![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Musketeers Season 1
Sep. 26th, 2015 07:18 amI finally finished season 1 of the Musketeers. My impression of the show is mixed. I like how the show stayed true to the themes and characters of the book (mostly) while adapting it to a television series. Warning, spoilers abound in this post for the first season.
The show really does white wash the past in nearly every episode. The effect of this is simply to make the show seem immature and unwilling to tackle difficult truths.
The show is written by people who think themselves very clever but in actuality they re-use every trope ever imagined in the most cliché way possible. The result of which is me groaning at the big reveals.
The characters are lovable and fun. The bromance is strong. I keep watching because I love the Musketeers in most adaptions all for the infinite friendship theme. I love this so much!
They did their own versions of a King twin threatening the crown and some head nods to the Fronde. They definitely mixed The Three Musketeers and future books together for season one. However, I think the next season will deal with the Queen's child as a target of the Fronde returning to many plots of Twenty Years After. In that book they sought to kidnap the baby in order to train him for throne. I know the book won't go there, but this is the decisive moment for the Musketeers. In the book, two musketeers conspire with the Fronde while the other two fight the Fronde. They meet on the battlefield and upon realizing they are fighting each other arrange to meet. At the meeting they argue until Athos swears he will never take arms against another of their quartet and the others swear similarly in return. It's one of my favorite moments.
I really like Athos's character. They really capture his essence.
The show isn't willing to go very dark and that makes it harder to take seriously. In the books, Milady kills Constance and in turn the Musketeers have her executed in secret. Athos later refers to the events as the dark secret that binds them together as conspirators. It's also when D'Artagnan swears off women and refuses to ever date again (which he sticks to until his death). In the show, they spare milady despite everything. It helps Milady didn't kill Constance but I feel this ending was weaker, removing a lot of the depth from the stories.
So my feelings are mixed. I'm glad to have this Musketeers incarnation and I love the nods to the books while staying its own adaptation but I would prefer some stronger writing.
The show really does white wash the past in nearly every episode. The effect of this is simply to make the show seem immature and unwilling to tackle difficult truths.
The show is written by people who think themselves very clever but in actuality they re-use every trope ever imagined in the most cliché way possible. The result of which is me groaning at the big reveals.
The characters are lovable and fun. The bromance is strong. I keep watching because I love the Musketeers in most adaptions all for the infinite friendship theme. I love this so much!
They did their own versions of a King twin threatening the crown and some head nods to the Fronde. They definitely mixed The Three Musketeers and future books together for season one. However, I think the next season will deal with the Queen's child as a target of the Fronde returning to many plots of Twenty Years After. In that book they sought to kidnap the baby in order to train him for throne. I know the book won't go there, but this is the decisive moment for the Musketeers. In the book, two musketeers conspire with the Fronde while the other two fight the Fronde. They meet on the battlefield and upon realizing they are fighting each other arrange to meet. At the meeting they argue until Athos swears he will never take arms against another of their quartet and the others swear similarly in return. It's one of my favorite moments.
I really like Athos's character. They really capture his essence.
The show isn't willing to go very dark and that makes it harder to take seriously. In the books, Milady kills Constance and in turn the Musketeers have her executed in secret. Athos later refers to the events as the dark secret that binds them together as conspirators. It's also when D'Artagnan swears off women and refuses to ever date again (which he sticks to until his death). In the show, they spare milady despite everything. It helps Milady didn't kill Constance but I feel this ending was weaker, removing a lot of the depth from the stories.
So my feelings are mixed. I'm glad to have this Musketeers incarnation and I love the nods to the books while staying its own adaptation but I would prefer some stronger writing.
