I don't have to like this if I don't want to.

While not quite as bitingly funny as the series that followed, it's very good, and the volcanic presence of Brian Blessed adds some dramatic heft to proceedings.

Hit-and-miss. Brian Blessed is awesome though and everyone should watch him hosting "Have I Got News For You" on youtube.

The Black Adder, the first in a saga of miniseries starring Rowan Atkinson (usually as a courtier) in period settings, is cruder than the 2nd, 3rd and 4th series. At first I did not appreciate it as much as them, but after re-watching it several times over the years it has grown on me. On occasion, it is able to elicit a hearty guffaw, and while the rest is just silly, it becomes fun once you settle into it.

Considerably weaker than the following BlackAdder series, but still laced with a little bit of the brilliance that made what followed this weak start so good.

x0

It has its moments but I found it just as annoying as I did funny.

When I was younger, I used to view this as the poor season before the good ones started. Last time I rewatched it I was surprised to find out I rate it as highly as the rest now.

Very good.

The writing, characters, story, and set direction are all highly superior to the series that follow

Terrible, but leads to greatness. Brian Blessed was good in it though

Don't dismiss Blackadder based on this first series. It gets soooooo much better from here.

Hints of the future brilliance of Blackadder are here, but they're often left to fall flat by everything else. Funny, but not a candle to the subsequent three series.

Has the best intro...hahahahahahahahahahhahaa

Sets the stage for the improved format of the three series that followed. Still enjoyable, but I like the balance of witty and awkward struck by II, III, and IV as opposed to the almost-entirely-awkward humor of this one.

Often more irritating than amusing, but still showing the early signs of what the series would eventually become.

Ugh!

Has a few spotty patches, but comes into its own in good time. Standouts are a weasily role from Atkinson & Brian Blessed being his awesome, bombastic self.

The first entry in the Black Adder saga is very enjoyable but decidedly inferior to the sheer brilliance of the other three: this Black Adder is essentially a clueless, slimy moron, a differentiation that does make for several great moments but without matching the non-stop hilarity of his later incarnations. Still, the show boasts an excellent cast and hints more than once at the genius in the making: the characters gel more and more and the humour at times shows shades of vitriolic subversion.

Amusing TV series.