The Bastard

American History Mixed With Pulpy Melodrama: Some Of TV's Most Familiar Faces Bring The First Three Kent Novels To Life
Between 1974 and 1979, author John Jakes introduced America to the Kent family in eight wildly popular novels. Originally conceived to celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the books follow different members of the Kent clan around the time of the American Revolution. They start with the immigration of the original patriarch, Phillipe Charboneau (he changes his name to Phillip Kent) and proceed through history many generations later. The timing of the series couldn't have been more perfect for a television interpretation. Network TV was just discovering the possibility of EVENT programming with offerings like "Roots" in 1977 and "Centennial" in 1978. So in 1978 and 1979, the first three novels in the Kent Family Chronicles were aired for a public looking for the next big thing.

Two things need to be mentioned about any television production of this time. First, they are very much a product of their era. They will invariably...

iconic historical trilogy-watch them all
US history drama. A who's who of 1970s-1980s TV. The first NYTimes triple best-sellers adapted (but not closely) to television and now it's debatable which is best, books or miniseries? John Jakes authored the novels. A stellar cast in each of the 3 adaptations, so huge it's impossible to list all. It is `70s TV filming with SUBTITLES added. The music is good, sets and locations quite believable. It's a walk through America beginning in 1771 up to and past 1814. A lot of history, pioneer life, war, political change, and more in America's beginning steps leading to world prominence. The story is all seen through the eyes and lives of the fictional Kent family.

Over 3 hours for each episode. Action, adventure, history, romance, violence, & sexual situations make it for mature youth and older. So nostalgic to see all the stars, for those who lived in the 1970s.

The BASTARDS: 1771-1772
Philip Kent started as the illegitimate son of a Duke. Troubles led him to...

Blast from the past.
I was rereading "The Bastard" and thought I'd follow it up with the movie. Um, well, what can I say except it's a product of 70s television! The acting really is pretty pathetic and the sets were sad, but they did try to stay close to the spirit of the story. (Which wasn't as well written as I had remembered. Shows me how faulty my memory can be sometimes!)

For the price, it was okay. I paid to view it and it was a couple bucks. No big deal. But if you aren't looking at it as a piece of nostalgia (70s TV mini-series nostalgia) I'd just look for something else to watch. There are better shows from the 70s!

If it's free (I would think that sometime soon it would be free on Prime), then go ahead. It's a way to kill time and you might laugh (at the wrong moments) as I did. It's got quite a bit of bad acting, bad accents and just off moments that tickled my funny bone.

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