This article is a preview of The Serpent Queen season 1, episode 2 and contains details of the release date and where to watch online.
Starz’s new darkly satirical period drama The Serpent Queen tells the story of Catherine de’ Medici, one of the most reviled monarchs in history, and takes viewers to 16th century France as she explains her life story to one of her servants, Rahima. In many ways a biography somewhat typical of the modern era, with a contemporary soundtrack and various formal quirks like regular fourth-wall breaks, the new series is reminiscent of everything from Yorgos Lanthimos’s The Favorite to Hulu’s recent The Great.
The premiere episode raced through the framing device and some flashbacks detailing the early period of Catherine’s life and her wedding to the second son of the French king. Here’s what happened in summary:
The Serpent Queen premiere recap:
- Catherine, orphaned as a youngster, is groomed by her uncle Pope Clement as a potential wife of political convenience for the French king’s second son, Henry.
- Despite constant reminders about her unpleasant appearance, Catherine nevertheless wins the favor of Henry and the French court by distracting them with finery and promising a substantial dowry.
- Catherine travels with a hand-picked retinue, marries Henry, and consummates their marriage in a room full of people.
- At the very end of the episode Catherine discovered that Henry was in a sexual relationship with her cousin, Diane de Poitiers.
The Serpent Queen season 1, episode 2 release date
The second episode will be released on Sunday, September 18.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuEPr6qxsw0&ab_channel=STARZ
Where to watch The Serpent Queen online
The Serpent Queen is exclusive to the Starz premium cable channel and app.
Preview and predictions for The Serpent Queen season 1, episode 2
While no official synopsis is available, we can make some predictions based on both history and what we’ve seen of the show so far:
- Now that Henry’s relationship with Diane de Poitiers is known to Catherine, he will continue to show his affections to her while remaining cool with Catherine.
- Will we skip ahead in time? It’s a possibility. With Morton doing the framing, it looks like we’re going to cover the whole arc of Catherine’s life, so jumping ahead to perhaps the birth of her first child might be on the near agenda.
- In the present day, Rahima will continue to form an unusual bond with the queen and absorb some of the lessons to be learned in her stories.
