Depicting the rise of Catherine The Great, The Great is the new black comedy that is also occasionally a romance, and also "occasionally true" as the tag line admits. Many a women in a long term marriage might look over and sigh at how their partner turned out, disappointed they no longer seem to be quite the dreamboat they married. In Catherine's case, this moment comes within the first day of meeting her husband, who also happens to be the Emperor of Russia.
The show picks up early on in Catherine and Peter's relationship. Catherine is ambitious, idealistic, and naively hopeful. Peter is an utter moron and pig who has no idea how to rule. So he mostly leaves it to a retinue of self-serving toadies, gadabouts and perverts to sort these things out, whilst he mucks about with guns and other people's wives.
So it is an odd couple story, but a boisterous one full of violence, swearing and sex. The show does the Death of Stalin thing where everyone just talks in their regular voices, thankfully sparing us the mock "Ie M fReM rUsHiA, aYe Vi LlBr Ea K yOu!" accents and making the show easier to enjoy. Also, like Death of Stalin, it shows some fairly horrific and callous acts that make me stop and worry how much of the insane things on screen genuinely did happen. You might occasionally empathise with Peter, but the show makes sure you are quick to join Catherine's side after seeing his wretched behaviour.
It's not all grim though. Besides the pitch black humour (which I did laugh at a lot), we get quite a lot of sentimental and genuinely charming moments. Even Peter gets a few, but most are reserved for the blossoming relationship between Catherine and her lover, whom Peter contracts in to keep her entertained.
I enjoyed The Great, and the biggest obstacle to you having the same pleasure has nothing to do with the show itself, but with the requirement that you shell out for Starz, which most likely comes on top of what you are paying for Amazon Prime. I figured that for the sake of a few quid, I could watch that one series and then cancel both memberships forever. But here's hoping The Great gets a wider release on some better platforms.
Series An Empirical Observation
Depicting the rise of Catherine The Great, The Great is the new black comedy that is also occasionally a romance, and also "occasionally true" as the tag line admits. Many a women in a long term marriage might look over and sigh at how their partner turned out, disappointed they no longer seem to be quite the dreamboat they married. In Catherine's case, this moment comes within the first day of meeting her husband, who also happens to be the Emperor of Russia.
The show picks up early on in Catherine and Peter's relationship. Catherine is ambitious, idealistic, and naively hopeful. Peter is an utter moron and pig who has no idea how to rule. So he mostly leaves it to a retinue of self-serving toadies, gadabouts and perverts to sort these things out, whilst he mucks about with guns and other people's wives.
So it is an odd couple story, but a boisterous one full of violence, swearing and sex. The show does the Death of Stalin thing where everyone just talks in their regular voices, thankfully sparing us the mock "Ie M fReM rUsHiA, aYe Vi Ll Br Ea K yOu!" accents and making the show easier to enjoy. Also, like Death of Stalin, it shows some fairly horrific and callous acts that make me stop and worry how much of the insane things on screen genuinely did happen. You might occasionally empathise with Peter, but the show makes sure you are quick to join Catherine's side after seeing his wretched behaviour.
It's not all grim though. Besides the pitch black humour (which I did laugh at a lot), we get quite a lot of sentimental and genuinely charming moments. Even Peter gets a few, but most are reserved for the blossoming relationship between Catherine and her lover, whom Peter contracts in to keep her entertained.
I enjoyed The Great, and the biggest obstacle to you having the same pleasure has nothing to do with the show itself, but with the requirement that you shell out for Starz, which most likely comes on top of what you are paying for Amazon Prime. I figured that for the sake of a few quid, I could watch that one series and then cancel both memberships forever. But here's hoping The Great gets a wider release on some better platforms.