31/08/2025
King and Conqueror, Episode 2... and 6, 7 and 8 Review
So I watched the second episode... then decided I couldn't do all of this since it was so bad and decided to skip to episode 6 when Edward the Confessor dies and we actually get to 1066. Apparently, the most important thing I missed was Edward the Confessor beating his mother to death with his own crown if twitter told me right! It was actually a few days ago I saw the last episode, just took me that long to gather my thoughts since I am struggling to even articulate what I saw in this God forsaken series!
- I will say, the Hastings stuff was (compared to everything else) somewhat accurate. At least we had basics of: Saxons are on a hill in a shield wall, Normans can't break them, rumour spreads that William is dead, Saxons go after “fleeing” Normans only for William to not be dead and thus the Saxons are now out of line and cut down. There is silliness though, like William planning the whole thing to the point that he laid down for a bit then got up! Also, he isn't wearing a helmet so he can't do the thing he did in the Bayeux tapestry where he lifted up his helmet to show he was alive. For some reason, they had Morcar doing half a Stanley at Bosworth thing where he hangs on the sidelines to see who wins, which of course did not happen. I half wonder if they were leaving the door open to do a series 2 following Williams early rule and the trouble he had with Morcar and his brother Edwin who... doesn't exist in this version from what I remember! Funny since Edwin was the Earl of Mercia and Morcar got made Earl of Northumbria after Tostig was driven out. Makes it even funnier when Morcar proclaims “F Northumbria” or words to that effect! Speaking of...
- I don't know what the hell happened with Stamford Bridge... oh and RIP the Battle of Fulford as well since it is only mentioned! Remember that Viking who bravely held the bridge, slaying many Saxons before he was finally defeated by a Saxon who went under the bridge in a barrel? Nope! Never happened because... there is no bridge at the Battle of Stamford Bridge! You can see the river in a distant shot, but the battle is just: Saxons sneak up in the early hours of the morning, ambush Vikings, Hardrada and Harold have a 1 on 1 that feels more like Hector fighting Ajax in Troy (2004), he wins but in the process accidentally kills Tostig or something!
- Now I did miss some stuff, so it might have been there, but Tostig felt like a wimp in this. Historically, he was the Earl of Northumbria but in 1065 faced a rebellion due to accusations he was being overly harsh in meeting out justice, corruption etc. In the end, Edward the Confessor stripped him of his title and exiled him, with Morcar then taking on the earldom. This that not long before Edward died and led to Tostig fleeing England and moving around quite a bit in early 1066, including launching raids on the South coast. Later on he did ally with Hardrada and invade with him, dying at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. Here? He is apparently off his rocker and the stuff with giving Morcar Northumbria happens after Edward's death in this.
- Now I think about it, most of the men in this are wimps. William in episode 2 is driven out of Normandy (never happened, he defeated King Henry of France and held his Duchy) and his wife gives birth to Robert whilst they are in exile... but he nearly gives his kid away to a random family because reasons! This is the 11th century, your dynasty and legacy is important! Look at history where you have people desperately trying to reclaim lost crowns and titles, William here is on the verge of abandoning that! His wife Matilda of Flanders is portrayed as a sort of Cersei Lannister wannabe, chopping peoples hands off and so on. True, she did act as regent of Normandy whilst William was away, but there is a difference between being a regent and being this all powerful being! At least she didn't ride pregnant into battle (cough Spanish Princess!)
- Hell, the best way to sum up this series would be like if the Philippa Gregory trilogy was transported back to 1066! Emma of Normandy (Edward the Confessors mother) is Temu Margaret Beaufort, Edith the Fair (Harold's wife) is Temu Elizabeth Woodville etc. The most laughable scene for me was when Harold marches off to Hastings, Morcar turns up in London and lounges on the throne, refusing to go help him... until Edith the Fair, Gunhild (real name Edith of Wessex, the sister of Harold and widow of Edward the Confessor) and Margaret (real name.... Edith of Mercia, who married Harold in 1066 to get Edwin and Morcars support... Edith is a bit like Catherine or Elizabeth in the Tudor period!) go and basically sap him down and turn him into a whimpering dog so he goes and supports Harold. Harold's mother chastises him for letting Tostig die.
- One thing I noticed (unless it pops up in the earlier episodes) is the absence of the Witan. It was the Witan that “chose” Harold (or confirmed it I guess), but other than some earls meeting you don't get really any reference to this important institution. Coronations in this feel like a promotion ceremony, not a deeply religious tradition. Granted, things were a bit different back in Anglo-Saxon times, but seeing as though we only a few years ago saw the coronation of a King with some of those traditions going as far back as then, hell the main crown is still called St Edward's Crown after the Confessor!
- Authenticity in general is completely whack as mentioned in the previous review. The Mercians look like discount Dothrakis, The Saxons like generic barbarians from a cheap History Channel documentary from the 2000's and the Normans like Prince John's soldiers from Robin Hood: Men in Tights! In fact, that is cruel, the soldiers in that looked more Norman! Now with everyone being called Edith historically apparently, I can sort of understand renaming a few... but you chose Margaret as a name which was one that basically came over with the Normans from what we know, not a traditional Anglo-Saxon name!
So yeah, a really bad series and I barely covered a lot of the stuff. I will be doing an unscripted video on this soon but, much like My Lady Jane, I do not have the time nor willpower to do a serious review. In particular, there are some really silly comments made by the people involved in this that I want to read out that just baffle me! I don't when I will get the time to do that, but I will keep people informed.
