For me it's pretty much everything up through the Julio-Claudian Dynasty. I like the early Republic for the reasons Aemilius Paulus mentioned, I like the late Republic due to the massive infighting and naked struggle for power amongst the dynasts and I find the Julio-Claudian Dynasty interesting because of the court intrigue that Graves represented so nicely in "I, Claudius." Once we get past there my interest diminishes a bit, and when the dominate comes into being I start to lose interest, especially with the rise of Christianity. A bit depressing for my tastes. -M