Wonderful script and perhaps even better casting has produced this gem. Artistic license with historical accuracy runs amok and the result is one of the most attractive, entertaining and clever shows ever. This might be Elle Fanning's most perfect role but the whole cast is superb - just watch her ladies' maid. Like all the best satires, this riffs on the essence of the moment , providing an intellectually satisfying backdrop to even the funniest moments.
Addendum: I wrote the above before i'd watched the final episode. That last episode is the brightest gem of all. Things get serious and you realise that you care. I mean, you really care about the characters. The comedy's quietly distracted you from just how well-drawn, how fully realised they are. And then you see it! The final episode is as dramatic and involving as anything that cinema has produced because you've fallen for every last one of them. Utterly brilliant.
Post Scriptum: If you doubt what I've written, try watching the UK attempt at a straight history "Catherine the Great". I did - tried, that is. Historically, more accurate? Certainly. But the lack of life reminded me of a stuffed animal, compared (as I had to) with The Great. Try it for yourselves.
The Great
(2020–2023)
Hilarious and brilliant take on the age of enlightenment and Catherine's rise to power
29 June 2020