The result is a series more competent than compelling.

David Farr... has given us an intriguing, relatively faithful version of the Iliad.

It's great fun, all this, but it's also a bit of a rushed mess, and I don't think we can completely blame the Greeks.

Certainly it looked good, stayed reasonably attentive to Homer's myth-making and had some decent playing from a largely unknown cast.

The signs are that this eight-parter will get better and better.

We haven't met Achilles yet, so there is plenty of time for things to get hysterical, but Troy: Fall of a City might just be a fresh, psychologically knotty take on one of the greatest tales of them all.

Still, this new eight-part series begins to grip as the various pieces interlock.

If it's escapism you're wanting, series link away.