Victoria Series Review

WARNING! SPOILERS!

The Victorian Era is making a victorious comeback. The series that first aired on ITV, was meant to only be a mini series, but due to strong viewership became a full fledge Season, with Season Two being filmed as we speak. Victoria which now airs on KQED and PBS Masterpiece, is being heralded as the next Downton Abbey. But is this series really the next sensation of historical drama or merely a passing fancy? Its completion, "The Crown" which aires on Netflix has already won an Academy Award, and ironically, Victoria is the ancestor of Queen Elizabeth II, so viewers who have a Netflix account and tune in to KQED or pay for series on Amazon.com can watch two generations of the Windsor family.

Inevitably, reviewing Victoria the series will always be compared with Emily Blunt's elegant and energetic performance in "The Young Victoria." Jenna Coleman's Victoria is much more venerable and susceptible to the manipulation of men than Blunt, who having stolen the show in "Devil Wears Prada" should have given viewers no doubt to how she would portray the young Queen in "The Young Victoria". Jenna Coleman's Victoria at first isn't convincing, her obsession with Lord M. (Melbourne) played by Rufus Sewell turns almost into the poem of the Stag that chases the Elizabethan man, a poem in Lit Class about what happens when man is being romantically pursued by a woman, in Melbourne's case the Queen of England! At first this entire set up seems far fetched, was not Lord M. more of Father figure? But if you study human behavior, you will learn many wives do marry father figures because they were deprived of a father as Victoria was. When credibility of this series comes into question, it is good to know that Daisy Goodwin, the author of the Victoria novel and screenwriter actually studied 1500+ journals of Queen Victoria which account for things we have not seen, perhaps the Lord M. love story and Prince Albert perpetually cutting his shirt to show his affections.

The Series reaches its epoch and plateau in the first five episodes, the tension of Victoria chasing after Lord M. manipulating Parliament to make him Prime Minster again, her bold offer at Brockett Hall beneath the clamoring of Rooks, like a chess game of love, especially when Tome Hughes' Prince Albert arrives on the scene at end of Episode III and takes over for rest of series. The romantic tension is strongest between Victoria and Lord M. as she victoriously maneuvers her way towards him, only to have him, being an older gent (40yes in series, 50yrs in real life) confessing beneath the Rooks that he too mates for life, ergo is dedicated to memory of his deceased wife. Albert arrives after Victoria's 'dashed' hopes of marriage to Lord M. She is seen playin piano passionately, when Albert boldly steps forward and turns the page of the music sheet, to which looking at one another, Albert says, "Victoria" and theme, "Gloriana!" begins, with Victoria saying "Albert" and resounding Hallelujah ringing as the scene fades to black. This is great television and cinema craft. But as aforementioned, the epoch of the series thus far happens at the Wedding, where after 'fencing' off his frustrations, Prince Albert pledges his body, and earthly goods to Victoria. In background of all this there is a sub story of the staff of Buckingham Palace, we get to know the servants and their intrigues, for example the Chef Francatalli pursuing Ms. Skerrett as if he has ignoble intentions only to discover he is romantic seeking to woe the Queen's Dress. Then there is the battle of personalities between the Baroness Lehzen and Steward Penge over rule of the proverbial roost (staff). This sub stories I am told are part of Downton Abbey effect, and while I do enjoy them and how they mingle with main characters of Victoria and Albert, one touching example is Victoria giving Ms. Skerret more scarfs which she uses to help a friend and her child in the poor district of London. However, sometimes these subplots seem distracting, especially in later episodes.

The tension between Victoria and Albert is sublime in Episodes IV and V, the courting and consummating of their love is done in dramatic "opposites attract" story arch, where Victoria helps Albert lighten up, and Albert draws Victoria towards serious pursuits like piano over poker. The problem is this tension begins to collapse in Episode VI as Albert becomes increasingly disillusioned with his new position as His Serene Highness. While in Episode V, Albert seeks a title and allowance to be independent, after the wedding Albert sulks into a frustrated school boy, and Victoria becomes like a mother who is ready to spend her wealth and energy to make her child happy, this is where that former tension collapses, when Victoria and Albert were courting, they were equals and even challenged each other, married Victoria comes across as matronly and motherly trying to give Albert his every happiness in forms of primacy at the courtly dinner table, while Albert seems to become the cliché young man wanting a crusade, in his case Abolition. The concessions in this marriage obviously come from Victoria, who giving Albert an allowance and title, giving him his proper place at the dinner table in defiance of royal protocol, and even stepping aside for his passion and conceding on having children earlier than she wants. All of this will probably make many feminists angry, because Victoria is making most of sacrifices to keep her husband happy, which is strange since the Victorian era has reputation for chivalry, especially in Bronte and Jane Austen masterpieces which depicts the men wanting to make their wives happy at all costs. It is difficult to understand if this Victoria is the feminist paragon, showing she alone has power to give Albert his pleasures, or if it reduces her in eyes of feminists to a pawn of Albert's whims.

The consensus is that Victoria the Series begins to fade because Lord M. leaves, and I must confess, Rufus Sewell's absence is noticed in Episode VI. Tom Hughes' Albert and Jenna Coleman's Victoria worked best when they had tension over serious affairs, now they come across as trifles, where the Queen tries to find a way to keep her husband occupied and happy, hoping he won't seek out "an actress." The chemistry that Coleman and Hughes had in former episodes has all but vanished, as perhaps happens when people go from courting to commitment, from challenging to codependency. Make no mistake, Victoria probably would have been a masterpiece as a mini series, containing only the first five episodes. But since it dains to be series, Daisy Goodwin is going to need to explore themes that come across less childish, less dogs curtseying and more clashes with Chartists.

On the Christian element in the series, Queen Victoria was a Christian queen, and after Prince Albert's death she launched a crusade to conquer the world for Christ, which built The British Empire and created the term Colonialism. Thus far the only direct allusions to her faith and Christianity in series have been when Victoria and Albert are to marry, and Privy council objects on grounds that Albert's uncle, Leopold is a Papist (Papists want the Pope to rule a country from Rome instead of king or queen) and Catholic, and that Victoria would have to forfeit her crown and throne if she does not marry a Protestant. Here we see resurgence of the Thirty Year's War (wars between Catholics and Protestants) and homages to the Elizabethan Age. There is Albert in his speech for Abolition, that contains the line, "this practice is an abomination and against the spirit of Christianity."  Obviously, in Episode V, when Victoria and Albert marry, it is in an abbey, where the Minister gives the Matrimonial rites, and there is a sweet homage to a tradition, where Albert placing the ring on Victoria's hand says, "In Name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen." In tradition, you touched the thumb saying Father, index finger saying Son, middle finger Holy Spirit, and the ring finger you said Amen as you placed the ring on the woman's finger. There is some very moral struggles in series, Albert is a virgin and even when taken to brothel by Ernest his brother and playboy, Albert refuses to break his chastity until his wedding night with Victoria. Ernest's eagerness to bed ladies is not shown in positive light, sympathetic maybe at times, but Albert confronts Ernest in person over his love for married woman, "If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over," (Matthew 18:15).  Albert certainly obeys the Apostle Paul's recommendation to marry if you burn with passion, "But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion," (1 Corinthians 7:9), Albert and Victoria even paraphrase this verse as they passionately kiss at beginning of Episode V, they both say "We should marry as soon as possible." Ernst in contrast to Albert is with woman of ill repute, the women of the night, and falls in love with Duchess who is married. While unfortunately, there is sympathy for Ernst who can't find love in the right circumstances, we as an audience are meant to admire Albert's devotion to Victoria, and even Ernst does the right thing when he confronts the Duchess, and decides to leave England and return to Coburg where sin does not lurk, "Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts." (2 Timothy 2:22 NLT). Jenna Coleman's Victoria contrasts with Emily Blunt's portrayal, in that she is much more swift to forgive her mother, and begins cozying up to her Mama in later episodes, which brings to mind, "Honor your father and mother” (which is the first commandment with a promise) so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth," (Ephesians 6:2-3), and "Listen to your father, who sired you, And do not despise your mother when she is old." (Proverbs 23:22).

Victoria's Mama, Duchess of Kent, teaches Victoria many things and reveals in this series what the Apostle Paul meant by, "These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children, to live wisely and be pure, to work in their homes,to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God." (Titus 2:4-5). We watch how Victoria despises her mother being so mastered by John Conroy, but if one looks carefully, like mother like daughter, Victoria is mastered by Lord M. and later Prince Albert. In this post-feminist age, I am sure many will not be thrilled with Victoria submitting to any man, even Albert, but this is Biblical, "As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything, Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her," (Ephesians 5:"24-25), and "In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives," (1 Peter 3:1 NASB 1977). These verses becomes very apparent when Victoria decides to keep the vow of "love, honor, and obey her husband" during wedding service, she insists on it, even though she could omit it on grounds she is a Sovereign. The Victorians really were Bible believing Christians and they tried to create society of Biblical Morales, a new Israel, where propriety is rewarded and perversion is punished.

Victoria is a wholesome series that will charm viewers with its chemistry and cinematophraphy, and for brothers and sisters in Christ who tire of profanity and perversion, this series omits both, never showing sexual relations, but in the tradition of the Golden Age of Hollywood, you see only an exchange of kisses while fully clothed and fading out as they head to bedroom or lie on the bed. As aforementioned, there are Christian parables and dialogues over morality. If you want a glimpse into Victorian life, and unique vantage point of one of most famous queens of England, then Victoria will be the victor.