Jamestown Season 1, Episode 1 Review (spoiler free!)

Jocelyn, Verity and Alicce, reach the new world.

Crushworthy Costume Drama Jamestown Puts Women First

Let me start this off by saying I L-O-V-E historical dramas-- especially ones with stories centered around women. It’s one of my favourite tv genres. Alias Grace on Netflix easily made the list of my top 5 favourite shows of 2017, Christina Ricci’s Lizzie Borden Lifetime miniseries was my guilty pleasure, and although it wasn’t solely focused on Dakota Fanning’s character The Alienist delivered a thrilling crime drama with a stellar trio of characters (Fanning’s Sarah Howard was one of them) trying to track down a disturbed serial killer. So when my sister, who introduced me to the amazingly kick-ass shows The White Queen and The White Princess, recommended Masterpiece Classic drama Jamestown I was more than willing to give it a chance!  

SOOOO. Jamestown. The year is 1619 and a band of women set foot on the mucky ground of the Jamestown, Virginia settlement. Fresh off the boat from England these young “maids” are brides-to-be, sold for parcels of land for growing tobacco or cultivating farm animals to the men who’ve settled there. For 12 years the men have been alone with just the thick Virginia wilderness around them. Until now.

Of women immigrants, three stand out. Feisty Irish lass Verity (Niamh Walsh), sensitive and gentle Alice (Sophie Rundle) and clever and cunning Jocelyn (Naomi Battrick). The faces of Jamestown we’re quickly introduced to their hubbies-to-be. 

Jocelyn, Verity and Alice.

Alice is set to get hitched Henry Sharrow (Max Beesley) a filthy (has he ever heard of a bath!?) brute of a man with about as much personality as a rock. Verity is stuck with the village drunkard and fool Meredith Rutter (Dean Lennox Kelly-- and yes really, Meredith was a dude’s name back in colonial times- who knew?!). And uppity high-class Jocelyn, that lucky broad, snagged herself a high-ranking official Samuel Castell (Gwilym Lee) and is ready to dabble in some Jamestown politics.

Sassy and smart-mouthed Verity brings buckets of humor to Jamestown, as does the plain and pious Mercy (Patsy Ferran), handmaid to Jocelyn who’s constantly spouting off biblical nonsense (her mouth may be a’speakin’ but her thoughts are a’prayin’!).

Alice is a magnet for drama and falls into insta-love with her husband-to-be’s brother Silas (Stuart Martin), a hunky farmer with a heart of gold.

Jocelyn and Mercy.

And Jocelyn, oh Jocelyn. If there were ever a character outside of the Potterverse that screamed Slytherin, she’s one of ‘em! Completely aware of her womanhood and the shortcomings to being a woman in the colonial era, especially in a place that’s been man central for a dozen years, knows all about how to beat the game and get to the heart of all kinds of juicy secrets and political goings-on. Political intrigue is an essential part of the plot and uses established history as a guideline.

Impressively enough the entire settlement was constructed especially for the show, and it really shines through! The buildings, the dozens of hogs, chickens and other animals, and the mud mud mud. And the acres of forest and untamed wilderness around said settlement? Ooh YES. The new world is a whole world in and of itself in this show.

As a whole even if the historical accuracy may be questionable in some places, there’s no lack of entertainment value in Jamestown. There is a seriousness to the characters and storytelling, but there is also a silliness in this soapy drama. Like Alice and Silas being dramatic AF colonial people waxing sorrows about their star-crossed love. And the ending alone, with its totally outlandish and, let’s face it, kinda hilarious, turn of events. Everything going up in smoke becomes more than just a phrase in the closing minutes of this pilot if you catch my drift.  

If there’s one thing though, that knocked off a star from my rating for Jamestown is that this first episode uses rape as a plot device. Sexual assault and abuse shouldn’t have to be the vehicle to move a story along. There are many other ways brutality could be expressed instead of just choosing to take the easy way out and go with the most traumatic act of all. 

Henry Sharrow,

Aside from that folly,  the three female leads are crafted with a bravery and sensibility that sets them apart from the stereotypical colonial woman. They face challenges apart from being wives-- they don’t just exist to be part of the men. It’s one of the best things about Jamestown!

Verity, Alice, and Jocelyn aren’t reliant, and they’re a far cry from being dainty, meek, and frail. Even after facing trauma, they prove themselves as resilient and not easily breakable.

That being said, if you’re a fan of costume dramas, Masterpiece Classic originals, and shows featuring courageous, resourceful, and bright women, you haaaave to fire up your laptop  ‘cuz episode one of Jamestown is ready for you!

Jamestown Season One is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

All photos except Henry Sharrow from IMDB

Henry Sharrow Photo from Jamestown wikia