I just watched the Musketeers season 2 episode 1 and I loved it so much that I decided that my first post of 2015 will be a review of the episode! Let's get to it shall we? There will be spoilers below so if you haven't watched the episode yet, watch it and come back!
One of the best parts of the first season was the Cardinal but Peter Capaldi left the show to be the Doctor so I expected there to be some sort of a farewell. Because of this expectation, it was a little strange to come back and see his funeral. At the very least he should have been in this episode and had the heart attack during the episode so we'd get a little more closure. I'm not sure how I feel about the new villain Rochefort. The show is portraying him as loyal to the Spanish and truly "evil" but I keep getting these hints that he may not only be playing the French but also the Spanish. It would be much more interesting if Rochefort turned out to loyal only to himself and looking for the highest bidder. A more ambiguous villain is a more interesting one. However it's still very early so I'll withhold judgement. But having said that, when Marc Warren appeared on the screen having cut his hair, can I just say wow?
The mission itself was a simple and slightly boring one. The Musketeers were tasked with rescuing a French general from a Spanish prison while Rochefort tried to get them killed. Now as interesting as this could have been, it was kind of lame that they even tried this storyline. The Musketeers are about these four men so unless the show really really wants to try something risky, we all know that each episode will end with all four men safe. I don't think I was even worried once. Also the jail didn't seem all that bad. The general was playing chess with the head of the guard lol.
I did enjoy some moments of the rescue mission however because one thing the show does really well is comedy. When D'Artagnan attacked that guard and dragged him into the room where the general's sister was bathing, I laughed. I also enjoyed how easily D'Artagnan defeated the head of the guard and when the general's sister smacked him for almost shooting her brother. It was interesting to see the general's reaction to Porthos and at first I thought it might be a racist thing but I'm glad they decided to go a different route. I'm glad Porthos is finally getting a storyline and here's hoping it's a good one!
The tension between D'Artagnan and Constance was also fun. The way their relationship ended last season was sad but I expected the two to continue acting as they had with the only difference being that Constance's husband knew and couldn't do anything about it so I was surprised at the fact that Constance was keeping her distance. I laughed so hard when the Bonacieuxes ran into the Musketeers and Aramis, Athos and Porthos distracted the husband so D'Artagnan and Constance could talk. I also loved when her husband thought that the king summoned him and it was actually Anne who summoned Constance. I'm excited to see where this goes and I hope Anne and Constance actually become friends! They're two of the best women on the show! Honestly I think this show needs an all-girls episode where the women have to solve a problem while the men are busy. I would love to see them and Milady all team up!
I'm not thrilled about the love triangle and I saw it coming from the first interaction D'Artagnan had with the general's sister. I understand that D'Artagnan is pissed that Constance didn't choose him but he was acting like such an ass. Everything Constance said about being a woman was true and she never once claimed that she didn't love him yet D'Artagnan acted really selfish which is a weird route to take for the hero of a show. I expected him to be a little more understanding.
It doesn't seem as though Athos will be having much of a storyline yet. He spent most of the episode fighting and being there for Aramis who was really sad that he couldn't interact with his son. I really dislike babies in tv shows so I hope that the dauphin doesn't become the forefront of episodes and that he stays in the background. I loved the awkwardness between Aramis and Anne and it makes me curious of how Aramis feels about her. I do not think he ever acted like or said that he was in love with her but he acts jealous sometimes. I loved the ending where the Cardinal "came back from the grave" to threaten Aramis. It was a bit strange to see Aramis's reaction to Adele's death because honestly the writers did not treat that storyline well. If Aramis supposedly did love her, why didn't he ever think about her or mention her after the first episode of last season? I do however like that the Cardinal's influence has not disappeared and it will be interesting to see what else happens with that.
Despite all the negative things I said about this episode, I really truly did enjoy it and I can't wait for the next episode to air! I thrilled there's a season 2 and I'm excited for Milady to come back. I loved jumping back into the show and not missing a beat! Did I mention I missed this quartet? The next episode looks really interesting and I hope that D'Artagnan is able to protect/save King Louis instead of someone else coming to the rescue because that would be a fun dynamic if the King started to trust D'Artagnan. Maybe he would even look to D'Artagnan over Rochefort leading to their rivalry like in the books!!
Well that's all for now! I'll see you next week for a review of Agent Carter!!
xoxo Allie
