by Helen Langdon
For once, last week’s preview gave the basic plot away; it really was about French suffragette witches! Well, kind of – a Comtesse with a strong line in feminism wanted to teach women about astronomy, anatomy and so on. Unfortunately, one of her acolytes came over all Emily Dickinson and ended up dashed on the cobblestones after trying to give a petition to the queen. So, to curb Comtesse de Larroque’s power, the Cardinal accused her of witchcraft.
For once, last week’s preview gave the basic plot away; it really was about French suffragette witches! Well, kind of – a Comtesse with a strong line in feminism wanted to teach women about astronomy, anatomy and so on. Unfortunately, one of her acolytes came over all Emily Dickinson and ended up dashed on the cobblestones after trying to give a petition to the queen. So, to curb Comtesse de Larroque’s power, the Cardinal accused her of witchcraft.
This was really the Cardinal’s episode. Yet again, his were the most withering lines, and his quest for power was the dominating force pushing the plot into motion. Without the dangling proposition of popehood, there wouldn’t have been the impetus to stop the burgeoning female education movement. When the Cardinal began choking just as he was about to pronounce sentence on Comtesse de Larroque, at first it appeared that he was doing it for effect, pretending to be cursed to ensure that Ninon’s conviction of witchcraft would be unshakeable. Then, as Aramis tried to save his life, it suddenly became far tenser. Given that Peter Capaldi has to leave the series in some fashion to take up his role in the TARDIS, it was easy to believe that his poisoning might just lead to his death. Out of all of the main characters, he’s the one who could die at any moment.
But who wanted to kill him? As pointed out, the list of suspects was pretty long, especially given that a witness in the court scene took a suspicious drink of water from the Cardinal’s glass. This wasn’t the answer, because things are never so simple. What The Musketeers is doing so well is bringing in the wider contemporary world, and so it was here, with Cardinal Richelieu’s superiors in Rome sending an assassin to kill him. And in quite an original way – getting poisoned by relic is a new one. Although given that the relic was the patella of St Anthony, patron saint of lost causes, the assassination attempt was never going to succeed.
They should have employed Milady as an assassin. She was back in this episode, doing what she does best – skulking around in the background of shots and trying to ruin Athos’ life. When Athos recognised her at the trial, it was a nice touch to have d’Artagnan absent. He’s the one with knowledge of Athos’ past, but he still hasn’t connected this to the woman he slept with before she framed him for murder. This episode didn’t need this revelation. It’s going to be explosive, now that d’Artagnan and Constance have finally done the inevitable, and it deserves to be an episode’s focus.
But who wanted to kill him? As pointed out, the list of suspects was pretty long, especially given that a witness in the court scene took a suspicious drink of water from the Cardinal’s glass. This wasn’t the answer, because things are never so simple. What The Musketeers is doing so well is bringing in the wider contemporary world, and so it was here, with Cardinal Richelieu’s superiors in Rome sending an assassin to kill him. And in quite an original way – getting poisoned by relic is a new one. Although given that the relic was the patella of St Anthony, patron saint of lost causes, the assassination attempt was never going to succeed.
They should have employed Milady as an assassin. She was back in this episode, doing what she does best – skulking around in the background of shots and trying to ruin Athos’ life. When Athos recognised her at the trial, it was a nice touch to have d’Artagnan absent. He’s the one with knowledge of Athos’ past, but he still hasn’t connected this to the woman he slept with before she framed him for murder. This episode didn’t need this revelation. It’s going to be explosive, now that d’Artagnan and Constance have finally done the inevitable, and it deserves to be an episode’s focus.
Speaking of returning characters, Queen Anne got some more to do this week. She had proper lines, even. And she actually did something useful by saving Ninon’s life, or at least postponing her execution until the Cardinal thought he was going to die and so didn’t care anymore. We also finally had a callback to the events of episode two, where Aramis and Anne fell in love after he threw her into the mud. Forget all of the other themes – this series is basically all about the doomed romances. Aramis wants the queen of France, Porthos’ ex is (potentially) off being the Queen of Thieves, Athos’ ex keeps on killing people, and d’Artagnan is going to end up torn between his married landlady and Athos’ ex. Anytime they meet other women, those women end up leaving at the end of an episode after exchanging some clichéd dialogue, such as “In another time. In another life.”
But the dialogue could be overlooked, given how stunning this episode looked. The Musketeers is overall a very good-looking series, even beyond the musketeer boyband. The scenery porn was no less strong here, with Comtesse de Larroque’s library a highlight. It was painful to watch its destruction, especially when the musketeers used the books as weapons (they had swords, seriously). The lighting was a dream, spotlighting Ninon in her trial scene as the Cardinal and Luca Sestini sat wreathed in shadows. And almost every shot placed the important action into the corner, forcing you to pay more attention than usual. There was always something just in front of the camera, such as the scene between the Cardinal and Sestini, where the edges of the chairs was in the foreground. The audience is right in the middle of the action, with the camera drifting across the scene making everything more real and immediate.
Next time, guest star of the week is Vinnie Jones! So lots of fighting can be expected, as the Cardinal and Captain Treville get into a pissing contest about their regiments, d’Artagnan gets manipulated by all and sundry, and Milady plays her men like puppets on strings.
But the dialogue could be overlooked, given how stunning this episode looked. The Musketeers is overall a very good-looking series, even beyond the musketeer boyband. The scenery porn was no less strong here, with Comtesse de Larroque’s library a highlight. It was painful to watch its destruction, especially when the musketeers used the books as weapons (they had swords, seriously). The lighting was a dream, spotlighting Ninon in her trial scene as the Cardinal and Luca Sestini sat wreathed in shadows. And almost every shot placed the important action into the corner, forcing you to pay more attention than usual. There was always something just in front of the camera, such as the scene between the Cardinal and Sestini, where the edges of the chairs was in the foreground. The audience is right in the middle of the action, with the camera drifting across the scene making everything more real and immediate.
Next time, guest star of the week is Vinnie Jones! So lots of fighting can be expected, as the Cardinal and Captain Treville get into a pissing contest about their regiments, d’Artagnan gets manipulated by all and sundry, and Milady plays her men like puppets on strings.
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