The Musketeers series 1 finale
Mar. 31st, 2014 08:04 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shallownessThe Musketeers 1.10
If I’m being picky, this wasn’t the greatest ever finale. My very favourite bit was the Queen revealing she’d heard the Cardinal’s confession, because it was right that she did and that she had the decision about what to do with him. Full-on regal, and the line about her influence being greater than he thought was all the confirmation I needed of my theory. Satisfying scene all round, then.
I also mostly liked the big gunfight towards the end, except for how Constance was handled. Just something about the fact that she was twice grabbed, held at gunpoint and made to wait until the Musketeers realised jarred the rhythm (and although she had a smart escape attempt and was indeed feisty, she didn’t get to use any of her fighting abilities).
The whole reveal that they’d been playing Milady at the start and had a plan (about which they smirked a little too much, silly boys) wasn’t quite as epic as it could have been. The fact that nobody died, while making me glad on one level – but Milady will surely not return as a regular in the next series, in which case there’s a gap for another female character who is better integrated and maybe a love interest/foil/antagonist for Porthos – left me underwhelmed on another, because I was expecting someone to do it and Milady at Athos’s hands seemed the most likely. The way it played out was better for keeping him heroic, because he certainly wasn’t the magistrate of Paris, and having her be the only one handed over to the authorities wouldn’t have felt like justice, but... Athos/Milady had the possibility of being much more epic to my mind. We had glimpses of it.
Speaking of wasted potential, Milady’s old thieving mates really should have tied a link with the Court of Miracles somehow. I cannot believe that they didn’t go there. Pertwee was OTT fun and the drunken courtesan, with a face like Felicity Jones meets Helena Bonham-Carter, was nicely played. I also think that the whole idea of Milady being tired of men controlling her, especially after the Cardinal had turned on her could have been brought out even more. For what it’s worth, I believe her story about what happened with Athos’s brother.
The Aramis/Queen conversation got to me the most – both of them being quite stoic and sublimating their feelings for each other through the unborn child with the worst code ever. The Cardinal has surely sussed out what happened between them (nice reprise of Athos’s YOU SLEPT WITH THE QUEEN face earlier, but bless him for covering in front of the other two) and as Anne caught Richilieu out, will try to use it. Meanwhile the legitimate King is being weaned somewhere far, far away.
While I’m glad Constance isn’t lying to D’Artagnan, their whole situation just makes me lift my hands up in dismay. The problem is the modern attitude hasn’t really tackled what marriage was then. Bonacieux was basically emotionally blackmailing her (and I was disgusted that she didn’t respond to his ‘not reproaching you, dearest’ with the fact that she was forcibly held against her will, not shacking up with her lover, but I suppose the snogging of said lover got her tongue). The whole ‘later’ thing? What, she’s going to divorce Bonacieux after a few more years of this? In Catholic France of that time? Je ne croix pas, Madame. Despite their faces and the actors’ chemistry, I’m not quite buying it.
And so, we were left with just the four Musketeers and their honour (and horses, and, unspoken, each other). We finally got the motto said properly, but downplayed – which worked better for me than the group hug after the reveal of the plan.
I carp because this could have been better. It’s been a lot of fun and ravishing to look at but I think there’s room for improvement in season 2 – if it is, I may deal with the fact that the show will never be ‘The Lady Musketeers’ or ‘The Queen and her Musketeers’ or ‘Milady and her League of Thief-Assassins Get Revenge on all the Men who have Mistreated them’ or ‘Guerrilla Nuns Attack!’
If I’m being picky, this wasn’t the greatest ever finale. My very favourite bit was the Queen revealing she’d heard the Cardinal’s confession, because it was right that she did and that she had the decision about what to do with him. Full-on regal, and the line about her influence being greater than he thought was all the confirmation I needed of my theory. Satisfying scene all round, then.
I also mostly liked the big gunfight towards the end, except for how Constance was handled. Just something about the fact that she was twice grabbed, held at gunpoint and made to wait until the Musketeers realised jarred the rhythm (and although she had a smart escape attempt and was indeed feisty, she didn’t get to use any of her fighting abilities).
The whole reveal that they’d been playing Milady at the start and had a plan (about which they smirked a little too much, silly boys) wasn’t quite as epic as it could have been. The fact that nobody died, while making me glad on one level – but Milady will surely not return as a regular in the next series, in which case there’s a gap for another female character who is better integrated and maybe a love interest/foil/antagonist for Porthos – left me underwhelmed on another, because I was expecting someone to do it and Milady at Athos’s hands seemed the most likely. The way it played out was better for keeping him heroic, because he certainly wasn’t the magistrate of Paris, and having her be the only one handed over to the authorities wouldn’t have felt like justice, but... Athos/Milady had the possibility of being much more epic to my mind. We had glimpses of it.
Speaking of wasted potential, Milady’s old thieving mates really should have tied a link with the Court of Miracles somehow. I cannot believe that they didn’t go there. Pertwee was OTT fun and the drunken courtesan, with a face like Felicity Jones meets Helena Bonham-Carter, was nicely played. I also think that the whole idea of Milady being tired of men controlling her, especially after the Cardinal had turned on her could have been brought out even more. For what it’s worth, I believe her story about what happened with Athos’s brother.
The Aramis/Queen conversation got to me the most – both of them being quite stoic and sublimating their feelings for each other through the unborn child with the worst code ever. The Cardinal has surely sussed out what happened between them (nice reprise of Athos’s YOU SLEPT WITH THE QUEEN face earlier, but bless him for covering in front of the other two) and as Anne caught Richilieu out, will try to use it. Meanwhile the legitimate King is being weaned somewhere far, far away.
While I’m glad Constance isn’t lying to D’Artagnan, their whole situation just makes me lift my hands up in dismay. The problem is the modern attitude hasn’t really tackled what marriage was then. Bonacieux was basically emotionally blackmailing her (and I was disgusted that she didn’t respond to his ‘not reproaching you, dearest’ with the fact that she was forcibly held against her will, not shacking up with her lover, but I suppose the snogging of said lover got her tongue). The whole ‘later’ thing? What, she’s going to divorce Bonacieux after a few more years of this? In Catholic France of that time? Je ne croix pas, Madame. Despite their faces and the actors’ chemistry, I’m not quite buying it.
And so, we were left with just the four Musketeers and their honour (and horses, and, unspoken, each other). We finally got the motto said properly, but downplayed – which worked better for me than the group hug after the reveal of the plan.
I carp because this could have been better. It’s been a lot of fun and ravishing to look at but I think there’s room for improvement in season 2 – if it is, I may deal with the fact that the show will never be ‘The Lady Musketeers’ or ‘The Queen and her Musketeers’ or ‘Milady and her League of Thief-Assassins Get Revenge on all the Men who have Mistreated them’ or ‘Guerrilla Nuns Attack!’
