The English episode 1 brief summary: how the BBC show exploits every woman’s fears (and darkest revenge fantasies)

 Whoa. The English is an epic story of love and retribution set in 19th-century America, and this writer readily admits that it completely took my breath away during the season premiere. No, take that away. I was completely absorbed in the Beeb’s groundbreaking adaptation of the classic western as I sat on the sofa, phone long forgotten.

Lady Cornelia Locke, played by Emily Blunt, is an aristocratic Englishwoman who truly isn’t dressed for life in the rust-colored dust of big sky country. She is the protagonist of the story. She rapidly comes into conflict with Richard M. Watts (Ciarán Hinds) due to her flowery dress, undeniable beauty, and her stuffed bag full of cash.

The fact that he has former cavalry sergeant and Pawnee scout Eli Whipp (Chaske Spencer) hanged up outside his land makes it quite evident that this guy represents one of the more morally reprehensible figures of the traditional western. Richard briefly considers taking Cornelia up on her offer to pay a substantial fee to guarantee Eli’s freedom despite his warning that this isn’t her fight.

Then, suddenly, he strikes her across the face with his body, knocking her to the ground. Her items are rifled through by his guys, who also take all of her money and remove a red satin dress that he decides to put her up in for the evening. Then, suddenly, Richard sends Eli on a ride with Toby Jones’ Sebold Cusk, who is still in handcuffs but is ostensibly headed for freedom.

Naturally, Eli quickly realises that he is being set up for Cornelia’s murder, who is learning that she will have to put up with a lot before Richard kills her. Naturally, she began with a chilly meal of “prairie oysters” (don’t ask) with her captor.

She whispers, “You’ll want to rape me,” at one point.

It’s more of a statement than a question because, as she notes, the threat and use of force are “everything I expect in a male.” Unfortunately, her fears are shared by many people in today’s society. According to data from End Violence Against Women from 2021, being followed, harassed, and assaulted are almost universal experiences that women and girls have, and the threat of men’s violence causes people to do more “safety work” and to feel less free.

Cornelia is sick of continuously conducting personal risk assessments, just like so many of us. She’s sick of having to struggle all the time to protect herself from male aggression. She’s also tired of presuming the worst of guys, especially when her presumptions so frequently turn out to be accurate.

Richard answers in a nasty ambiguous manner, “I’m practical when it comes to problems of permission.

Go fuck a horse after that.

In stark contrast to her frightened demeanour, Cornelia speaks in a cold, almost matter-of-fact manner. She refuses to display any weakness, not even when Richard warns her that he would murder her and that he would enjoy it if she came back from the dead as his horse. Cornelia appears to want it known that she is not a “hysterical” person, even going so far as to explain why she is crying at that very moment.

She says, “I’m crying, but not for the reason you may imagine. “I’m only irate. I won’t kill him anymore because someone killed my child.

Fortunately for Cornelia, assistance shows up in the form of a silhouetted Eli Whipp who has fought his way back in time to murder Richard. He claims to be there for his bag and his horse, but Cornelia is convinced that fate has somehow connected them.

” I wanted to murder a man for killing my child. “

The kind of female character played by Blunt is one we don’t see on TV very often; she’s pragmatist, cunning, and a survivor, but she’s also vulnerable. She has a strong belief in astrology and magic (she once declares, “I’m a Scorpio. She insists she is not, and will never be, the marrying type and is the type of person who hides their eyes at violence (“It’s a star sign, all the rage in London – and mine’s all about payback”).

Still, she grabs a dead man’s guns when the opportunity arises, and she is the one to use a horse and a bucket of water to murder another of Richard’s goons. like you do.

Cornelia is the kind of lady who is wary of male aggression. who cries both when she kills someone and when she is enraged (a completely relatable sensation for anyone who has frustratedly shed tears of fury). Additionally, her tears are never displayed as a sign of weakness—far from it. Alternatively, they are presented as a perfectly reasonable reaction to a distressing event.

Most significantly, Eli does not make fun of Cornelia’s desire for retribution. Instead, he hears her story—despite adamantly stating that he doesn’t want to—before instructing her on how to use a rifle. Properly. After witnessing his country colonised by foreigners who showed no consideration for the local population, all he wants is to lay claim to a plot of land—one he is owed.

Cornelia says in a voiceover, “I intended to kill a man for the murder of my kid. “You demanded the return of your stolen land. We both needed to learn how to distinguish between what we want and what we actually need, though.

Eli ultimately makes the decision to travel with Cornelia through a country full of “killers and robbers”; after all, they are both travelling in the direction of the north, and there is safety in numbers. But it’s important to note that Blunt and Spencer both radiate a subtle intensity in each and every scene, and their chemistry is evident right away. In fact, we hardly need that voiceover from a future Cornelia to inform us that this encounter will result in love because it was “written in the stars.” Why else would she have picked up the Pawnee phrase for “I cherish you,” do you suppose?

There are many reasons to see this intricate drama, not the least of which is the stunning, almost mythical American countryside. But beware—this isn’t the kind of programme you can watch in its entirety while perusing Instagram. It will require your complete attention from beginning to end because of its convoluted (and occasionally overly convoluted) plot.

It is definitely worth your attention if it keeps up the quality of this first episode. Promise.