Reign, “Coronation,” was written by Harley Peyton and directed by Holly Dale. Dale directed last season, but this was Peyton’s first episode. Peyton is best known as a writer for Twin Peaks but more recently has written for Dracula and Wedding Band. The episode features Mary (Adelaide Kane) and Francis’ (Toby Regbo) coronation, but also underscores the necessity for the two to earn their positions.
Catherine (Megan Follows) continues to try to school the two on how to handle the nobles – and keep up appearances for other countries as well. Mary and Francis continue to insist that they want their rule to be different from that of Catherine (Megan Follows) and Henry; they want their rule to be moral and just. However, they have to earn the respect of both their foreign neighbors and their own nobles. Some, like Ducasse (Cyrus Lane), do respect their new rulers, but they fear the powerful nobles, especially Narcisse (Craig Parker). Anybody else wonder why poor Mary has no cloak in this opening scene? Her dress is beautiful, however....
Francis almost loses everyone’s respect and almost sentences his people to starvation. He is distracted by the ghost of his father, and also attempts to appease the nobles – and again, especially Narcisse by asking Mary to take a step back. Catherine is pleased by this as it opens the door for her to take a slightly more active role. However, she seems either to be “no longer relevant” as Narcisse tells her or relegated to menial tasks like organizing the coronation. However, we see her make a not very serious attempt to buy grain herself from Narcisse. In the end, we find that she’s actually buying the goodwill of the people for herself. Is she worried about not having a future at court or is she still maneuvering to wield more power at court – to claw back her now lost power?
Follows is, as always, simply a joy to watch in the episode. Although, I did think it interesting that the last gown we see her in when meeting with Narcisse at her private picnic is less than sumptuous. It almost looks like a dressing gown! Is this a reflection of her loss of power? Is it a deception to make her seem less of a threat? Is she simply putting all her money into her current scheme?
Francis finds a psychic who can talk to the dead and brings the Caroline (Jane Spidell), the nanny, to him. Once again, he is faced with Henry’s ghost possessing her. I’m really not sold on this particular plot element. However, even from beyond the grave, Henry is causing problems for Francis by distracting him from the pressing matter of the grain. Narcisse clearly has no intention of bending to Francis’ demands that he produce the grain he’s promised as soon as possible.
This leaves Mary to take control – behind the scenes, and certainly hidden from the French nobles. She seizes the opportunity to improve both foreign and internal relations by making a deal with Herr Schuler (David Jansen) to release some Protestant prisoners in exchange for grain. Unfortunately, Conde (Sean Teale) gets in the middle of the deal by kidnapping the prisoners to use as collateral to get his lover freed from the Germans. In the end, however, Mary persuades him to be the better man and hand the prisoners to her to give to Schuler. His desire to prove himself a better man to Mary is rewarded when she negotiates his lover’s release as part of her own deal.
Mary would seem to be proving to be the better leader. Once again, I have to commend Kane for her performance. She really has inhabited this persona and has the regal bearing perfectly suited to a Queen. This is something I’ve also noted about Follows. For instance, it’s not just their tone and manner of speaking. It’s also the way they hold their heads and especially their hands. Particularly, in the Coronation scene – which is as sumptuous as we could have wanted – those costumes!! – when Catherine enters behind Mary and Francis, note the somewhat odd position of her hands. She has them posed just as a Queen would have at that time. It was an indication of both royalty and privilege that she would have held her hands thusly – too regal to be used in ordinary tasks.
In the end, Francis accepts Mary’s help and realizes his mistake in letting the nobles dictate how they rule. I loved the scene when Narcisse finally gets his comeuppance! Not only does Francis rub his nose in it, he lets Mary do it. Narcisse agrees to delivery his own grain immediately. Francis tells him that he realizes that a king has to know who his friends are and that a king must make new friends. Narcisse realizes he may be in danger of losing power – but it’s hard to believe that someone who is willing to threaten the life of a child to bend someone to his will won’t be after more revenge in the future.
While Mary and Francis settle into their roles, we see the others do the same. Kenna (Caitlin Stasey) is still yearning for status and wealth at court. She foolishly doesn’t recognize that Lady Barnard (Kathryn Alexandre) isn’t trying to be her friend, she’s trying to bribe her to save her husband (Kent Sheridan). Bash (Torrance Coombs) meanwhile is settling into his role as King’s Deputy, ultimately unravelling the mystery and catching Barnard for murder. He tells Kenna that “this role I have matters to me. I will always fight for what I believe in – risk or no.” Even after all he has been forced to endure, Bash is an honorable man. I still often feel that Kenna is not the one he deserves as her continued selfishness is no more honorable than her seducing of Henry last season.
We see little of Lola (Anna Popplewell) in this episode. She is taken up with looking after the baby. However, we do have Mary and Greer (Celina Sinden) musing that Conde could make a good husband for Lola. We also learn that Francis has come through on his promise to acknowledge the baby with both a title and land. Kenna is somewhat upset that the baby gets land while Bash doesn’t, and once again, Bash proves the better person by simply being glad that the baby won’t have to suffer in the way that he did. It’s interesting that as Francis seeks to make new friends and allies, Mary’s friends seem to have largely deserted her. She really only has Greer left to act as confidante. Other than counselling Mary, Greer really has no further role – though of course, everyone is present for the coronation scene.
What did you think of the episode? Do you think Narcisse has gained any true respect for Francis or Mary? What do you think of Henry’s ghost haunting Francis? Should we worry for Francis’ sanity? Do you think Conde would make a good match for Lola? Were you satisfied by the Coronation scene? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
