So I heard a few good things about the UK series, The White Queen and decided that I would, since there’s little else on television right now worth watching, give it a review. After viewing the first episode, I’m not sure how far I’m going to get with this one, but I will put in every effort to finish the 10 episode run. While the premise is interesting - the ascension of England’s Edward IV during the late 15th century - the result is shaping up to be more of an historically based soap opera.
The first episode is basically a set-up, introducing the two main characters and some others that will no doubt play major roles as the story goes on. We meet Edward IV just as he’s defeating his rival and taking the crown of England, along with Elizabeth Woodville, the titular “White Queen”. While he is a York, she happens to have been married to a Lancaster, so there’s bad blood between the two families. Not to mention that she’s a low-level noble and not quite what a new king wants, politically speaking, when taking the crown. But still she manages to win his heart, marry him and take her place as the Queen of England. Making her way to court, Elizabeth finds her share of potential enemies.
Nothing much else happened this first episode, though I’m sure we can expect quite the ride as the show goes on. Typically, historical dramas are filled with politics and intrigue, which is what I’m hoping for. Being a bit of an historical documentary geek, I have very high expectations, so after witnessing a rather bland take on 15th century England, I do not have much faith. The sets and costumes were okay, if a bit “cinematic”, the political aspect felt a bit muted and the acting was at least passable. What the future holds, we shall see.
The next episode is “The Price of Power”, and hopefully the show will get a bit more into the gritty details of how things really worked back then, what with the assassinations and defamation campaigns and all that fun stuff. For a look at some clips from next week, head over to this site.
Photo Credits -
White Queen courtesy of veehd.com
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