My Lady Jane reinvents Lady Jane Grey’s tragic story with magical realism on Prime Video. But does the irreverent historical romp do justice to its heroine amidst ethical issues of persecution?
My Lady Jane aims to reinvent Lady Jane Grey’s brief, doomed rule as an escapist fantasy on Prime Video. But how well does its irreverent magical plotting serve the woman at its heart?
The Reinvention of Lady Jane in a Historical Romp on Prime Video
Lady Jane Grey’s story is one many know well. The young woman who ruled England for just 9 days before meeting the executioner’s ax. But what if history had gone differently? What if Jane’s rule was not so brief and her fate not so tragic? That’s the idea behind Prime Video’s new 8-part series My Lady Jane.
An Imaginative Twist on the Tudor Era
My Lady Jane brings Jane Grey back to life in an alternative version of 16th century England where magic is real. Shape-shifting beings called Ethians live uneasily alongside regular humans, facing violent persecution.
When King Edward VI dies, his cousin Jane unwillingly ascends to the throne. She dreams instead of being left to write her books on medicinal herbs in peace. But greater forces are at work, and Jane shows an increasing sympathy for the Ethian’s cause that puts her in conflict with the ruthless Queen Mary I.
My Lady Jane reinvents the ultimate damsel in distress as an intellectual rebel who bucks conventions. The series mixes Tudor-era drama with humor, irreverence, and fantasy elements like people morphing into animals.
Keywords:
- Historical romp
- Prime Video
- Lady Jane Grey
- Tudor drama
- Intellectual rebel
Reviews praise the show’s sheer audaciousness but find the storyline lacking in depth. Still, there’s no shortage of amusement in this romp that finally gives Jane Grey’s tragically short reign a new lease on life.
The Cast Bring Life to Familiar Figures
A strong ensemble cast keeps the unpredictable plot spinning entertainingly.
- Emily Bader plays Jane as a pragmatic, unwavering heroine who’s nonetheless relatable in her flaws and desires.
- Edward Bluemel oozes charisma as her unwanted husband Guildford, who Jane demands a divorce from on their first night before a simmering attraction complicates matters.
- Dominic Cooper chews the scenery with glee as the manipulative royal advisor pulling strings behind the scenes.
- Anna Chancellor and Rob Brydon lend gravitas and humor as Jane and Guildford’s scheming parents.
The narrator, voiced by Ollie Chris, pokes fun at the familiar Tudor tropes even as he propels the story along. His wry observational style gives the show a modern sensibility that helps ground the more outlandish aspects.
Not Your Average Period Piece
My Lady Jane styles itself as a punk, anachronistic take on the 16th century, with a soundtrack of iconic rock songs like Rebel Rebel covered by women artists. The comedy often turns vulgar, like when Queen Mary’s quest for power rests on her BDSM-tinged relationship.
Plot Keywords:
- Magical realism
- Culture clash
- Forbidden love
While not quite as boundary-pushing as the show seems to think, the hijinks make for light entertainment. The story moves briskly between courtly intrigue, shapeshifting hijinks, and Jane’s battles against the establishment.
The Ethian Persecution Adds Stakes
The divide in this alternate England is not between Catholics and Protestants but between humans and the persecuted Ethians. Jane increasingly sympathizes with the Ethians even as she has to hide her true feelings from Queen Mary’s violent hatred of them.
This conflict tries to raise the stakes and tie the show to modern discrimination issues. But the Ethians feel more plot device than real culture, lacking historical grounding or developed backstories.
Still, watching people morph into animals surprisingly never gets old. The special effects have an enchanting humor and surrealism that freshens up the familiar royal setting.
Jane Grey Gets Lost Amidst the Romp
For all its talk of reinventing the story of Lady Jane Grey, the show struggles to give her inner life the same vivacity as the snappy plotting. She’s less a fully-realized character than a collection of modern tropes painting her as one-dimensional, if admirable, Strong Female CharacterTM.
Review Keywords:
- Enchanting
- Amusing
- Surreal
Storyline Keywords:
- Forbidden love
- Culture clash
- Magical realism
Her quest feels more theoretical than urgent. The injustices she battles remain outlines rather than lived experience. My Lady Jane ultimately serves up escapist fantasy rather than insightful historical reimagining.
Jane Grey remains a footnote doomed to lose her head. This time she at least gets to have some fun along the way, even if the story leaves her essence frustratingly unexplored. The romp whisks her from one picturesque setpiece to the next without stopping to consider the person at the center.
Conclusion: Frothy Fun That Could Have Been More
For all its original twists, My Lady Jane stays resolutely superficial. It succeeds more as a showcase for the talented ensemble cast to work their charm than a vehicle that adds new dimension to an underexplored historical figure.
The series engages in imaginative world-building that incorporates modern sensibilities around gender, politics, and racism. But it remains too glib to connect the fantasy to genuine commentary.
Prime Video deserves praise for greenlighting such an offbeat concept. A storyline about persecution resonates in an age where minority rights lie under threat. My Lady Jane ultimately gets swept up too much in mischievous revisionism to craft narrative depth. But it gifts Lady Jane Grey a legacy as something beyond just a doomed queen, even if the makeover isn’t fully complete.
This amusing pop confection aims more to channel the spirit of modern girl power than faithfully render history. On those bubblegum terms, it makes for a deliciously bingeable escape.
Conclusion Keywords:
- Superficial
- Glib
- Imaginative world-building
- Modern sensibilities
- Escapist fantasyWhile fast-paced fun, My Lady Jane struggles to develop its heroine amidst the zany fantasy. Share your thoughts and see if this diverting romp satisfies your craving for historical reimagining.
