Mary & George
Season 1 Premiere:
Mar 5, 2024
Metascore
Generally Favorable
73
User score
Generally Favorable
6.8
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All Seasons
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
73
72% Positive
18 Reviews
18 Reviews
28% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Mar 18, 2024
100
The stakes increase with every episode as the family climbs higher up the rungs of the social and court ladder and the whole thing remains tremendous. Propulsive but grounded. Plotty but never messy. Exuberant and sumptuous without becoming bananas (The Tudors, I love you, but come on). And that rarest treat: bitingly witty, just when it needs to be.
Apr 8, 2024
80
“Mary & George” strikes a desirable balance, delivering a little of the unexpected and uncouth in welcome spots, especially where the randy bits are concerned.
Mar 18, 2024
80
Too often TV critics (this one included) must bemoan a series for not living up to either its premise or the sum of its parts. Mary & George emphatically – uproariously – does both.
Apr 4, 2024
75
Never staid and often kinky, “Mary & George” stumbles halfway through but remains chew-up-the-scenery entertainment, a spicy affair that gets more outlandish and wicked with each episode. It helps that Moore and Galitzine are so good at forming this chess-like alliance and that a trio of top-notch directors — Oliver Hermanus, Alex Winckler and Florian Cossen — never let the high drama topple over into outright camp.
Mar 27, 2024
72
It’s more difficult than it should be to figure out how it wants us to understand Mary’s story, let alone her place among the pantheon of powerful women that history has done dirty. And as fun as Mary & George is, it’s hard not to wonder what the version of this show that let us really get to know her might have looked like.
Mar 18, 2024
60
While the series can sometimes feel like you're seeing out the long game with our protagonists, there's no denying this is a totally moreish watch that'll leave you suitably obsessed with (or fearful of) the Villers in no time.
Apr 2, 2024
50
But just as George does, the series eventually becomes too grandiose in its ambitions. Midway through, Mary & George eschews the carnal intrigue and begins plodding through Jacobean history, darkening itself into a moody recitation of the downfall of Walter Raleigh and other events leading to George’s end.
User score
Generally Favorable
6.8
74% Positive
28 Ratings
28 Ratings
13% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
13% Negative
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
Jul 15, 2024
7
This unusual story is based on real history (with some liberties). Jullianne Moore plays a scheming mother who grooms her son (Nicholas Galitzine) to seduce the unapologetically gay King James I (Tony Curran). As expected, this series is crammed with political influence and double-crossing power struggles. The early eps are also well-stocked with same-sex scenes…nothing explicit but definitely erotic. Moore is brilliantly diabolical as she schemes her way into court. Galitzine proves more than a beauty, as he charmingly and cruelly manipulates those around him. Curran also effectively creates a raunchy, but conflicted ruler. The visual elements, particularly the costumes, add an attractive period look. As the family climbs higher, so does the drama. Thus creating a fascinating, twisting palace intrigue that revolves around a fervent romance.
