Merlin with abs? Oh yes he does, in a panto retelling of Arthurian legends
Cursed Netflix
★★✩✩✩
IF YOU’RE a fan of horseback chases, flowing capes and magical powers — and who isn’t in these post-Game of Thrones times? — Netflix has expensively reimagined Arthurian legend in Cursed, a fantasy-epic for viewers keen on demonic beasts and questing knights, and not too fussed about decent dialogue or restraint.
The streaming service has of course already scored a hit with The Witcher, its gleefully ludicrous swords-anddragons drama beloved of viewers, if not of critics. Cursed counts on the pull of graphic artist Frank Miller, who with writer Tom Wheeler created the original novel and the TV adaptation.
The star is Katherine Langford, formerly of 13 Reasons Why. She plays Nimue, who will eventually become the Lady of the Lake in this retelling of the myths of King Arthur. Whether they really needed retelling is debatable, but the Arthurian context gives structure to the initial episodes and helpfully keeps the number of kingdoms in check, reducing the need to peer through dingy candlelight in an effort to understand whether the action has moved to a different castle, or if the king has just done his hair differently.
Nimue, reluctant owner of considerable powers, is hoping to leave behind the magical responsibilities her clan of fae folk are keen (or in some cases not very keen) for her to shoulder. But then the Red Paladins turn up, a powerful religious force determined to rid the land of magic by murdering anyone they consider touched by it.
The sword-clanging barely stops in these first episodes — it comes to a point where you’re glad of the thud of an axe as it embeds itself in some poor villager’s head — as we begin to understand the extent of Red Paladin leader Father Carden’s bloody obsession with killing the fae. Less clear are the motivations of the Weeping Monk, a guy who either has the worst mascara in Dark Ages Britain or is someone you don’t want to bump into wandering the Iron Wood at night.
(And of course there’s an Iron Wood.
Also rabid wolves desperate to take a chunk out of your leg, a massive sword that can’t end up in the wrong hands, and One True King.)
The monk isn’t the only one whose performance walks a very fine line between panto and mysterious. Gustaf Skarsgård isn’t holding back as Merlin, all embroidered robes, abs and epic hangovers as he tries to regain his magical powers by interpreting the not incredibly subtle omens. Understatement,
then, is not Cursed’s strongest hand. But with production values that are more HBO than BBC1 and action that skips along at pace, it’s all very watchable.
Best of all, the animated transitions between scenes and times are dreamy; as gorgeous as you might expect from Miller. Nobody is going to be skipping the opening titles on this show. The rest, I’m less sure about.