Dcs72

The story of the Glorious Revolution would also be fascinating, although the audience might end up hating everyone involved.

The Rahima setup began with Catherine telling her that Mary was conspiring against her with her cousin Elizabeth. It seems to me that if anyone would benefit from such intrigues, it would be Catherine, not Mary

One inaccuracy I would like to point out in this episode. When Elizabeth is summoned by Edward Seymour, he suggests King Eric XIV of Sweden as a potential husband for her. Eric XIV did not become King of Sweden until 1560. This potential match was first suggested by Eric's father King Gustav I in 1558, during Mary's reign. Interestingly, Mary was apparently not unreceptive to the offer, despite Gustav being an arch Protestant. She was howver annoyed by the fact that Elizabeth was approached first, without consulting her. Elizabeth, however, immediately informed Mary about the offer. Another reason for Mary's annoyance was that she feared Phillip II might think she had initiated the proposed match when she was actually supposed to be steering Elizabeth towards Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy, a close ally of Philip's, and, of course, a Catholic. Emmanuel Philibert had also been suggested as a potential husband for Mary, prior to her marriage to Philip.

It's a nice touch that Mary has servants who had previously served her mother

The portrayal of Catherine Parr grates, but it isn't nearly as egregious as the Spanish Princess's portrayals of Elizabeth of York and Margaret Beaufort. By all accounts, Elizabeth was very maternal towards Catherine of Aragon, and most accounts of that part of Catherine's life barely mention Margaret. The true villians there were Henry VII, and Ferdinand of Aragon, the two stingiest misers in Europe at that time. It really rubbed me the wrong way. I just don't understand why they do this, and for the record, I'm a guy. If there's any case of a relationship between two Woman I could see being naturally antagonistic, it would be between Elizabeth and Mary. That said, I also appreciate the writers showing it wasn't always that way.

I noticed in the conversation between Mary and Pedro that Mary mentioned having a Lina in her household. Would that by any chance be the same Lina seen in The Spanish Princess?

I think the reason the creators choose to focus on Elizabeth again is because she, and Henry VIII for that matter , are easier sells. Others have already laid out the problem with Edward being a child, and Mary would also be a problematic protaganist. I was actually thinking they could have gone with a non royal focal point here, as they're haven't been too many series told from that pov. It would likely have to be someone who would cover the whole time frame involved, and if this also covers Mary's reign, I had two candidates come to mind. The first would be William Cecil, who served under both Somerset and Dudley, and may have surreptitiously worked against the latter's attempt to put Jane Grey on the throne. The one drawback is he would offer a rather external perspective on Mary's reign. He's also largely associated with Elizabeth in the historical mind. The other would be William Paget, who advised Henry VIII in his last years, befriended Somerset but survived his fall, and made himself invaluable to both Dudley and Mary. He would also offer a logical terminal point, as his goose was cooked when Elizabeth came to the throne, even though he was one of the most vociferous voices against any trial or execution of Elizabeth when she was suspected of complicity in Thomas Wyatt's rebellion. Apparently too many people close to Elizabeth didn't trust him.

Any word on the length of the timeframe this series covers? Does it only cover Edward's reign, or does it continue into Mary's? The only indication I see of the latter is the inclusion of Stephen Gardiner as a character. Given how he spent most of Edward"s reign in the tower, I don't see why he would be included without crossing into Mary's reign.