Period dramas frequently make themselves approachable through excellent acting, a compelling plot, or a tonne of sex. For viewers to pay any attention, they often require at least two of those components. Consider the success of Sanditon and Bridgerton; one has excellent acting and an engaging plot, the other has a lot of sex. However, when two of the three are absent, the show drags. Does Death And Nightingales, a brand-new historical drama on Starz, live up to the standards set by the more well-liked period dramas?
DEATH AND NIGHTINGALES: IS IT WORTH WATCHING?
A graphic in a dimly lit farm home indicates that we are in a Protestant county in Ireland in 1885, when the country was still a continuous part of the British Empire. A female is perusing a book of poisons.
The main idea is that Beth Winters (Ann Skelly) forces her father Billy (Matthew Rhys) to drink a concoction that tastes like bitter almonds as he begs for forgiveness. Whether this is a flash ahead or a dream is unclear. Beth does appear to awaken in the middle of the night after hearing a cow moan in discomfort. As the light is rising, she steps outside and notices a bloated, distressed cow. To let air out, she opens a hole in her hide. She then understands that this will be her last day working at the farm as she turns to look at the fields.
Beth turned 23 years old today, and she wants to go. When she was 11 years old, while witnessing a heated argument between her parents, Beth learned that her mother Catherine (Valene Kane), who had married Billy while pregnant with Beth, was actually the child’s biological father. During the confrontation, Billy swears that Beth will never be the inheritor of his estate, but later that evening, he assures her that if she plays her cards well, the estate and a sizable collection of French gold coins will be hers alone.
But there has been tension in her relationship with Billy, especially after Catherine passed away. He’s made advances on her while intoxicated more than once, completely forgetting what he did the next morning. She also has a crush on Liam Ward (Jamie Dornan), a quarry worker who also resides on the farm and works for her father. Because she witnessed it happening, the maid, Mercy Boyle (Charlene McKenna), has grown to be Beth’s confidante.
One issue is that the local bishop (Seán McGinley) has informed Billy that he will be questioned by an investigator regarding Ward and another employee, Frank Blessing (Martin McCann), both of whom are nasty individuals who should be fired. The bishop even refers to Ward as “evil.” All of this is heard by Beth.
Liam is fired by Billy. He reasons that there is nothing to lose. He pops the question to Beth when they are rowing in a boat. Beth’s strategy for escaping is underway.
What TV series will it make you think of? The plot of Death And Nightingales, which is based on the 1992 novel by Eugene McCabe, has no analogous tale. However, the mood the show evokes, particularly the theme of a lady trying to escape an oppressive circumstance in a time when doing so is difficult, reminds us of Alias Grace.
Our Opinion Allan Cubitt wrote and directed the three-part miniseries Death And Nightingales, which debuted on BBC Two in November and December 2018. Therefore, it has taken two and a half years to reach these shores, and after viewing the pilot, we are very certain why the show was so difficult to sell. Not only is it depressing, but the show’s convoluted, difficult-to-follow plot serves to repel rather than attract viewers.
The story supposedly takes place on Beth’s 23rd birthday, with the tragedies that occurred before that day influencing the events of that day’s 24 hours. Despite the fact that she wasn’t her child, Billy reluctantly raised her as a result of her mother’s troubled marriage to her. Catherine’s untimely passing and her request that her family name be on her gravestone. drunken advances on her by her father. Being under his control has been difficult, and she wants to get out. But would leaving with Liam make things better or worse?
That sounds simple enough, right? But keeping everything straight is difficult due to the constant temporal shifting. There is also a second layer, where everyone in the community of Clogher is spying on and blackmailing one another. We witness it when Billy is asked to give to the church by Bishop Donnelly after learning that two of his workers are “evil.” However, that aspect of the plot isn’t fully developed in the first episode because it seems Beth’s escape is the primary concern. But even that is unclear given all the hopping around.
However, each of the three stars’ performances is endearing enough to keep a spectator interested. Billy is portrayed by Rhys not as a perfect jerk but rather as a flawed man who has abused Beth horribly in the ten years since Catherine’s passing. Skelly portrays Beth’s identity search with a balance of strength and tenderness. And Dornan—well, he’s there to be roguishly attractive, and he succeeds in doing so.
The hope that the storytelling would improve is what can keep a viewer interested after the first episode.
Skin and Sex: nil.
Final Thoughts: Liam and Beth may be sealing her mother’s destiny by sleeping together. On her birthday, Beth is seen patting her stomach as she gets dressed, so there is some truth to that.
Sleeper Star: At the conclusion of the episode, Liam and Beth are planning to take the French gold on Beth’s birthday, which also happens to be the next occasion when Billy is likely to overindulge in alcohol. After packing and concealing her bag in the final scene, Beth turns to face the day ahead.
The most Pilot-like Line: There isn’t much to notice, but we’ll do the Ugly American thing and emphasise the thick Irish brogues, which look real but will force you to turn on the subtitles if you want to have any chance of understanding what’s going on.
We say, Watch it if you are someone who watches everything. D&N is not for everyone. Death And Nightingales is just too dull and difficult to get into, despite the major actors’ strong performances; by the end of the first episode, we knew even less about the plot than we did at the start.
Despite the fact that Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about parenting, tech, food, and entertainment, he admits that he is a TV junkie. His articles have also appeared elsewhere, including in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, and Fast Company.
