Quick Take: The Tudors, S0403
While staying roughly true to history, we're suffering story-wise at this point as we've seen it all before.
Review: The Tudors, S0403
(S0403) Can King Henry VIII (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) not stay focused on one wife at a time? Uh, the answer to that would be squarely in the "no" column. That said, "sweet little fool" and current wife #5 Katherine Howard (Tamzin Merchant) isn't exactly Little Miss Faithful herself. She must not have taken a few minutes out to get up to speed with what Henry tends to do with wives who don't cheat (it's of the "off with their heads" variety if you're just getting tuning in), or perhaps she simply doesn't get Showtime.
So that's to say that while Henry is cavorting with ex-wife Anne of Cleves (Joss Stone) (wife #4, that is), Katherine is getting hot and heavy with Culpepper (Torrance Coombs). More unfortunate for Katherine is that Thomas ain't on the up and up himself, conspiring with Catherine's lady-in-waiting on some kind of no doubt ill fated scheme.
Save for a brief spell when Katherine believed she was "with child," Henry's infatuation with the young girl is clearly waning… just as everyone with half a brain in the royal court suspected/predicted/is plotting around. Even Princess Mary (Sarah Bolger), eldest daughter to Catherine of Aragon (wife #1, played by Maria Doyle Kennedy), is getting in the act, advised that she may well be in line to the throne as little Price Edward may not be a legitimate heir as Jane Seymour (that's wife #3, played by Anita Briem, if you're keeping track still) died (naturally, in this case) before being crowned.
While staying roughly true to history, we're suffering story-wise at this point as we've seen this all before. Henry is out of love with his current love with his current wife and unhappy that she's not pregnant or producing a male heir. He's out finding distractions while wife is embroiled in some plot or another. There's also some other variety of plotting going on in the royal court or abroad (involving the Earl of Surrey, played by David O'Hara, in this case). And Henry gets bouts of crazy illnesses or his nasty leg wound flairs up, causing a steady decline in his health.
There's other stuff going on too, including a royal visit to York and the north, and some kind of feud going on between Surrey and the Seymours, but that's pretty much where we are right now in the House of Tudor. With seven episodes left to go, I hope we get something good and original before The End.
Video: The Tudors, S0403
Preview of this episode, available from Showtime:
Recap: The Tudors, S0403
A more benevolent Henry 8 forgives the citizens of the North for their rebellion against him, while the youthful wife he dotes upon begins a passionate affair with Culpepper.
From Around the Web: The Tudors, S0403
