“The Tudors” is a wonderful show in terms of story and character development, but has serious flaws in historical accuracies.
“The Tudors” is loosely based on the reign of King Henry VIII. There is a strong emphasis on the word loosely, as the show has many historical inaccuracies. Several historical facts about Henry’s many marriages and affairs are often blown out of proportion or altogether newly invented. Anyone who is watching the show will more than likely start noticing flaws in the casting of the characters. Probably the most apparent flaw is that King Henry VIII was actually a whale of a man who was balding in real life, quite unlike the King Henry VIII that Jonathan Rhys Meyers portrays.
However, the lack of historical accuracy is made up for with the character development in the show. All characters have traits that truly show their “royal” sides, but also have qualities that make them seem no better than a petty criminal. One of the best character developments to the plot is Cardinal Wosley.
Cardinal Wosley seems to be the King’s greatest aide in the beginning of episode one. He convinces the rash king to avoid war with France and instead sign a peace treaty, and also arranges a peace summit for the two countries. However, towards the end of the show it is shown that he does all this for his own personal gain to convince the other Cardinals to make him the next Pope.
It is interesting to see how Wosley, along with other characters, continues changing as the show progresses, showing positive and negative traits that take the viewer from hating a particular character to loving them in the next scene. There are also many minor characters who would have passed under the viewers radar had it not been for the brilliance of the actors portraying these personalities. The best example is actress Ruta Gedmintas, who plays one of Henry’s mistresses, making viewers gasp when she announces to Cardinal Wosley that she is pregnant with the King’s illegitimate child.
The show does a fantastic job in keeping viewers entertained by the politics that are happening in the show. The show follows a pattern of showing a very intense political scene usually followed by a scene that reinvigorates the viewer. Whether it be a sex scene, execution, or shocker moment that makes one creep towards the edge of their seat. The show is filled with entertaining scenes that make the usually dry political scenes seem like a nice break to prepare for the next surprise.
Overall, “The Tudors” is a show worth watching and it delivers in terms of good story development, character growth, and exciting plot details even though the show falls short historically.
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