MANILA, Philippines?Historical dramas are difficult to excitingly pull off for today?s viewers, because their very historicity tends to come off as stuffy and huffy, making them appear to be too boring and self-important, especially for young audiences. Producers also balk at bankrolling historical and biographical productions, because they?re too expensive to finance.

Well, HBO?s current miniseries, ?John Adams,? puts those fears and quibbles to rest with its dynamic and insightful depiction of the life, times and accomplishments of one of the main shapers of the United States? independence and government.

We caught the seven-part miniseries? start last September 10 and caught up with the US? future president just as tumultuous events were about to thrust him into national prominence, despite his best efforts to remain a quiet and circumspect backwater lawyer doing scrupulously good work in a small corner of the emerging nation.

Contentious

The key event that made Adams? probity and integrity known to the country at large was particularly contentious and controversial: The ?massacre? of some citizens by a company of British troops. Adams was expected to side with the ?victims,? but he agreed to defend the occupying force because he had unearthed evidence that belied initial reports that the troops had fired at the crowd without provocation.

Adams? decision aroused the anger of the populace, but after he had convincingly proved his point and won the exoneration of the British troops, some more thoughtful leaders of the community realized that his brilliance and probity were greatly needed by the nascent nation, and convinced him to accept a series of increasingly more important positions that culminated in his serving as president of the new United States of America.

?John Adams? has won a slew of Emmy and Golden Globe awards, attesting to its exceptional quality and worth. In our view, it?s eminently viewable because it provides a fresh and empathetic view of ?old? events. It does this by personalizing its storytelling, focusing not just on key and transformative moments of history, but also on the individuals who set those important events in motion through sheer dint of their principles and persuasive force.

In fact, in ?John Adams,? the future president shares a lot of screen time with his much more private and recondite wife, Abigail. Thus do we find out that she was a key part of his success and accomplishments, since she served as a sounding board for his ideas, aside from vigorously and lovingly supporting him all the way to the peak of his destined rise to the leadership of his country.

Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney play John Adams and Abigail, respectively, and they are great in their roles, because they subsume themselves utterly to the characters they play. In addition, they share valuable insights that make their characters? feelings and motivations so clear to viewers that we feel we?re inhabiting their minds and hearts.