Harlots: Cortesanas

Sex. Drinking. Swearing. Romance. Comedy. Tear-inducing drama. I'm totally in love with this series. Chock full of throughly loveable characters and equally detestable characters. The whole cast are outstanding from the household names like Samantha Morton, Lesley Manville Dorothy Atkinson & Liv Tyler to the lesser known but just as superb Hollie Dempsie, Eloise Smyth & Jessica Brown Findlay. I've recommended this to many friends & family and every single one of them has thanked me for it. I urge everyone to guve this a go. I guarantee you will be hooked after the first episode. I'm holding out for series 4 to be commissioned by a major network soon!

After the previous reviewer's tirade about including black people as just being PC and pandering, I was curious and did a little research of my own. According to an historian's article on the history of black people in Britain (which is near the top of google results for "black people in 1700's England) it seems the portrayal in Harlots is spot on. Everything from interracial couples in the lower classes to servants in aristocratic households and a lot of other interesting things I had no idea about.

So while I think his review has no value as a review of the show, it did inspire me to learn something new.

Superficially, one might think that this show is a bawdy romp in Georgian England (18th century), but it is so much more. Written and directed by women, this show depicts the harsh realities for women during the 18th century, when they had few options but to be a man's property. Refreshingly, this show features women at center stage of the entire show, with men being the side characters that support the stellar female cast.

Rival whorehouses battle each other out to be the top house in London, with plenty of sharp tongued-lines, none-too-romantic depictions of sex, and here and there, hints of humor that break up this fierce drama. Sex is portrayed similarly as it is in HBO's "Girls": in all of its awkward and unromantic glory.

What will keep you watching is the secrets and twists, strong family ties, and heart-wrenching decisions that the women in this show have to make to survive. We are constantly reminded that no matter what, if women join men in marriage, they become legal property rather than human beings (strikingly similar message as found in The Handmaid's Tale, if I do say so). You sympathize with the characters who chose the path of harlotry as a bit of freedom and coin rather than be owned and controlled for the rest of their short lives. Overall, well-written, gritty, dark, but suspenseful and entertaining with a hint of humor.

Edit: That review was for season one, where they hinted a deeper romance between two women characters among other great storylines. Season two was great, but dropped the same-sex romance suddenly and inexplicably. Can't help but notice that sex scenes between men and women are graphic and plenty, but they shy away from showing more than women kissing each other as if we aren't allowed to see two women have sex because it's too risqué in 2019. Not fitting with the theme of the show AT ALL and makes me think there's some double standard there. Women's romantic relationships with each other are teased, never fleshed out. Wish they'd rethought that approach.

What also made me drop my review 3 stars is that in season 3, suddenly men are at the center of everything (two brothers who are new in town), and Charlotte, a feminist, empowered, bisexual, free woman gets hot and bothered for one of them, a man who treats women like property and is basically a misogynist, which makes no sense at all. The writers bombed this season hard, likely because they felt they needed to amp up the tension and drama and ran out of ideas. Also, a major character ends up leaving the show so they have to abruptly write that in. It was poorly done, and we didn't have enough of a powerful frontrunner to replace this character, so the rest of the season felt empty. I can understand why the show ended after season 3. Honestly, they should've ended it on a high note after season two rather than crashing and burning on the way out.

I started watching this, as I had no other series lined up, saw a trailer and quite like Samantha Morton as an actress. The first episode left me a little nonplussed, as I thought it seemed a little more lightweight than I was expecting. Perhaps even gratuitous and shallow. But I stuck with it, and by episode three was hooked. Easily as good as Peaky Blinders, which is high praise indeed from an avid watcher. The characters seem to develop well and the casting is excellent. The portrayal of the Bawds from both Samantha Morton and Lesley Manville are magnificent, and a superb supporting cast brings the piece to life. It seems odd that ITV in the UK have hidden this gem away as I can only assume that it is an expensive series to produce. A mainstream channel release is surely overdue, and a budget increase for the second series must be imminent.

Indulge yourself and watch this series!!! The rating doesn't do it any justice! I found that I became further enthralled as the show progressed. Brilliant acting, with a fabulous cast. A very well written series indeed.