The Musketeers returned to BBC America on Saturday night with an episode filled to the brim. This season two premiere introduced new characters, brought up old/forgotten storylines, and introduced a surprising change to the cast. While this change may have been quite jarring at first, the rest of the episode was quite enjoyable and served as a reminder of how entertaining The Musketeers can be.
If you watched the first season of The Musketeers and loved Peter Capaldi’s version of Cardinal Richelieu, be prepared for a change. At the end of season one, Cardinal Richelieu was still serving the king and queen even though he had been found guilty of certain transgressions against the crown. However, sometime during the break, the Cardinal died from mysterious circumstances and was buried—possibly in the Tardis—much to the king’s chagrin. Now, the kingdom is trying to recover from this devastating loss, except for the Musketeers and the queen, who are secretly rejoicing. The ironic thing about Richelieu’s death is that the season two premiere actually revolves around a mission he commissioned shortly before dying.
This mission takes Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D’Artagnan to Spain in search of a mysterious agent formerly under Richelieu’s command. On the way, the Musketeers interrupt a lynching in the countryside and unknowingly save the agent. Of course, this agent is evil and hates the Musketeers, so he waits until they are distracted by a brawl before he steals a horse and attempts to escape. This was a terrible mistake on the agent’s part because he stole Athos’ horse, and simply put, you don’t touch Athos’ stuff.
Upon recapturing the agent, the Musketeers discover that he is actually Captain Rochefort, one of the most evil characters in The Musketeers lore. The Musketeers deliver Rochefort to the king and Captain Treville, only to discover that he is also on a secret mission from the Cardinal. As the Musketeers find out, Rochefort escaped from a Spanish prison where a French general—and Treville’s best friend—is being held. Being the sweetheart that he is, Rochefort offers to lead the four main Musketeers on a daring rescue attempt against an impenetrable fortress and impossible odds.
The majority of “Keep Your Friends Close” follows this rescue mission in Spain, which is quite enjoyable. Actually, it seems like the show’s directors decided to increase the action and entertainment to make the season two premiere more exciting. For example, the season opens with that massive fistfight in the countryside that leads to Rochefort’s discovery. After that, the episode throws in some great swordfights, a shootout in the woods, a stealthy assault on a prison, and an exciting escape sequence that would make James Bond proud. There is even a great moment involving a video game style use of a well. Don’t misunderstand; the episode isn’t all action and explosions. In fact, most of the action sequences are filled with witty dialogue and jokes, and the scenes between are all very plot heavy, sometimes to a fault. The Musketeers does a fantastic job mixing up the action and serious conversations to keep the show from becoming predictable or boring. So, how are these new plot points?
The new villain, Rochefort.
At first, I found it extremely strange that Cardinal Richelieu was missing from the cast, but a form of relief quickly replaced this strangeness. Not having the main baddie actually makes the show more interesting because the writer’s can’t simply rely on the same villain. Plus, the introduction of Rochefort mixes up the scenario even more in that he went from being a simple bad guy (with some creepy side-boob) to a deeper villain with more depth than I expected. You could tell that this transformation took place because Rochefort got a haircut and started dressing like Captain Hook from Once Upon a Time. The funny thing about this transformation is that Rochefort’s qualities changed once he switched outfits and hairstyles, and I think the actor (Marc Warren) did this on purpose. When Rochefort was the simple bad guy, he was pretty terrible and a potential drag on the season. Once Rochefort was promoted, he took on a whole new personality that made the character more interesting. Now, Rochefort seems like he will be a better villain who will constantly mess with the Musketeers.
Rochefort may have been the main story of the premiere, but The Musketeers also included many other plot points. The writers revisited many of the storylines from season one that had been left unresolved, including the queen’s newborn child and Constance’s former affair. These storylines continued in an interesting fashion while introducing new information and characters. One weird thing about these revisited storylines is that The Musketeers brought back some other storylines from the pilot episode that had been completely forgotten. These storylines were important, but they also required that you watch every single episode of The Musketeers while remembering the key moments. This requirement could be upsetting for some viewers, especially if they started watching the show later in the season.
Rochefort’s Makeover
The complaints about pre-haircut Rochefort and the early plot points are only minor issues with an otherwise spectacular return for The Musketeers. All of the main characters kept progressing along their particular paths while breaking skulls and cracking jokes. Athos, Aramis, and Porthos were all constantly making little jokes and side comments that required your attention at all times; D’Artagnan was more lighthearted than normal, despite his lady troubles. Even Captain Treville was more integral to this episode than he was during parts of season one, and he figures to play a larger role during the second season.
It’s safe to say that The Musketeers season two premiere was better than any episode from season one, and I’m overjoyed that the show was renewed.
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