I do like the show. It is an ancient epic saga (a fantasy if you will), and I consider it well done in it's class/category. Sure a bit of artistic license was taken and really besides the 3 major adventures written in the Beowulf who knows what he did during his full life! It's a STORY! In regards to the issues of other reviewers there seem to be with woman in strong roles and people of different ethnic groups, there have been times throughout history where woman have been highly important figures in their societies AND there has been evidence of different ethnic peoples found in the Scandinavian countries. SO what if it's a bit more in the show than we think may have existed... The acting is good, yes I have seen better in some cases but I have seen worse on shows which have stayed on for more than 1 season!!! I liked it at any rate and hope to see a season 2.

Costing £17 million and boasting Oscar winner William Hurt amongst the cast, ITV had high hopes for the 12 part drama Beowulf: Return To The Shieldlands.Beowulf is inspired by the 3182 line tale of a Norse hero keeping the world safe from monsters. It is the oldest known poem in Old English and has inspired tales like the Lord of the Rings.In the opening episode We meet Beowulf (Kieran Bews) as a child who sees his father getting killed and is taken into the care of respected chieftain Hrothgar (William Hurt). Hrothgar sees greatness in young Beowulf, which upsets his son, Slean and his wife Rheda (Joanne Whalley.)Beowulf battles the fearsome monster Grendl and wins the respect of the community. By the end of the series there are more connections with the Old English poem and the series tries to click into gear and events fall into place but it is too little and too late. The audience deserted the series in droves.The series was aimed at a family audience and boasted good CGI but the story was uninvolving, Hurt was underused and comparisons were made with Game of Thrones. However in the UK, GoT although getting plenty of media attention has lower viewing figures than Beowulf as it is shown on a premium subscription channel and even with illegal downloads more people talk about it than actually watch it.What really did the series damage was that it was not very good and we saw a few months earlier, The Last Kingdom which dealt with themes of royalty and loyalty in Saxon times and it was better.

After doing what most people should of done and given it a chance to let the story and characters get moving, I have become more than pleasantly surprised by the amazing story, excitement and characters. I suggest ignoring the bulk of the other comments and try watching all the episodes over a couple of nights , or if your brave or bored then in on day. You will be surprised by how good the series is becoming.-------------/\--------------------------/\---------------- Don't be shy, give Beowulf a try !!! Kieran Bew is actually an amazing actor, he is playing a man damaged by wars over the years and experience and portrays this well. I would compare his actions likened to someone with massive depression.

Most of the criticism I've seen of this series either relates to the CGI creatures or that it is unrealistic and compares badly to Game of Thrones and Vikings. This is not comparing like for like. The series is obviously intended as a family show, with appeal to younger viewers, reflected by it's 7pm time slot. Better comparisons would be to shows like Primeval, which relied on CGI creatures, or The Three Musketeers and Merlin, which took well known works and expanded the story in new directions. Three episodes in the series is coming to life. It almost has the feel of the Wild West, with Herot as a frontier town and Beowulf becoming a character rather like a town sheriff. There are several strong female characters and much centres around Rheda and her attempts to retain power, while different factions plot to undermine her. Looking forward to seeing where the story goes and how other elements of the original poem will be woven into the plot. I hope it plays well with it's intended audience, maybe a Saturday evening slot would have worked better, capturing viewers with Dr Who withdrawal symptoms.