostly true to the stories of Polo and of the Asian world. This semester, I attend a lecture at university about China and we did the history there, too. I haven't noticed a really big mistake yet - though we only did it superficially in the course, so I'm not a total expert either.

The only bad thing was the pace, everything, especially in the first 20-something minutes, felt rushed. I would have loved to see Marco's journey to Asia a bit more detailed (maybe over 2-3 episodes, it'd have been really interesting for sure) and not over a length of just roughly 15 minutes. However, I understand that the producers wanted to concentrate on the relationship between Polo and Khan.

So, overall a very nice start by the new epic series of Netflix, which is maybe the best series maker behind HBO already. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the first season. It'll most likely be a great time.

GRADE: B+ (Score: 82/100)