The Hollow Crown: Richard II (Review)

This is my review of the first episode of the TV series, The Hollow Crown, which is a TV adaptation of Shakespeare's historical plays. The title of the series is from a monologue in Richard II: "For within the hollow crown, 

That rounds the mortal temples of a king, 

Keeps Death his court and there the antic sit, 

Scoffing his state and grinning at his pomp, 

Allowing him a breath, a little scene, 

To monarchize, be fear'd and kill with looks, 

Infusing him with self and vain conceit, 

As if this flesh which walls about our life, 

Were brass impregnable, and humor'd thus, 

Comes at the last and with a little pin, 

Bores through his castle wall, and farewell king!" 

Starring Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear, Patrick Stewart, David Suchet, and Clemence Posy, the first episode of The Hollow Crown follows the downfall of one of England's worst monarchs: King Richard II. King Richard banishes his cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, for letting a dispute get out of hand and seizes the property of Bolingbroke's father, John of Gaunt, to fund his war campaign in Ireland. Bolingbroke returns to England and finds that his father's lands---which are now his lands---have been seized by the Crown while King Richard is in Ireland.  Henry wants to get his lands back and many of the nobles side with him. Richard returns to England only to find that everyone is either dead or joined Bolingbroke's side.  He concedes defeat and hands his crown and kingdom over to Bolingbroke. He is escorted to the Tower of London and has to say goodbye to his wife, Isabella. She is sent to France. Henry Bolingbroke is crowned King Henry IV. The Duke of Amerle, who still supports the dethroned Richard, conspires with others to overthrow Bolingbroke and restore Richard to the throne. His mother and father, the Duke and Duchess of York, find out his treachery. The Duke of York goes to the King to inform him of his son's treachery while Amerle goes to the King to plead for his life. The Duchess of York begs the King to pardon her son and he does. But he dispatches his supporters to kill the rest of the traitors except the Bishop of Carlisle who is brought to the King tortured but alive. Amerle and two other men kill Richard, and bring his body to King Henry. Outraged, aghast, and sad that Richard has been murdered, King Henry scolds Amerle and the two other noblemen for doing this in his name when he did not ask for it as it will make him look guilty to the rest of the world. He plans a pilgrimage to the Holy Land to atone for the murder. 

Content advisory

Sex & Nudity: 

A man is portrayed naked from the waist up while posing as St. Sebastian for a painting.

While in the Tower, Richard is shown mostly naked with only a loin cloth to cover his private parts. The scene is not sexual. It is meant to show how he has been humbled. 

Violence & gore:

Bolingbroke and another nobleman have a feud that they cannot resolve without a duel. The two men appear in full armor and on horseback before King Richard and his Queen to resolve their dispute by jousting with a sword and a mace respectively. The two men charge at each other, but King Richard throws his scepter onto the field between the two feuding noblemen to stop the duel before any blows are exchanged.

 Two men are decapitated one at a time at the edge of a seaside cliff by Bolingbroke's men. Their severed heads fall into the ocean below and blood is seen in the water.

Nobles loyal to Bolingbroke bring back the severed heads of several traitors. One traitor is brought before King Henry alive with blood staining his clothes, which is evidence that he has been tortured. 

Amerle and two other noblemen shoot and kill the imprisoned Richard with crossbow bolts. There is blood gushing from the crossbow bolt wounds.

Alcohol and drugs: None.

Profanity: None. The dialogue is verbatim from the play. 

Performances: I was not surprised that Sir Patrick Stewart was in this series, as he is a renowned Shakespearean actor, along with his good friend, Sir Ian McKellen (who is not in The Hollow Crown). So it's no surprise that his performance as John of Gaunt was superb. I was pleasantly surprised to see David Suchet, who is known for playing Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot, as the Duke of York. Suchet was excellent as the Duke of York. Clemence Posy, who I know as Fleur Delacour from the Harry Potter movies, was good as Queen Isabella. Last but not least, the two main stars of this episode: Rory Kinnear and Ben Whishaw. I know Ben Whishaw as Q in the Craig James Bond movies and Michael Banks in Mary Poppins Returns. I know Rory Kinnear as Bill Tanner, the MI6 Chief of Staff in the Craig James Bond movies.  These two men played King Richard II and Henry Bolingbroke well. 

Overall: This episode was fantastic and I give it 5 stars.