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Trailer Thursday–REIGN (The CW, Fall 2013)

Thursday, May 23, 2013

The broadcast networks have made some very interesting choices of new series for the upcoming 2013–2014 TV series here in the U.S. Throughout the summer, I’ll share clips and trailers on Thursday—of the ones I want to see and of the ones I find utterly mystifying or outlandish.

This week, let’s take a look at Reign, a new costume drama on the CW network. According to the network’s official page for the show:

Hidden between the lines of the history books is the story of Mary Stuart, the young woman the world would come to know as Mary, Queen of Scots. Queen of Scotland since she was six days old, the teenage Mary is already a headstrong monarch – beautiful, passionate, and poised at the very beginning of her tumultuous rise to power. Arriving in France with four close friends as her ladies-in-waiting, Mary has been sent to secure Scotland’s strategic alliance by formalizing her arranged engagement to the French king’s dashing son, Prince Francis. But the match isn’t signed and sealed: it depends more on politics, religion and secret agendas than affairs of the heart. Prince Francis is intrigued by the fiery Scot, but like most young men, he resists the idea of settling down into marriage, especially when he has a history with a lady of the court and his own point of view on the wisdom of an alliance with Scotland. Still, an attraction between Mary and Francis is ignited. Further complicating things is Bash, Francis’ roguish half-brother, who has a history of his own – despite his illegitimate birth, Bash is his father’s favorite. And now that Bash has caught Mary’s eye, a royal triangle may be forming. While at French Court, fierce foes and dark forces conspire to sabotage Mary’s marriage to Francis and even threaten her life, until a mysterious shrouded guide becomes her ally. With danger and sexual intrigue around every dark castle corner, Mary rallies her ladies-in-waiting and steels herself, ready to rule the new land and balance the demands of her country and her heart.

The series stars Adelaide Kane (“Teen Wolf”) as Mary, Toby Regbo (“One Day”) as Prince Francis, Torrance Coombs (“The Tudors”) as Bash, Megan Follows (“Anne of Green Gables”) as Queen Catherine, Alan Van Sprang (“The Tudors”) as King Henry, Celina Sinden (newcomer) as Greer, Caitlin Stasey (newcomer) as Kenna, Anna Popplewell (“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”) as Lola, and Jenessa Grant (“Cyberbully”) as Aylee.

REIGN is from CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television with executive producers Stephanie SenGupta (“Hawaii Five-0”), Laurie McCarthy (“The Ghost Whisperer”), Frank Siracusa (“Beauty And The Beast”) and Brad Silberling (“Moonlight Mile”). The pilot was directed by Brad Silberling.

The Preview

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A Sneak Peek Clip

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What do you think of it? Will you watch the CW’s newest teen-drama soap?

3 Comments
  1. Ruth permalink
    Thursday, May 23, 2013 11:38 am

    I’ll watch it on DVD if I hear it is good…I never seem to have room to add a CW show to my weekly TV schedule. (This looks kinda incredibly awful, though.)

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    • Thursday, May 23, 2013 6:38 pm

      I got excited by the trailer and thought I’d check it out until I saw the clip. But… it does look more soapy than historical. Still, maybe.

      The actor playing Francis is a younger version of someone I know. Uncanny resemblance.

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  2. Thursday, May 23, 2013 11:30 pm

    I was excited until I watched the trailer and saw how ahistorical it is! To be quite honest, this Gossip Girled version of history is rather condescending when plenty of tweens and teenagers love and understand Downton Abbey, The Tudors, Mad Men, and other more accurate period dramas.

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