Well, we know someone's been working overtime on this mini-series! Very nicely done., Edubs!
Thank you sir!
Most would consider GD Georgiy a minor character in the Romanov saga,but I think it's a nice touch to include him. His troubles and early death add to the sense that the IF had experienced more than its fair share of grief over the years, not the least of them Nicholas of course.
Yes, and none of my depictions of minor supporting characters are intended to be isolated
to that character. The middle scene where he visits with Copenhagen with his mother gives me an excuse to let the Dagmar Empress describe some of her upbringing and how she came to the Russian court, etc. Georgy's illness and death does help show the grief the family endured through the years. It's also a good way to bring Misha the fore. He'll obviously play an important role down the line. The Tsarevich for now, and later the fallback option.
And the world cruise of 1890-1 had to be shown too. This should include some depiction of the Imperial travelers' more frivolous or irresponsible moments as well, to showcase Nicholas' immaturity or at least his then unfitness to be Emperor.
Interesting. Anything specific you have in mind? I'll need to do a little more reading on their voyage. So far it's mostly the basic stuff I seen...where they went, who they met, the near tragic event that took place, etc.
Not to rush you, but there really must be a scene of the Otsu attack on the Heir.
Well you must have known I'd be getting to that at some point Rodney :-) I haven't worked a scene up for it yet but I do know exactly how I want to show it. The start of the Russo-Japanese war, Nicholas thinking back to his visit to Japan...initiate flashback sequence! Georgy was sent home by then on account of his health so it wouldn't seem as awkward as it would if he magically reappeared.
Conceivably it could flash on his blood- soaked shirt or bandages as they will be used about a century later for DNA comparisons in trying to confirm the Ekaterinburg remains as those of Nicholas and Family.
What a great idea! Like something out of a TV crime drama. My only minor concern is that this scene would have to take place hours before the "viewer" got to our little epilogue, or however I might end up depicting the excavation of the remains from decades later...assuming that it would be part of the story in the first place.
And a note: to his mother Empress Marie,that is within his family, Nicholas would more likely simply say "grandmama" , rather than "the Queen of England". But yours is a fine first draft and these things are readily corrected quickly enough.
Right you are, this was rather intentional though. I assume you are talking about the scene where he reads aloud her condolence letter, yes? First off he was surrounded by many family members and possibly some close unrelated associates gathering with the royal family to pay their final respects. But also this is again for the sake of the viewer. Don't forget that we just came from a scene where we had MF discussing life growing up in Copenhagen and talking about her mother. I guess I could easily enough have Nicholas say, "I received a touching letter yesterday from grandmama in England." But just using "grandmama" might come off as confusing. I can see the viewer asking, "wait, which grandmother are we talking about now...Queen Victoria or the one they just saw in Denmark?"
As I read these scenes I struggle to imagine them as an average moviegoer , not knowing diddly about almost anything of these people and that time, would take them in. As a Romanov fan and history buff,I opt for the most possible. A more typical movie goer is going to want a "story" and it's hard to create one without being too unsubtle.
Yeah and this might be the hardest part of all. It's one thing to come up with a bunch of scenes and place them chronologically like chapters in a history book. But where is the common theme...where is that "story" you talk about? I don't have a good answer to this question at this point but I do think that compiling enough scenes to work with, knowing full well that several could end up being cut for the greater good of the flow, is a good way to start.
Nice little note there with Georgiy's doctor worried about his smoking. A little Romanov leitmotif? And I hope historically accurate.
lol, well I'm not sure about a leitmotif but I did read that Georgy was confined to bed rest and instructed not to smoke until he was well enough to return home.
Thanks for the feedback Rodney!