I’m just gonna go ahead and say it: I don’t watch series regularly. I know, I know. Where do I even live, right? Don’t get me wrong, I have watched series before and I did enjoy them, but lately, I’ve been finding it hard to start a series and see it through. They’re just so long that I usually lose interest before finishing them. I know, I’m a mess. When I do watch a series, because I do watch TV and Netflix (duh, I’m not dead), I prefer them to be short. The latest one I watched is Alias Grace. Yes, it is slow-paced. Now, before you knock it, lemme tell you why I like it.
1. Psychological Thriller
This is a mini-series based on a novel of the same name written by the author of A Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood, a book now made into a popular series. The story is sort of a psychological thriller: you’re trying to figure out what happened and how much of what our narrator tells us is true. So, that’s always fun. That is until you figure out what’s happening and you’re just waiting for everyone else to figure it out. Yes, it was painfully obvious what was happening to Grace, if only because I’ve seen it done before. This doesn’t make it any less interesting, though.
2. Coming of Age in the 19th Century
Grace, our protagonist, is presented as a young girl for the majority of the series, which means… puberty. Now, I don’t know about you, but I like to wonder how certain things were done in the past. Like, how did women deal with their periods at a time without ibuprofen, pads, tampons or plumbing? If it’s hard enough as it is, imagine the travesty it was for these women! There is a very deliberate scene where we are shown how this goes down. It’s great to see this representation that is so lacking in popular media.
3. Friendship
Mary Whitney is kinda the best friend you could wish for. When Grace was new in town, she was there to show her around and teach her important life lessons such as: “The difference between ignorant and stupid is that the ignorant can learn.” Not to mention, she informs our Grace about the political climate in Canada. (Yes, that’s where this takes place!)
Also, she was super excited about sharing a bed with Grace, a total stranger. If that’s not enough proof of character, I don’t know what is. You could see that Grace and Mary genuinely cared about each other. It left a warm and fuzzy feeling in my chest.
4. Canadian History
I’m ashamed to say that I know nothing of Canadian history, nor had I ever wondered about it. I guess I kinda always assumed it’s always been the utopia we all believe it is. But no, and that was a slap in the face I am grateful for. Although it isn’t a huge theme throughout the series, there are some undertones here and there.
5. Accents
I also enjoy the talking, the expressions used and, of course, the accents. And, though I know most aren’t authentic, I still enjoyed hearing them.
Overall, I had a good time watching this series. I even got my mom to watch it, and obviously, I watched it with her.