TV Review: Netflix’s Cursed Is A Dark Addition To Your YA Addiction
Out July 17, I fully expect Cursed to hit Netflix’s Top 10. Based on the Frank Miller and Thomas Wheeler comics, Cursed promises to be a plot-twist of the King Arthur legend by making the one destined to hold the sword of power a woman. Nimue (played by Katherine Langford), in the legend, is The Lady of The Lake, but in Cursed she is a Fey (Medieval term for fairy) trying to escape the era’s known, brutal religiosity, in which the devout would burn your home, kill your family, and then pray for your salvation over your ashes. Yeah….. When it comes to violence, and commentary on religion and colonialism, Cursed doesn’t hold back, which is why it stands out in the YA sphere for it darkness.
With Chilling Adventures of Sabrina heading for its final, part 4, to my sadness; a gap in YA fictional series will need to be filled. The series was violent, dark, and unafraid to be campy about it, especially with its young cast and magical twists on youthful temptations. Yet, Cursed is more serious about its darkness, and the trappings of being young in a world divided by devoutness and a willingness for war. Its “adult” approach to the severity of oppressors enslaving, killing, and conquering those they have chosen to oppress is fascinating, but it doesn’t feel “young.” In essence, there wasn’t the usual “fun” you expect from YA series, and, though there were instances of magic and lore, the series is, at best, a mythical reflection of colonialism.
CURSED (Katherine Langford) | New Trailer | Netflix
From the beginning, Katherine Langford’s Nimue is a balance fragility and strength; she is a young girl that lost her people, is being chased by monks with branded bald spots (The Red Paladins), and is destined to use her powers over nature to free the remaining Fey left. When the show allows Nimue to display her magic, its gets an invigorating zest that I hope is more in Season 2 because it allowed Nimue frustrations with her leadership role and then sudden, apt embracing of it to feel balanced. After all, if you can summon trees to break people, why not believe in yourself? Moreover, she does have the love of Arthur to back her up.
Now, it is Arthur (Devon Terrell) that is playing support system to his more powerful partner. Terrell does his best to expand intrigue and heart into his role of, in some ways, “second fiddle,” and, like the many women written as partners to powerful men, he does fall into the cracks of “I only live to support my lover’s dreams.” He doesn’t grow without Nimue, which is why characters like The Weeping Monk (Daniel Sharman), Iris (Emily Coates), Merlin (Gustaf Skarsgard), and Shalom Brune-Frankiln’s Igraine feel more developed. Each has storylines that range from love and sexuality to faith and existentialism. This gives them a weightiness that, at times, is even more intriguing to watch than Nimue’s storyline because they are have more space to show their hopes and internal crises.
Behind the Scenes of Cursed | Netflix
Frankly, I think what makes a successful YA series is that you dream of and for its characters, and, while Cursed has it struggles, it does make you dream. At times, its pace and pushing of multiple storylines, at once, made me have to rewind to re-catch a new plot-twist or character revelation; one, in particular, being super good. Yet, this series has heart, purpose, and fantasy, of which, my hope for Season 2, is that it gets more clarity. Cursed comes out July 17 On Netflix.
