I postponed watching this for two years after seeing the mediocre reviews on it when it first came out. Well, after deciding to give it a watch, I can say that the reviews..... are right. As many have pointed out, this series had so much going for it. It had Helen Mirren as the lead, it had the production capacity of HBO, which has already produced several fantastic historical miniseries (including my favorite show of all time, Band of Brothers), and had the chance to explore a relatively unknown piece of history to most people, with a powerful, FEMALE, figure at its center. So what did this show do with all this potential? They made it into a historical SOAP OPERA that was more focused on Catherine's love interests rather than her achievements, both as a ruler and as a WOMAN in the 18th century.
If, like me, you go into this not knowing a whole lot about Catherine the Great, then all you'll have learned by the end of the show is that she was Empress of Russia, she fought two wars against the Ottomans, and she had a lot of sexual relationships, that's it. What you won't know is that she also had to deal with wars against Persia, Sweden, and Poland, as well as Pugachev's Rebellion. This latter fact is depicted in the show, but it has a screen time of less than 15 minutes spread over the course of one episode, and only serves as a plot device to make Catherine more enamored with her main lover, Potemkin. Besides wars, Catherine also made significant advances in the arts and sciences, reorganized the government, reformed the economy, and overall was a very enlightened monarch. Her major goal was to make Russia a recognized power in Europe, which she succeeded in doing. Yet all of these are never mentioned throughout the 4 episode runtime. I had to look this all up on my own once I was finished watching in order to gain more knowledge on her.
Speaking about Catherine in the show, I think Helen Mirren did a good job with what she was given. I will agree though that having her depict a woman 40 years younger than she is herself, at least in the beginning of the show, was not a good idea. This meant that Catherine's promiscuity couldn't quite be shown well, as it's a bit difficult to pull of a steamy scene with a grandmother. Catherine's relationship with Potemkin is also severely overplayed, and while I do think both actors did a good jump, having this be the main focus of the show made it rather dull. It also proved to be a bit detrimental as Catherine always becomes upset when Lover-boy heads off to fight the wars, and all she does is mope and write letters to him about how much she misses him and wants him to return. They make the Empress of Russia unable to function without her man there to give her strength and comfort. So much for a powerful female figure.
The history being told is also a major problem. I understand historical shows and films can't show every single detail in history, as it would be too much, and so certain elements have to be omitted for the sake of plot. However, there is no comprehension of time within this show; it flies by. The first episode starts at the beginning of Catherine's reign in 1762, but by the end they are already talking about going to war with the Turks, which is in 1768, and the time it took to get there only feels like a few days. Unless you know you're history, or look up the events as they are mentioned, you'll have no idea what time they are supposed to be in and how much of it has passed. It is also clear that the writers had little to no care for the history they were showing, and one of these biggest aspects for me is actually quite a minor detail overall. There are several German diplomats and aristocrats that appear throughout the show, and they are all referred to as coming from Germany. However, Germany wasn't a name on a map until the mid-1870's, 80 years after Catherine died. So it seems to me that the reasoning for this, rather than saying they are from one of the German speaking states such as Prussia or Wurttemberg, is because the writers instead assume the audience is dumb and won't know what those places are and so makes it easy by simply saying they are from Germany. While this may be simpler for those unfamiliar with German history, for those who do, it's a slap in the face. This wasn't the only aspect of the show that irked me, but it was the one that made me realize the lack of effort being put in to showcase the history.
If there is one positive thing I can say about this show, it's the sets, costumes, and colors. All are amazing to look at, and it's why I love watching shows that depict this period in history.
Overall, while my comments have been very negative, Catherine the Great is NOT a show I can say I don't recommend. It is watchable, just not as a biography. If you're into Soap Operas and would like to see one in a historical setting, then by all means give this a look. However, if you're looking for an insight into the life and reign of one of Russia's greatest monarchs, you'll probably get more enjoyment from reading her Wikipedia article instead.
