The Musketeers

If you enjoy watching sexy guys engaging in sword fighting, romancing women, cracking a few jokes and battling the enemy - and all of it set within 17th century France - then this is the show for you..

It's a series of stand-alone episodes but with a long-term story arc developing in the background, which finally comes together by the series final. It's not a drama that has complex story lines or anti-heroes and it doesn't stick faithfully to the original book source, which may annoy purists - though all the main characters are present - it's just a 'lighter' drama for those who want to watch something different to the almost constant dark and gritty crime dramas that are common today. It does have a modern twist, with issues such as slavery and women's rights coming up in two episodes and even Constance is a bit of a modern girl at the side of many previous and dull incarnations of the character - and this time she's married, as the books author originally intended. The series also looks gorgeous ( filmed in Prague because parts of the city are untouched by modern buildings, unlike much of Paris today ) with no tacky blue tabards and feathery hats in sight, giving 17th century Paris a realistic feel, with dirty streets and even dirty hair in the case of D'artagnan.

The four main characters are well cast and distinctive from one another in a realistic fashion, from young D'artagnan ( Luke Pasqualino does a good job of bringing warmth and humour but also a little darkness to a character who's often the dullest of the main characters or too boyish for some viewers to take seriously. At 23 years of age, he still makes a young, immature and cocky D'artagnan but one with hints of the handsome man and great Musketeer he will become - important in a potentially long-running series ) to brooding Athos to ladies-man Aramis ( though he has dark aspects to his character as well, crucial to a character who could so easily be 2 dimensional ) to a Porthas who's clearly Porthas but not as cliché or OTT as previous incarnations, making him just as handsome as the other three musketeers. The characters feel a bit darker, three dimensional and more 'real' than some past incarnations.

Peter Capaldie plays a villain who is far from pantomime, very much lingering in the background during the first half of the series and gradually becoming more unstable as the series goes on, as he tries to prevent Queen Anne and others from having too much influence over the good natured but child-like King Louis. Peter does a fine job of portraying a character who's not really a villain in his own mind because he genuinely wants what's best for France. He's even charming before his need for control becomes more dangerous.

There is a lot of violence in the show, which you'd expect with a drama that involves lots of sword fighting, guns & knives but there's no sex scenes ( only bed scenes ) and very little swearing, which means you could watch it with your parents or older children, as long as you were comfortable with the level of violence.

The show isn't perfect - some elements are rushed ( such as how quickly D'artagnan is taken in by the 3 Musketeers as part of their group and the fact that most of the time, D'artagnan seems to be a Musketeer in all but name) some scenes are cliché ( in episode 1, Aramis has to quickly escape his lovers bedroom via the window )and whilst Constance is a likable, fun and strong female character ( even sounding a bit 'modern day' at times ) she becomes attached to D'artagnan quite quickly and it makes her vulnerable in her actions, which might be an issue for some viewers, though it wasn't for me - she's hard on the outside but soft on the inside. D'artagnan's attraction to her is more of a slow burn and this benefits the relationship because their feelings are growing from friendship and respect as well as physical attraction. Whilst Athos and Milady are very much enemies, they still have a lingering attraction, which argubly makes them the sexiest couple on the show.

This is very much a show where the boys rule but there are still good and strong moments for the female characters, a fun show but still with serious and intense moments ( especially as the series goes on, so you need to stick with it for several episodes, as episode 1 is generally regarded as the weakest of the series ) and whether you stick with it largely depends on whether you warm to the show's main characters and are longing for something 'lighter' than the dark dramas of modern times.

Well acted, always good and often surprising plot twists, entertaining historical fiction, detailed production, good musical score, convincing character development...recommend all 3 seasons as each has one or more unique plot elements yet they all tie together. Straightforward and fun yet surprisingly thought-provoking. Generally true to time and place if not event, and with contemporary sensibility, these tradeoffs are acceptable and enjoyable aspects of modern dramatization. Tom Burke is excellent as Athos, and there really are exceptionally good cast members and performances even in supporting or special roles for a season or episode. A few nice surprises along the way with occasional indulgences. Good action scenes but nice overall balance with court intrigue, romance, politics, and character arcs. Appropriate for family audiences.

A very nice TV show with a wonderful flair, the sets, the costumes, the actors everything just fits perfectly. The show really makes you feel like being right there in the 17th century. So many interesting characters, you really feel with the characters. I liked every season, there's a lot of variety no episode feels the same.

--8 out of 10 stars--

I'm not one to squabble over mismatches between source material and movies - as long as the story is consistent within its own universe.

From this point of view, this series has managed to put all of the recent Hollywood adaptations to an absolute shame.

First of all, the adaptation is so good that sometimes it's difficult to say where the Dumas novels end and where the adaptation begins. Sure enough, the events from the books aren't borrowed entirely and sequentially but rather they are somewhat transformed and scattered.

The main plot points are there, but with extra background and extended events which strengthen character building.

This is definitely a necessary step especially because the original story (so very popular) has turned the characters, their demeanor, names and status into stereotypes ... and stereotypes can be boring especially when the original context is transformed.

The musketeers keep their names, general demeanor but their background stories are enriched (while keeping the main points).

Aramis is a former priest with a soft spot for the ladies ... but there's much more in the hold. Athos remains somewhat misanthropic with lots of mystery behind him (and with a history alongside Milady de Winter) Porthos gets more of an overhaul especially given the original largely straightforward character type. D'Artagnan in turn seems to be more of a bon-vivant type now and although he keeps his original motivation and history, he is portrayed here a lot more child-like. I'm not saying this is necessarily bad, but we'll have to wait and see what the writers will make of it.

Richelieu gets a great portrayal from the future Doctor Who actor, greatly improving upon the original character with more details and more political plots which are mostly well-thought out as opposed to the incredibly brainless plots of the Hollywood movies. Let's hope they'll keep up the kind of work that we've been shown in the first few episodes.

Obviously, nothing is perfect. There are inconsistencies here and there as well as questions left hanging. But we've got at least a season to see where they lead.

When I first heard of this show, I looked at wikipedia to get the critics reaction, and found many were lukewarm at first but liked the show after awhile. But for me, this was a winner from episode one, a light-hearted, old-fashioned swashbuckler with a brisk pace and a nice sense of humor.

While I read the book, that was probably 40 years ago, and I mainly remember the Richard Lester movie. Based on the first few episodes, I'm a bit disappointed in the two main women; the good one seems rather bland, and the evil one seems rather uncomplex for what I recall was, in the book, a fascinating character. I'm hoping that improves. But overall, lots of fun.