Ancient Warriors
Review by Dindrane
Film:
DVD:

Directed and Co-Written by Peter Nicholson and Phil Grabsky
Narrated by Colgate Salsbury and Michael Carroll
Written by Phil Grabsky, Anne MacLeod, and Nigel Maslin

Features:

• biographies of historical figures
  
• text discussions of warrior groups
  

Rating: NR, suitable for most audiences

Anamorphic: N/A

My Advice: Buy it.

This two-disc set, brought to us by the creative minds at TLC, features a set of documentaries looking closely at a host of notorious fighter groups. Disc one covers the samurai, the Vikings, the Zulu, and the Spartans, while disc two looks at the Celts, the Sioux, the Huns, and ninjas. If you want to hear more about Thermopylae, the sacking of Rome, or feudal Japan, then this set is definitely for you.

Given that each special is relatively short, about 30 minutes each or so, there is a lot of history that the creators were forced to leave out. For example, the special on the Celts focuses mainly upon the Continental Celts, neglecting any mention of Boudicca or other fan favorites. Yet this sort of editing was necessary and still presents a wonderfully interesting overview of the fighting styles of the groups in question.

The audio and video quality of these shows is commensurate with what you would have seen on television. The images are sometimes a bit grainy, but you are losing nothing, and given the nature of these shows, they’re good enough. The music is rarely intrusive, and the sounds of battle and other realistic sound effects are a nice touch, breaking up the monotony of the narration nicely.

The special features differ on each disc. Disc one has a lengthy text biography of Shaka Zulu, as well as more text discussions of the Vikings and samurai. Disc two presents text bios of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Attila the Hun, along with a lengthy discussion of the Sioux. While it would have been nice to have had a narrator read these texts while we were shown more scenery, etc, these features hold a lot of information and are very well researched and presented. The researchers and fact-checkers deserve kudos for creating these wonderfully sound, academic documentaries that are anything but dull. Besides, having both discs together in one sturdy package for a reasonable price is a nice bonus in itself.

If you have any interest in history, even if not specially military history, this set is a must-have. The producers did a good job attempting to cover a wide variety of time periods and cultures. Pacifists may be horrified by the attempt to glorify groups designed specifically to win wars and kill people, but the specials themselves are very bloodless and tasteful, and it cannot be denied that each of these groups had a very measurable effect on their cultures and times. Classicists and medievalists will love finally getting some attention, and yet fans of more modern military units and wars will appreciate getting to see where the modern advancements came from, as well as learn a bit about why ancient groups should be respected as well.