The Essex Serpent
Season 1 Premiere:
May 13, 2022
Metascore
Generally Favorable
69
User score
Mixed or Average
4.4
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All Seasons
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Metascore
Generally Favorable
68% Positive
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
32% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
May 12, 2022
100
Fortunately, The Essex Serpent delivers in just about every facet. From performances by Tom Hiddleston and Claire Danes that are infused with a delicious note of inward yearning that slowly displays itself on the outside to the fog-blanketed marshes of the Essex village in which the bulk of the story is set, the resulting product is an atmospheric, Gothic romance that doesn't retreat from indulging in its overall foreboding while it ultimately looks toward the possibility of an optimistic ending.
May 13, 2022
80
It works beautifully as a drama about complicated characters tangled in relationships unable to be contained by the conventional boundaries of romance or friendship, and about the ways humans will try to impose order or sense where none can be found.
User score
Mixed or Average
25% Positive
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
35% Mixed
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
40% Negative
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
Jul 20, 2023
5
A strange romantic story of a amateur archeologist (naturalist) and a preacher. There was no chemistry, and every scene between the protagonists felt forced and unnatural. Side characters carry every scene, and I enjoyed them more than either protagonist. I think it came down to the amount of traveling and events that had to happen over the course of six episodes.
Jan 5, 2026
4
This series is about the painful transition from olden beliefs to modernity and science, but ends up being a muddled and directionless mess with no satisfying conclusion to any of its storylines. A tragic waste of A-list talent and production values.
May 12, 2022
80
Gorgeously shot, cleverly crafted, and brimming with intrigue, Clio Barnard’s latest reaffirms her status as one of Britain’s most important directors.
May 12, 2022
75
Overripe at times, it leaves room for enough mystery and respect for the unknown to keep mind and soul working in tandem toward a heady exploration of faith and doubt. Claire Danes is radiant as Cora Seaborne.
May 13, 2022
67
“The Essex Serpent” tells a story where faith rarely manifests in ways other than preachers shouting about sin and love is rarely felt without being laid bare in plain terms. Regardless of what it is that Cora is destined to find out in the water, it’s hard not to want a little more from this show than what’s floating on the surface.
May 13, 2022
60
Danes grounds and gives a remarkable truth to the whole. But even allowing for the fact that screen adaptations rarely capture the full filigree of a literary novelist’s work (one reason why uncomplicated genre fiction generally fares better – there is more to add, less to lose), it feels like slightly too much has been lost in translation here.
May 12, 2022
40
Director Clio Barnard (The Selfish Giant) has always been stronger on atmosphere than plot. She and writer, Anna Symon, have produced something flat, in which moments of high drama or strong emotion seem overdone.
Jun 12, 2022
4
In the late 1800s England, a determined woman (Claire Danes) sets out to seek the truth about the mysterious creature supposedly living in the waters outside Essex. When she arrives, she meets a local pastor (Tom Hiddleston) and things get more complicated. From the early scenes, this is NOT a sci-fi thriller, but a gothic romance (based on the novel of same name). The deliberate pace echoes the period. This is more about their slow-burn relationship, than providing any serpent thrills. (6 one-hour eps)
Feb 21, 2024
2
Terrible story telling that struggles to decide what it wants to be and ultimately what the viewer should take from it. Windless and without purpose the series bobs from beautiful set pieces hoping the scenes will carry the viewer away. Well acted but the series unfortunately wastes every set up to be something more.
