"Television is the new film." This is the message of HBO's succulent new series, Boardwalk Empire. We've been heading up this path since The Sopranos, of course, but 70 minutes and $50 million of programming like that which America witnessed on Sunday evening — Scorsese at the helm, Sopranos scribe Terence Winter running the show, and a new suit or bullet wound at every turn — and it's not at all a stretch to call this the dawn of a new era for television, at least in terms of ambition. This is Atlantic City in 1920, sure, all supremely decadent and gangsterfied — but make no mistake about it: this is Hollywood at its finest.

And it starts at the beginning, with a single-take crane shot full of startling images: the boss, Nucky Thompson, and his exquisite blue Rolls Royce; the crowd, all kinds, including a man in black face holding a casket for a funeral. Inside it, though, is a life-size bottle of whiskey, for this is the literal dawn of prohibition, which Thompson, played by Steve Buscemi, seems poised to dominate. America is obsessed with gangsters of this charming, gracious sort, and 20 years removed from Goodfellas, in a country primed for revolt and hungry for an anti-government local to lead, Nucky seems a perfect kind of antihero. To wit, the multiple nude scenes (!) aside, his clothes are perfect at every moment: exquisite tweeds, flawless pinned collars, decadent bright neckties and shirts — this is a man set apart on purpose, a figure to be admired. As The Style Blog learned last week, costume designer John Dunn has created in Buscemi's character someone who is bold without fear, a literal trend-setter both attitudinally and in those colors and patterns.

Now, these last few months we've been on a style adventure together with Mad Men, but exploring America in the Jazz Age is a different animal. I won't bore you with a complete geeky history lesson, but it must be said that there are some interesting things happening in fashion here: for ladies, pants and dropped-waist dresses; and the men, if less revolutionary, are at least charged with some sort of stylish rebellion. Reflected in even measures are the end of the war and rise of the working class, all while the wealthy fly high on fanciful colors and fabrics — rich wools, silks, and brocade:

The visual contrast — of class and clothes, cunning and crassness — is in full focus with Boardwalk's most important interplay, between Nucky and his driver-turned-protégé, Jimmy Darmody, played by the dishy Michael Pitt. Looking the part is important in these times, and when Nucky offers Jimmy a job upon his return from the war, he also gives him $1000 to buy a suit — an amount that, in 1920, would've lasted any laborer an entire year. But Jimmy turns it down (the cash, not the job) if not because he's stubborn than because he looks good anyway: Pitt's natural good looks shine in contrast with the rough, khaki-colored woolen monochromes of a former soldier.

Meanwhile, Nucky's charm and flamboyance is clearly an irritant to our villain, the zealously puritanical agent Nelson Van Alden, who doggedly upholds the law in severe dark suits. But even Van Alden indulges in jewel-toned ties in keeping with the boardwalk flash:

We see complex levels of ethnic segregation in dress as well. The Italians come in heavy from Chicago and New York, with lots of fur and brocade — save a young Al Capone, in the same woolen drab as Jimmy — full of colors and patterns to reflect cultural differences in a not-so-subtle way. Same goes for a brief glimpse at an African-American dandy played by Michael Kenneth Williams, aka Omar from The Wire:

Now, over the next several weeks (and probably years), we are going to be seeing a lot of styles that can only be tackled by the most meticulous of dandies — high-water trousers, belted suit jackets, breeches, the works. But a look at the recently concluded spring shows in New York actually reveals many wearable elements on the horizon: double-breasted jackets (see Perry Ellis), bold three-pieces (Simon Spurr, anyone?), pastels and brights (from Tommy Hilfiger), even knickers (courtesy of Antonio Azzuolo).

We're only one episode in and already we've seen bare breasts, blown-off heads, and some of the most beautiful suits in television history. I'm hooked. Stay tuned every Sunday night as we begin an in-depth look into the finer details of Boardwalk Empire style, and what it means for you. As Jimmy says to Nucky, "You can't be half a gangster. Let me help you."

EARLIER: Behind-the-Scenes Secrets from the Costume Designer >>

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