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 The
sixth episode of The Tudors only further proves what a great show
this is. As we get closer to the end of the first season,
everything is falling in to place.
The first revelation is that Anne admits she did not fancy the King
at the beginning of her "duty". As time has gone on though,
you can sense she is quite torn with her feelings. I'd imagine
the sense of guilt she must feel if she truly does love him would be
overwhelming. She has tricked him in to this relationship.
As a result of their relationship - he is seeking an annulment from
his wife. Was it all worth it? Will it all be worth it?
Sadly we know what the outcome will be.
I also found the
sketch that her brother drew very telling. A falcon, which
represented her, had a pomegranate in its talons. The fruit
represented the Queen. It painted Anne in a very negative
light. It actually makes me think back to her conversation
with Henry in the last episode where she was ranting and raving
about wanting to be respected. That seems difficult, given
what she's doing.
And the scene when
Henry publicly acknowledged her at Court? Disturbing.
I'm sure it was meant to be a touching scene - finally showing their
love. I was again baffled by the humiliation they were
throwing in the direction of the Queen. Why must they flaunt
their relationship in front of her?
I also should
mention that I wish there was more chemistry between these two.
I don't fully believe their passion for each other - and maybe
that's the point. They've got nothing on Margaret and Charles.
When I watch them together - they mostly seem uncomfortable.
 Moving
on - lets chat a little bit about the Musketeers (Henry, Brandon,
and Compton). I still thoroughly enjoy the dynamic of their
friendship. I loved the scene when Compton mentioned to Henry
that they should go on a hunting mission - like the old days.
Henry was all for it, but didn't want his now brother-in-law along.
Everything has changed. Brandon is replaced with Anne - who is
obviously not a hunter. And we see poor Compton looking at the
two with a bit of sadness. You can tell he is truly missing
the old days. But maybe he's also missing his love?
We'll get to that in a moment.
The dreadful Boleyn
brothers have also teamed up to get Brandon on their side.
They want to take down Wolsey and they don't care who is on their
side when they do it. I find it interesting that they
continued to recruit Brandon. At the time they spoke with him,
he wasn't in the King's good graces. What if the begging and
pleading had backfired? Then what would they have done?
Luckily for them
their plan worked. Poor Brandon got on his hands and knees and
groveled for forgiveness. You can tell that it was a tough
thing for him to do. Not to be outdone - Henry makes Brandon
follow him in to a side room. I knew the second they got in
there what was going to happen. They were going to arm wrestle
for it. The deal? If Brandon beat Henry, he would be
allowed back in court. I have to give kudos to the directing
on this episode. The look on their faces was priceless.
Henry looked like a little boy who couldn't contain himself and
Brandon looked composed and strong. Well done. Brandon
won - and was welcomed back to court.
Again we were
treated to an all too brief scene between Margaret and Brandon.
I understand a good chunk of episode was devoted to them recently -
but it's time to give them some more air time! They are a
great part of this story and I really enjoy the dynamic between
them. There is such a clear passion between them but this
episode also showed a bit of them working as a team. Brandon
asked her opinion on how to proceed with the Boleyn brothers.
And you sense he truly values her opinion. From the crazy
playboy in the first episode, who would've guessed Brandon would be
the one to settle down?
Speaking of
settling down - how about Tallis and Compton? It's obvious
Compton is quite smitten, but would you say the same of Tallis?
Is he reserved because Compton is married? When Tallis
mentioned that he was being required to travel with Wolsey to
France, I half expected that Compton would get a reprieve for him
via the King.
And finally with
this episode, we begin to see the demise of Wolsey. There is
only so long that you can be corrupt and lie before things start
catching up to you. Before you have to pay for what you've
done. I loved the scene with Sir Thomas More literally washing
his hands of Wolsey. Brilliantly done. I also thought
the last shot of the episode was superb. Wolsey approaches the
King to explain why he can't get the annulment. Anne happens
to be in the room as well. We hear about one line of
explanation from Wolsey before it's muted by a poem written by
Wyatt. And we can see both Henry and Anne who are shocked by
the news. You get the sense that Henry is finally over the
lies. He wants action and he knows Wolsey is no longer the
person to deliver for him.
I could continue to
rave about Maria Doyle Kennedy until the end of this season.
It seems to be all that I do here. She continues to amaze with
her strength and vulnerability. How someone could play that
role so perfectly is beyond me. As a viewer, you are more
likely to root for Anne and Henry. They are the more flashy
couple. But from the first episode I've always rooted for the
Queen. Even though you know how it's going to play out.
When she mentioned to Anne that SHE had the King's heart, I truly
believe that. I agree with it. I think she did have his
heart. But I think he was blinded by his desire to produce an
heir and also by his lust for Anne. Nothing was going to stand
in his way.
Only four episodes
remain this season. Tough to imagine our time with The Tudors
is almost up.
Random Thoughts
-
Anyone notice
that the hallway where Wolsey was walking in France meeting with
people was eerily similar to the one where the Queen did her
charity work? Guessing they re-used the same set. :)
-
George Boleyn
is as bad as his father and uncle. I was totally disgusted
by him using his "My sister is the mistress to the King" card.
Until next week
....
(images are
copyrighted by Showtime Networks, Inc.)
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