Reign (2013)

Watchseries; Really? I watched this hoping that it would be a class show. Instead, it's pure drivel. The characters are lifeless and I question its accuracy. Based upon others' reviews, other than the names, there is nothing historical about this show; not the wardrobe, not the music, and apparently according to what I've read, not even some of the intrigue.

The music should be Renaissance for the period of Mary, Queen of Scots, but instead, I'm hearing music akin to Mumford & Son with the odd bodhran thrown in for a "Scots" feel (though the bodhran is really Irish in origin). And sometimes, it's just Emo British folk rock.

The wardrobe department seems to have taken contemporary prom dresses and tries to pass them off as period attire. Seriously, sleeveless dresses in the 1500's? What happened to the high necks, tapestry clothing, bustles? The girls in their dresses look more like they are ready to go clubbing rather than rule countries or be ladies-in-waiting. The men look more like they're straight out of Robin Hood and Nottingham Forest rather than France. Wrong time period.

I found the actors shallow, unsure as to what accent they are to be using, and have no presence or substance. It's more like watching wet cardboard than actors portraying real people.

This was a great opportunity to help us Americans understand a very significant person of UK history, glean some insight into UK/France royal lineages, and see historical intrigues of our cousins across the pond. Opportunity blown. I saw the pilot episode. That was about all I could take. I gave it the full hour to be fair, but couldn't wait for this to be over. The producers either should have made this a true period TV show focusing on Mary, Queen of Scots, or if they were so keen on keeping the rambling lavishness and contemporary music, omit any correlation to real history and focus on making this a quasi-historic-esque fun-run. If this wasn't supposed to be based upon historical reference, I'd have enjoyed this much more. As is, it's asinine and insults my intelligence as well as anyone that cares about facts.

Really? I watched this hoping that it would be a class show. Instead, it's pure drivel. The characters are lifeless and I question its accuracy. Based upon others' reviews, other than the names, there is nothing historical about this show; not the wardrobe, not the music, and apparently according to what I've read, not even some of the intrigue.

The music should be Renaissance for the period of Mary, Queen of Scots, but instead, I'm hearing music akin to Mumford & Son with the odd bodhran thrown in for a "Scots" feel (though the bodhran is really Irish in origin). And sometimes, it's just Emo British folk rock.

The wardrobe department seems to have taken contemporary prom dresses and tries to pass them off as period attire. Seriously, sleeveless dresses in the 1500's? What happened to the high necks, tapestry clothing, bustles? The girls in their dresses look more like they are ready to go clubbing rather than rule countries or be ladies-in-waiting. The men look more like they're straight out of Robin Hood and Nottingham Forest rather than France. Wrong time period.

I found the actors shallow, unsure as to what accent they are to be using, and have no presence or substance. It's more like watching wet cardboard than actors portraying real people.

This was a great opportunity to help us Americans understand a very significant person of UK history, glean some insight into UK/France royal lineages, and see historical intrigues of our cousins across the pond. Opportunity blown. I saw the pilot episode. That was about all I could take. I gave it the full hour to be fair, but couldn't wait for this to be over. The producers either should have made this a true period TV show focusing on Mary, Queen of Scots, or if they were so keen on keeping the rambling lavishness and contemporary music, omit any correlation to real history and focus on making this a quasi-historic-esque fun-run. If this wasn't supposed to be based upon historical reference, I'd have enjoyed this much more. As is, it's asinine and insults my intelligence as well as anyone that cares about facts.

Reign watchseries. If you are a teenage girl who is interested in watching a grown up Disney Princess movie, then this show is for you.

If on the other hand you are looking for some semblance of historical accuracy walk away before you throw something at your TV and break it. Yes the cast is gorgeous. However the women's costumes can't make up their mind which era, decade, or even century they are in. In the pilot I saw a mixture of dress styles ranging from Renaissance to Victorian and everything in between. The hair and make-up drove me nuts. I don't mind a little modernity added, but this took the cake. Their costume designer should be fired! Then I could focus on the nice romance love triangle story lines, and it may be enjoyable.

This show would have been better off going for a fantasy story line in a make-believe time and world like Game of Thrones. Then they could do whatever they wanted. But if you are going to portray Mary Queen of Scots, then by God get it right.

Reign feels like a well-funded high school production, which makes a sad sort of TV-land sense, since high school girls are obviously its intended audience. This oh-so-twee tale of the young Mary Queen of Scots got the country, France, and the century, the 16th, right. After that, you are on your own. Four or more times every episode, the sound track inexplicably blares out a pop tune. It's like having Barry Manilow suddenly pop up in the middle of "Game of Thrones." Ugh. The only thing missing to make the disaster complete: vampires. Maybe they can sneak one or two in during the pop songs. Many reviewers argue that Reign is historical fiction. They're half right. It's fiction. If they are going to do something this many parsecs from reality, why not use purely fictional characters, rather than drag history into an alley and beat it beyond recognition?

Having seen the beauty of THE TUDORS and the WHITE QUEEN ,and other similar historical dramas, I was looking forward to this account of Mary , Queen of Scots. I was disappointed within 5 minutes but sat through this drivel for the entire Pilot so I could give at least an objective critic. Let me say I enjoy a wee bit of creativity, and flexibility with historical "facts" but this is beyond that and has made a fairy tale story for the TV . If I was an American teenage girl I would probably love this ,but I am a middle aged English man who enjoys his history to be based on history and not some fantasy tale with overtones of some teen romance which seems to dominate TV these days , I was waiting for the vampire to appear. I was cringing the entire 45 minutes and this will be the last I see of this series. I really wanted to enjoy this , but the costumes and modern music just took all the enjoyment away and devalued such a fantastic story. They could of had Scottish music at the dance, even a modern take of Scottish , but instead ....

The CW's new show about the teen years of doomed royal Mary, Queen of Scots,played by Teen Wolf's Adelaide Kane. We see the power struggles and confused sexual longing of any teen drama writ large, transplanted onto a background of plotting and intrigue as she arrives in France in the 16th century.

For those of us who are looking for an over-the-top costume drama by the people who brought you 90210, welcome to your new favorite show.

Reign is like Game of Thrones meets Gossip Girl,a mash up you never knew you wanted, but now might not be able to live without.

the hour long episode was quite intriguing,as it takes you through different levels of feelings the,Juicy love triangle + epic costumes x political intrigue = one of the interesting new shows of the season!

I was intrigued and excited by the ads running up to the debut of this series. The first few minutes of the initial episode promised historical authenticity. It quickly veered into a disappointingly predictable teen soap opera.

Mary Stuart's life, even if only while at the court of Henry II, is filled with enough sex, intrigue and blood to fill several seasons of a series. Catherine De Medici was her mother-in-law. Diane De Poitiers, the kings mistress was 20 years his senior! The war of the Reformation was literally being fought beneath her balcony at times, with heads rolling and bond fires blazing.

Yet, the writers fail to mine the rich, actual story connected to Mary,Queen of Scots and prance into ridiculous plot lines, conversations, and clothing fit more for a 21st century adolescent drama than the story around a girl whose existence made several countries unstable for decades.

The production values are high, and it's a delightful show visually. If the story had been made without any pretense of basis on historical characters it could have been sold as fantasy, and I'd have had no problem with it. I just couldn't get past the anachronisms week after week: the roles of women in that society; the clothing and hair styles, while beautiful today, that would have been grounds for being burned alive; "Diane is shopping in Paris";pagan blood rituals....

It's frustrating to see such obviously high production capital put into such a poorly written show.