Gentleman Jack

HBO hit it out of the park with this. Stellar cast, stellar script & story based on the real Anne Lister who refused to be left behind in her time nor conform to what proper society thought a lady should be or do. Leaves one to wonder how many other brave women stepped up like she did, but didn't leave a diary behind or no one cared enough to save it for prosperitys sake, sadly. I'd hate to think she's the only one. Thank you HBO & BBC for bringing this to life. It's by far the best of period pieces we've had to choose from in a while...I applaude BBC for always getting behind great period pieces and HBO for supporting BBC this time round for bringing this wonderful series to fruition.

Gentleman Jack have a superb casting all over. However. Suranne Jones is in a league of her own, as always. Why she is not up there, among the great Hollywood stars, is probably because she is best known as a tv-actor. Put her in a drama next to anyone and Suranne will overshine anyone. Best actor ever!

There is no doubt series 1 was just wonderful. Everything worked.

But series 2? What a mess and just so difficult to follow what was going on.

Storylines came and went. Characters briefly introduced and then dropped. No explanations given. No reason why this happened. Consistency just disappeared as well.

It took me ages to figure out what was going on and then I noticed that at least 3 if not 4 directors were used for the season - I'm still not sure who directed episode 8.

It was as if the directors had different visitons as to what the story should be and how it should be told and also as to which stories should be followed and which dropped.

We have the tenant farmers with the pigs again where the husband met an untimely fate in series 1. They're back again in series 1, a new character is introduced to the farm. He's a troublemaker for the 3 episodes. He disappears in episode 3. Hints that questions will be asked.

But then the entire story is dropped from episode 4 on. Why? As I'm suggesting, is this because the new director in episode 4 didn't like the story and just decided not to pursue it and just drop it?

In the middle episodes, we have the storyline re canals vs. Trains and which will be the future with intense negotiations by Anne with shareholder meetings and making decisions as to where she should place her money. Episode 6? Gone, not to appear again except for a brief mention of selling shares in episode 7.

We have the general election theme in two episodes and all the politics and violence. Next episode? Gone with barely a mention.

The coal mine? It comes and goes. Lots of discussion about developing it, who is in charge, what should be done but then it disappears for a couple of episodes only to reappear again with the new director in the later episodes.

In episode 5, there is a great deal made of the cook's health and eventually Anne suggests she go off for a visit to a relative to rest and recover. We expected the next episode would follow her visit and discuss developments. Nope. In episode 6, she is just not present only to briefly reappear back at Shipton in episode 7 with a short "are you feeling better?" from Anne.

We could barely keep track of characters as they came and went so often it was dizzying.

Did we enjoy this series? Not really. Will we watch a series 3? Not if they persist with multiple directors who clearly have their own visions and aren't talking to each other.

I watched the first episode not knowing what to expect and i was pleasantly surprised at how wity and entertaining the central character was, And props to Suranne Jones who was able to easily portray the intimate struggles of a queer, strong woman in the 1800s. She played her role wonderfully well. I would recommend especially if you like historical/period drama

I have started watching some other series from HBO that were not even worth the time spent for one episode never mind seven or eight ," Succession "comes to mind. It matters not one bit what the subject matter of a mini series is when the script , acting , art direction and especially the character development are spot on. I don't think you'll grow impatient watching this as is the case with so many TV pieces ; impatient for the next episode would be more like it. The movies Phantom Thread and The Favourite , period pieces both, were not even close to being 1/2 as good as this and probably with twice the budget and "A List " players. Vision and ideas make good movies ; it takes more than just money. Hats off to HBO/BBC for green lighting this and getting it made. Recommended period. I came back to add to my review. It's a beautiful love story rendered in a natural and believable way no matter the subjects' orientation. The story is so naturally told and well woven together perhaps because they had Anne Lister's diaries to work from. Don't miss it.