A lavish, earnest miniseries adaptation of Homer’s epic that leans into mythic spectacle, old-school television grandeur, and a strong central performance from Armand Assante. It’s uneven in places and clearly a product of 1990s TV effects and pacing, but for viewers who enjoy classical adventure and literary… Read more
The Odyssey
Where to watch: Buy
TV Show · Action & Adventure · Drama
Sun
Created by: Andrei Konchalovsky
Starring: Armand Assante, Greta Scacchi, Isabella Rossellini
Overview
Warrior Odysseus leaves his idyllic life in the kingdom of Ithaca to fight in the Trojan War. Following victory, he now must endure a lengthy, decade-long return journey, and with all his wits, overcome deadly monsters, powerful forces of nature, seductive enchantresses, and even journey into the bowels of the Underworld.
Created by
Andrei Konchalovsky
Cast
Armand Assante, Greta Scacchi, Isabella Rossellini, Bernadette Peters, Eric Roberts, Irene Papas, Jeroen Krabbé, Geraldine Chaplin
Curator Review
Verdict
A lavish, earnest miniseries adaptation of Homer’s epic that leans into mythic spectacle, old-school television grandeur, and a strong central performance from Armand Assante. It’s uneven in places and clearly a product of 1990s TV effects and pacing, but for viewers who enjoy classical adventure and literary adaptations, it remains a worthwhile watch.
Best for
fans of mythological adventure
viewers who like prestige miniseries
people interested in faithful literary adaptations
audiences who enjoy 1990s TV epics
Skip if
you want modern visual effects
you prefer fast-paced storytelling
you dislike stagey or theatrical performances
you’re not interested in classical mythology
Overview
This is a sincere, big-swing adaptation of one of the foundational stories of Western literature. It captures the episodic structure of Odysseus’s journey well, moving from battlefield legend to monster-filled ordeal to homecoming drama, and it benefits from treating the material with seriousness rather than irony. Armand Assante gives the production a sturdy center, and the supporting cast adds a sense of occasion that helps the whole thing feel larger than its television budget.
Worth noting
The tradeoff is that it can feel very much like a 1990s miniseries: broad in performance style, occasionally stiff in dialogue, and limited by effects that now look dated. Some sequences are more effective as storybook tableaux than as immersive fantasy, so the appeal depends on how much charm you find in that old-school presentation. It’s not a definitive version of the Odyssey, but it is a memorable one.
Bottom line
For viewers who enjoy myth, adventure, and classical adaptation, it’s an easy recommendation in the “worth a try” category. If you want a polished modern fantasy series, this will likely feel too creaky; if you want a faithful, self-contained epic with a beginning, middle, and end, it still delivers.
Themes
mythology, epic journey, homecoming, war aftermath, monsters and magic, fate and endurance, classical literature, adventure
Topics
mythological fantasy, epic miniseries, classical adaptation, quest narrative, 1990s television, adventure drama, literary epic, sword-and-sandal, television spectacle, ancient world