''Hispania, la leyenda'' () is a Spanish adventure drama television series starring Roberto Enríquez, Lluís Homar, Ana de Armas,

Juan José Ballesta Juan José Ballesta Muñoz, also known as Juanjo Ballesta (born 12 November 1987) is a Spanish actor. Biography Born on 12 November 1987 in Parla, Ballesta grew up in Toledo, Spain, Toledo. He debuted in a performance in television in 1997, ...

, Jesús Olmedo, Manuela Vellés and Nathalie Poza, among others. Set in the 2nd century BC in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

, it consists of a retelling of the myth around Lusitanian leader

Viriathus Viriathus (also spelled Viriatus; known as Viriato in Portuguese language, Portuguese and Spanish language, Spanish; died 139 Anno Domini, BC) was the most important leader of the Lusitanians, Lusitanian people that resisted Roman Republic, Roma ...

and his resistance against Roman conquest efforts. Produced by Bambú Producciones, it aired on Antena 3 from 2010 to 2012.

Premise

The plot consists of the retelling of the Viriatus' resistance against the Romans during the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in the 2nd century BC. The struggle of Viriatus ( Roberto Enríquez), a humble and courageous shepherd, pits him against the Roman

praetor ''Praetor'' ( , ), also ''pretor'', was the title granted by the government of ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected ''magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to disch ...

Servius Sulpicius Galba ( Lluís Homar).

Cast

Production and release

The series was created by Ramón Campos and produced by Bambú Producciones. Filming started in the northern hemisphere Summer of 2010 in

La Vera La Vera is a comarca (county, but with no administrative role) in Extremadura, western Spain. The largest town is Jaraíz de la Vera Jaraíz de la Vera () is a municipality located in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain. According to t ...

Extremadura Extremadura ( ; ; ; ; Fala language, Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is a landlocked autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, Spain, Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central- ...

. The 9-episode first season premiered on 25 October 2010 in

prime time Prime time, or peak time, is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for television shows. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

on Antena 3, running until 11 January 2011. The first season earned "great" viewership figures, averaging a 22.8% share. The second season aired from 10 May to 28 June 2011, whereas the third and last season (featuring 3 episodes) aired from 11 June to 25 June 2012. Along its broadcasting run, the series drew a steadily waning interest in terms of viewers, closing the series with a season finale attracting roughly 2 million viewers and a 12% share. The series sparked a spin-off, ''Imperium'', aired in 2012.

Historical licenses

Several gross departures from historical plausibility in the fiction have been described, including the "unfortunate"

onomastics Onomastics (or onomatology in older texts) is the study of proper names, including their etymology, history, and use. An ''alethonym'' ('true name') or an ''orthonym'' ('real name') is the proper name of the object in question, the object of onom ...

chosen for the rebels, featuring Roman, Greek or even Persian names, or the notion of the inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula sharing a sort of common "patriotic consciousness" describing themselves collectively as "''Hispanos''" , when rather tribal societies with different languages existed at the time. Likewise, the series moves the association of the myth of Viriathus from the Lusitanian space to a "more fluid" Iberian space. Hence, in the light of a number of historical inacuraccies and the problematic nature of the recreated imaginaries, Elena Cueto Asín and David R. George argue that "''Hispania, la leyenda'' crosses the boundaries of what is dramatically permissible in historical fiction". According to Fernando Gil González, the series, based on "the old ' Schultenian' precepts of nationalist and romantic nature", "is an outdated soap opera based on out-of-context anachronistic events and falsified data about the figure of Viriato".

Accolades

, - , align = "center" , 2011 , , 61st Fotogramas de Plata , , Best TV Actor , , Lluís Homar , , , , , - , align = "center" , 2012 , , 14th Iris Awards , , Best Actor , , Lluís Homar , , , , , - , align = "center" , 2013 , , 22nd Actors and Actresses Union Awards , , Best Television Actor in a Leading Role , , Roberto Enríquez , , , ,

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * * * *

External links

*{{IMDb title, tt1691593 2010 Spanish television series debuts 2012 Spanish television series endings Television shows filmed in Spain Antena 3 (Spanish TV channel) network series Spanish adventure television series 2010s Spanish drama television series Television shows set in Europe Television series set in the 2nd century BC Television series by Bambú Producciones