WiC Watches: Catherine the Great

Jason Clarke as Potemkin in Catherine the Great HBO

Catherine the Great: Episode Two

RECAP

“Episode Two” opens two years after the events of “Episode One,” as Major General Grigory Potemkin is battling the Turkish Empire. Catherine is in trouble, ruling over a period of civil unrest — the war has forced her to reverse her promised serfdom reforms, and the peasants are hopping mad. She’s also taken on a new and much younger lover, Alexander Vasilchikov (Sam Palladio) in her beloved Potemkin’s absence, but he’s no more than a plaything for the Queen.

Grigory witnesses the beginnings of a peasant uprising and returns to the palace to warn Catherine of the dangers. As the defeated Turks sue for peace, Catherine sends Prince Orlov to manage the distant negotiations so she can pursue her relationship with Potemkin. Catherine’s  unhappy son, Prince Paul (Joseph Quinn) has wed the manipulative and unfaithful Princess Natalia (Georgina Beedle), who openly dislikes Catherine. Potemkin and Catherine are coy with one another for a while, and he feels spurned.

Helen Mirren as Catherine in Catherine the Great HBO

Meanwhile, the leader of the Cossack resistance, Pugachev (a swaggering Paul Kaye, aka Thoros of Myr from Game of Thrones) foments a growing serf rebellion across the Russian countryside. The disaffected Potemkin prepares to leave Catherine’s court, but she convinces him to remain by warming up to him. The disapproving Minister Panin works to try and deflect Potemkin away from Catherine, but fails. There is no foiling the soulmate connection between the General and the Empress.

The Orlovs play on the weaknesses of Prince Paul as they attempt to find a way to knock Potemkin out of the picture and eventually unseat Catherine, but they are outmaneuvered. Catherine learns that Pugachev has raised a large peasant army and is marching on the capital; Potemkin is chosen to lead the Russian forces to confront him. Prince Paul’s power plays are proving to be a problem for Catherine and she warns her son to cease and desist. Potemkin defeats the rebels and captures Pugachev himself.

Gina McKee and Helen Mirren in Catherine the Great HBO

Despite perceived dangers from the local peasants, Catherine leads a unit of her Household Guard to greet Potemkin upon his return on the outskirts of St. Petersburg. To her pleasure, the serfs give her a warm reception. Back at the palace, Catherine and Potemkin consummate their relationship while Pugachev is executed.

REVIEW

As heavy on the melodrama as it is richly colored, the gloriously filmed Catherine the Great continues to luxuriate in its own guilty pleasures, which are varied and many. As a man dedicated to truth and honor, the extroverted Potemkin empowers Catherine as she negotiates the labyrinth of the treacherous court that surrounds her. Mirren and Clarke are obviously having a lot of fun playing their games and dangerous liasons, and it is contagious.

“Episode Two” works hard on portraying the sexual excesses of the Russian aristocracy, building the budding and playful love affair between Potemkin and Catherine and setting up the dastardly machinations of the disloyal retainers surrounding the throne. Kaye delivers a ballsy, scenery-chewing performance as Pugachev; it’s a perfect fit for this series’ sensibility. Subtlety is not Catherine the Great‘s strong suit, but the show’s big stage has little use for it; there’s no doubt that the next two episodes will prove to be even more grand and passionate.