Year: 2014-2016
Genre: Historical fiction
Seasons: 3
Episodes: 30
Special Notes: I own it.
Summary: The under-appreciated musketeers protect king, country, and everything else that isn't those two things.
*Cue the adventurous theme song*
I really enjoyed watching this series again. It’s long enough for you to become invested but not so long as it wears out its material. Well, not quite. More on that later.
The first season builds the four musketeers as a group, giving them backstories and growth. It’s a little episodic but there are some good mini adventures to be had.
Cardinal Richelieu is the villain and like a good villain he’s despicable enough to be a villain, but not so far gone that he can’t work with the heroes. You see the king’s dependency on him and how easy it is to turn the king against sound reason. Richelieu makes a good villain as he has power, influence, resources and a cunning mind.
The second season is definitely the best and has some serious nail-biting moments. It has a plot to course and it gets it done while maintaining the adventures.
Rochefort steps into the villainous slot and oh my cheesy biscuits is he bad. His crazy scheme builds to a worrying crescendo as he effortlessly manipulates those around him to do his bidding. He discredits the musketeers at every turn and no amount of good acts can reverse the king’s ebbing trust. I despise him in the best way possible.
Season three expands the scope and battles our heroes face. It could’ve used some condensing but it ended well.
Season three flounders in the BGD (Bad Guy Department). There are as many as four at one time and the weeny ten episodes couldn’t handle it. None of them have really strong motivations or enough screen time to hold my distaste. There’s one guy who’s driving the BGD but I couldn’t get a clear reading on him. Does he want money, power, control, revenge, or a monopoly on staring out of hoods and disappearing without a trace? Sure, you want him dead like any good tv watcher, but I wanted more of a reason to root for his death. I think the BGD should have had a max of two spokesmen.
Let’s start with our first—and my favorite—hero, D’Artagnan. I remember not caring for him the first time around. I take it all back. He’s young and inexperienced in the beginning and then fighting with the air of a master by the end. He’s humorous, kind, protective, and has amazing hair. Why would younger me not like him?
Athos still has his tortured backstory and moody presence. He doesn’t like a lot of things and drinks more than he should, but he has his good moments. He cares for his friends and that’s what gets him through tough times. That, and the drinking.
Porthos doesn’t stray far from what you might be familiar with. I think he gets more backstory than D’Ar and Aramis, which seems odd, but he’s fine.
Aramis creates more sticky situations for himself than a caramel factory. His charisma gets him out of most of it and it’s that trait that makes him my second favorite musketeer.
Milady and Constance are okay. Milady plays the ruthless killer well and has enough run-ins with Athos to re-evaluate her murderous ways. My opinion changed a few times regarding her. Constance flip-flops between “strong and independent” and damsel in distress depending on what the story needs. She’s better than I expected but not as good as she could’ve been.
I’d like to say a few words in honor of Treville, the musketeers’ captain. He tactfully treads a difficult path while trying to uphold the musketeers credentials in the king’s eye and be a good captain. Go Treville.
Speaking of the king…first season he’s an idiot, second season he’s a misguided idiot and in the third season he’s a tired idiot with a smattering of political smarts. So, improvement? Despite all the things he did that made me want to shake some sense into him, I still kinda like him. His overall attitude in the third season is a significant improvement, especially the new haircut.
The queen is reserved and wants to be a good queen even as the French politicians thwart her for simply having the irredeemable problem of Spanish blood. She finds herself in sticky situations too, but puts on a brave face while she handles them.
I mentioned the theme song’s rousing quality and that goes for the whole soundtrack. There are a lot of good songs and moments enhanced by songs, like the final scene of the show. It’s one of my favorite tv show soundtracks.
The costumes are amazing. You’ll want to dazzle in corsets and lavish dresses, or dashingly wear a cape, leather hat, and whip out pistols and rapiers by the end of the show. I don’t know if any of it’s historically accurate (probably not), but it sure looks good.
This show makes me want to fight injustice, look fashionable, and epically toss aside my one-shot pistols. Preferably all at once. I’d recommend you watch it.
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