Deadwood makes a real stab at the real life harshness of the western life on the fringes of community. A settlement which in it's own right is an illegal venture in Native Territory; be prepared for some really BAD things to happen.<br /><br />Ian McShane makes a groundbreaking performance in this series, depicting the real life bad guy that is Al Swearengen in astonishing style, he truly is a nasty piece of work in this series.<br /><br />Not forgetting Robin Weigert as Calamity Jane, this is perhaps one of the best depictions of the "rootin' tooting'" gal. She is far more realistic in this series as a hard-hitting butch woman, unlike in previous inaccurate depictions from the glossy western of the "stunning blonde".<br /><br />This has a quality of "Tombstone" (1993 - Cosmatos) mixed with "Fistful of Dollars" (1964 - Leone) mixed with "Open Range" (2005 - Costner), but with a far more darker side to it which is perhaps only seen in "The Missing" (2003 - Ron Howard) and it goes even further into that. Random acts of violence are not rare in this series and the community is non-stop. This is perhaps the finest example of how much trouble happens when the Odyssey runs the community.<br /><br />Conventions Followed: Framing Shots, Idea's of Odyssey and Community, Guns Saddle and Horse, an "other" (in this case the Sioux).<br /><br />Conventions Broken: Women are depicted as a tool, to be used by the Deadwood community such as prostitutes or like Calamity Jane. (slightly more realistic to the life in 19th Century Western America), Community dominated by the odyssey Character, Nothing Pre-lapsarian, Almost entirely based in the community, foul language used in it's full context, immoral characters "get-away with it".<br /><br />Prepare for some Protagonist vs. Antagonist Action.