Everyone and their brother knows that Little John and Friar Tuck are members of Robin's infamous, and unfortunately named, Merry Men. And Maid Marion, well, every little girl wants to be Maid Marion and be loved by the witty, charming, do-gooder/outlaw Robin Hood. Robin Hood is a true classic, there's no doubt about it.
The very first Robin I remember seeing on the TV screen was the Disney version, a big fat bear played the role of Little John, and Robin, of course, was cast as a clever fox. Then Kevin Costner played the hero in Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves. Accompanied by a cast of stars and an amazing soundtrack by Canadian, Brian Adams, it was instantly my new favourite movie. The next Robin I came across was handsome, clever, and ridiculous, in Mel Brooks' Robin Hood, Men In Tights. In 2010, yet another Robin made it to the big screen in the body of Russell Crowe - I watched and enjoyed it. And finally, about a month ago, I come across a great British SERIES on Netflix simply called Robin Hood, featuring a slightly younger Robin than I'm used to seeing. The timing couldn't be better, as my son and I just finished reading a chapter book of the Adventures of Robin Hood.
I never thought much of Guy of Gisborne or the Sheriff of Nottingham from the movies, except that they were always pretty evil, however, the bad guys often steal the show in this version of Robin Hood. The Sheriff is hilariously despicable; he takes so much pleasure in torturing prisoners, as well as Guy, and his guards, and anybody that will make Robin take notice. Guy is kind of sexy (I like bad boys) and almost likable, until he does something unforgivable under the Sheriff’s command, often not bothering to protest, and even more often seeming to enjoy it.
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| Gisborne |
The band of Merry Men are courageous, funny, and not all men. It’s a little embarrassing how they worship Robin, giving so much authority to such a young fellow, although he is quite wily and bossy making him believable as their leader. The show is action packed, humorous, and encourages independent thinking, while concreting the idea that doing the right thing isn’t always the easy thing.
I'm enjoying watching the show with my son and, once again, I am so thankful for hidden gems like these on Netflix!
Good luck out there,
JB
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