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Informal Reviews - The MusketeersI dont watch that much TV. OK, Ill rephrase that; I dont watch that much live TV.

Anything I do watch is on catch-up services like iPlayer. To take things further, Id

say that BBC 1 is a channel I rarely see. They have only put on two shows that I

watch. The first is Have I Got News for You,while the other, more recent production

is The Musketeers.

For those who dont know, The Musketeersis a veryloose adaptation of Alexandre

Dumas The Three Musketeers, and by very, I mean its a series of self-contained

adventures that use the same characters and setting. Granted, all adaptations have

to be different, but this follows the source material so loosely that it barely qualifies

as one. Anyway, with the concept out of the way, lets talk about the series.

Luke Pasqualino plays DArtagnan, a young swordsman from Gascony travelling toParis with his father. While at an inn, DArtagnans father is murdered by a man

claiming to be Athos of the Musketeers, a prestigious regiment dedicated to

protecting King Louis XIII, played by Ryan Gage. Seeking revenge, DArtagnan

travels to Paris where he confronts the eponymous Musketeers: Tom Burke as

Athos, a noble with a troubled past; the boisterous giant Porthos, played by Howard

Charles; and Santiago Carbrera as Aramis, depicted as a Casanova serving as the

brains of the group. They all serve under Captain Treville, played by Hugo Speer,

and spend most of their getting into fights with members of the Red Guards, a

regiment who pledge their allegiance to Cardinal Richelieu, the Kings closestadviser.

Speaking of Cardinals, Peter Capaldi plays an amoral, high-ranking politician who

schemes and plots for his personal benefit as well as that of his country. This is not

to be confused with Capaldis other famous role in The Thick of It, in which he plays

an amoral, high-ranking politician who schemes and plots for his personal benefit as

well as that of his country. Really, they are different. The Cardinal isnt as foul-

mouthed as Malcolm Tucker, and has even less scruples. I reckon that Cardinal

Richelieu is the archetypal Grand Vizier in the world of fiction. While the historical

figure might not have been anything like any of his depictions, Dumas did end upgiving him the popular image everyone sees him as. He is a lot different from Tim

Curry in the Disney version, in that he doesnt seek the throne for himself, but he is

still intent on controlling it. Furthermore, he starts out as something of an anti-villain,

as he believes that he is acting for the good of France. In a few episodes in the

middle of the series, thats something which cannot be denied.

I have to admit that the first episode wasnt great. I got the impression that the

writers couldnt decide on the tone, dithering between campy swashbuckling and

angst-ridden drama. The problem was that the campy swashbuckling had all been

done before, which simultaneously made the drama feel tacked on. For example,

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one scene involves Aramis having a relationship with Cardinal Tuckers mistress and

having to hang out of a window to avoid being caught by the Cardinal. At the end of

the episode, the mistress is killed by the Cardinal for her disloyalty.

Fortunately, the series does end up improving later on. My pick of the season would

be the third episode, Commodities. Thestory itself revolves around the Musketeers

arrest Emile Bonnaire, a Lord Flashheart-style merchant and explorer who had

violated trade agreements between France and Spain. The setup is very similar to

Elmore Leonards short story, 3:10 to Yuma about a group of lawmen escorting a

prisoner through dangerous lands. In the same way, the Musketeers have to escort

Bonnaire from Le Havre to Paris, where they have to contend with rescue attempts

from Bonnaires wife Maria, and an ambush by his angry business part ner, while at

the same time being discreetly followed by two Spanish agents. When Porthos is

wounded, they have to take refuge at a run-down chateau owned by Athos, where

he tries to deal with his personal demons, primarily involving Richelieus spy, Miladyde Winter. The episode has drama which is more believable, particularly with Athos,

and tensions mount even more when Porthos discovers that Bonnaire is a slave

trader. Yeah, I forgot; Porthos is black in this version. Apparently it was intended to

mirror Dumas father, the son of a slave and a French aristocrat who went on to

become a Napoleonic Marshal.

The season finale is just around the corner at the time of writing, and a second

season has been commissioned. However, the issue with this is the fact that

Cardinal Tucker is going to be written out, as Peter Capaldi is unable to return due to

his new role in Doctor Who. I know the writers might not be too keen on recasting

another Darrin, but I just cant see The Three Musketeerswithout the Cardinal.

In conclusion, Id say that The Musketeers isnt for everyone, despite being on a

mainstream channel. Its alittle clichd and the fact that everyone in France sounds

like theyre from EastEnderscan be very distracting. However, I do enjoy the clichs,

and the main characters all get some funny lines. If you re after an interesting period

drama, this isnt for you, but if youre after some mind-numbing swashbuckling action

to pass the time on a Sunday night, I thoroughly recommend it.

Its all for fun and fun for all.

Written by Andrew Roberts

5/28/2018 The Musketeers

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