Jeri Jacquin
Currently on Amazon
Prime is the first season of an original mystery and fantasy along CARNIVAL
ROW.
Vignette Stonemoss
(Cara Delevingne) is a fae who has escaped from an attack on her homeland from
the Pact. Finding her way to a ship, a storm then sinks it and she is the sole
survivor. The ship belongs to Ezra Spurnrose (Andrew Gower) and seeing Vignette
as an indentured servant on the ship expects her to now work in his home as a
maid. Knowing she must survive in this new place, Vignette visits Carnival Row
and finds Tourmaline (Karla Crome). They have so much to catch up on but the
biggest surprise is discovering that the man she loves, Philo (Orlando Bloom)
is actually alive. Living the past seven years believing he was dead, Vignette
is shocked and angry.
Philo is
investigating the recent attacks on what are known as fae-folk as a police
inspector. Aisling is one of the fae that is murdered and Philo continues to
follow the clues. Taking it step by step he talks to everyone involved with the
victims only to come up against a man warning him that a creature he calls the
"dark-god" is responsible. If that isn't freaky enough, Vignette
makes herself known to Philo and she does so with a vengeance. She doesn't
understand how he could have gone all this time letting her suffer thinking she
had lost him and Philo has no answers for her.
Spurnrose lives in
the richer part of town with his sister Imogen (Tamzin Merchant) and both are
horrified to learn that their new neighbor Agreus (David Gyasi) is a faun which
is unacceptable to them. It is considered ridiculous that a creature would try
to make his way into society. When Spurnrose finally confides in Imogen that
their finances aren't what they should be, a deal is struck with Agreus - his
backing for a new ship for introduction into high society. Imogen agrees to
make that happen.
The Chancellor
Absalom Breakspear (Jared Harris) is trying to keep the peace in the city along
with his wife Piety (Indira Varma) and son Jonah (Arty Froushan). He knows
something is going on and advises them to steer clear of Carnival Row. That
doesn't stop Jonah from being kidnapped but they don't know who is responsible.
It is finally
revealed how Burguish soldier Philo met Vignette. Her village becomes a station
for the soldiers are looking for the best location for keeping an eye out for
the Pact while fixing the telegraph line. While out, Philo, Vignette and his
friend Darius are attacked by wolves. When the Pact attack the village in a
brutal way, Vignette is taken away but told that Philo has been killed.
Now, more people are
being killed and it is becoming clear that what they have in common is knowing
Philo. Vignette is trying to separate herself from him as her anger toward what
has happened to her people outweighs any feelings she might have for him. To
that effort Philo takes his landlady out for dinner and tries to begin
something but he is still in a dark place.
The Chancellor
believes that Longerbane (Ronan Vibert) is responsible for the kidnapping but
after he meets with disaster, his daughter Sophie (Caroline Ford) steps in and
Jonah is actually found. The young man believes he knows who is actually
responsible for his capture but doesn't want to call it out in case he is
wrong. Seeing Sophie in chambers for the first time, he is captivated by her
but mom Petrie isn't as happy about it.
As more secrets are
brought out in the open, Philo and Vignette realize that they must work
together to find out what is killing those in Carnival Row. The landlady isn't
as happy and tells Philo's officers a secret that she knows about him leading
to his arrest for murder.
The relationship
between Agreus and Imogen has her brother aggravated and wants it to stop. He
understands that they may need his money but as others in town start offering
to socialize with Agreus, he sees no need to keep up appearances for his
sister. Chancellor Breakspear wants to help Philo and Vignette but doesn't
realize that he is about to have his life altered by a Puck, the last group
that would ever be suspected.
The dominos are
starting to fall and it is leading a showdown on Carnival Row that no one could
have ever imagined!
Bloom as Philo has
the look of a man tortured by his orphaned past, losing his love and seeing the
worst of mankind in his role as an officer of the law. When Philo sees
Vignette, he is reminded of so much of the past that it could interfere with
what is happening right in front of him. Bloom has taken on such a dark
character but it wouldn't be the first time. In CARNIVAL ROW he has the added
bonus of so many dark characters all around him and a story that is filled with
twists that he fits right in.
Delevingne as
Vignette is a fierce fae who isn't about to put her people or their culture
ahead of anything else, except for maybe love. Not a fan of Philo in the
beginning, she begins to realize that he doesn't mean her or the fae any harm.
When she thinks him gone, it breaks her heart but not her spirit. She can
easily take care of herself but once on Carnival Row, Vignette realizes that
her anger at Philo is far down the list of what it takes to survive. Delevinge
is quite perfect for this role in that she has the fae look and makes the role
her very own and I love that about this character.
Gower as Spurnrose
is absolutely yucky from top to bottom of his character and this actor plays it
dripping with distain. That's what makes it such a fantastic role! I can't
stand Spurnrose yet I also can't wait to see how he's going to make me dislike
him even more and Gower doesn't disappoint. Merchant as Imogen is as stuck up
as one would expect from a woman of her time and station. She doesn't care
about anything or anyone but herself and her finery and yet it takes a Puck to
make her see past all of that.
Gyasi as Agreus is a
Puck to isn't about to let anyone, human or otherwise, tell him how to live his
life. Enjoying the fine home he purchased for himself and man-servant Jim, he
also has the uncanny knack of knowing what humans are thinking. His relationship
with Imogen is not one either is happy about but it does have its clever perks.
Crome as Tourmaline sees what her friend Vignette is going through and it hurts
her heart but for more reason that either wants to openly admit.
Varma as Piety is a
woman who understands the politics that her husband is part of but also enjoys
the lifestyle it provides. She also knows that something is changing on
Carnival Row and wants her son to stay away. When he is kidnapped, she suspects
everyone. Froushan as Jonah is a young man who is use to a certain lifestyle
and doesn't have much expected of him. Smothered by his mother and feeling like
he is disappointing his father, he finds a strange solace at Carnival Row. Ford
as Sophie begins to provide Jonah with another kind of distraction and no one
is pleased about it. She is a strong character who doesn't mind breaking the
rules in order to get higher up in the ranks.
Harris as the
Chancellor continues to be on an amazing streak of roles in the last few years.
I absolutely love everything he does including the recent HBO mini-series
CHERNOBYL, the AMC series THE TERROR, and the series THE CROWN. There is a
presence about this actor that I'm drawn to see what role he will take next and
in CARNIVAL ROW he once again is full of human frailty hidden under the robes
of politics - even if it is the politics of the different.
Shout out to Alice
Krige as Aoife who also is an actress that I follow because she is so
multi-dimensional and in CARNIVAL ROW she is creepy yet honestly a character I
was never afraid of. Of course Aoife could probably turn me into a toad if she
wanted but there is something straight forward in this role that I appreciated
and was fascinated by.
Other cast include
Ariyon Bakare as Darius, Maeve Dermody as Portia Fyfe, Jamie Harris as Sgt.
Dombey, Waj Ali as Constable Berwick, James Beaumont as Constable Cuppins, Jim
High as Fergus, Erika Starkova as
Aisling and Simon
McBurney as Runyon Millworthy.
This year CARNIVAL
ROW made a showing at San Diego Comic Con International 2019 and the crowd
couldn't have been happier. Of course what made it even more special was that
Bloom and Delevingne hid underneath costumes so that the big reveal brought the
crowd to their feet with cheers. The audience was then treated to a special
screening of the series and some even lucky enough to walk away with a pair of
very luminescent wings. I knew then that the show was something special and am
pleased to say that there will a second season.
I absolutely love
the darkness of the show and I don't mean the less than colorful costuming but
the story and the characters that are wrapped up in every fiber of it all. Just
when you think it's all figured out - nope! Let's be honest, the show starts out
in a million knots and we are left, episode by episode, to unravel it like a
fine chain necklace. Those who have ever tried to get knots out of a fine chain
necklace know exactly what I'm talking about.
Vague in this
review? Absolutely. There is no way I want to dive to deeply into the story
because that is what makes CARNIVAL ROW such a draw. There is a lot going on so
instead of giving it all away, I brought out some of the characters that I
appreciated because something tells me we haven't heard the last from any of
them (well, maybe a few of them).
The story is based
in a fantastical mythology of fae, pucks, spells, history, culture and a tale
that is all too familiar in that what is different people are afraid of. By the
end of the series you will understand why a second season is not only needed but
necessary. I personally want to see where Philo and Vignette are going to take
this journey of theirs and for reasons you will see when you binge watch the
first season of CARNIVAL ROW on Amazon Prime.
In the end - they
each have a story to tell!
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