TV review: Cursed
The myth of King Arthur has seen a multitude of visions and revisions.
Now streaming on Netflix, Cursed takes a more askew look at the legend with the basic premise that before Arthur pulled the sword from the stone, it belonged to another.
What if the sword had chosen a Queen?
If that is not enough of a difference for the origin story, you will recognise a number of the character names and some will cause an "ooh", some a "hmm" and some an outright "Huh?!?".
At times, this fantasy series based on the Frank Miller and Tom Wheeler novel feels close to Game Of Thrones, sometimes it's more Buffy The Vampire Slayer, more pantomime in tone.
Katherine Langford plays Nimue, a girl from the supernaturally-tinged Fey folk who are being hunted down and exterminated by Peter Mullan's Father Carden and his extremist Red Paladins.
So extreme, each has a cross burnt into his scalp.
Scary stuff, plus Mullan can give anyone the fear just with a simple hello.
With her village slaughtered (rather handily as she was wanting to leave anyway), Nimue escapes with this amazing sword - perfect for slicing through wolves like butter.
Langford (13 Reasons Why, Love, Simon) is a great lead hitting that balance between determined and naive.
Along the way, she amasses a small gang to take on Carden, including a young chap called Arthur (Devon Terrell).
One of the good things about Cursed is that because it is such a different take, you're never sure if this is THE Arthur or just AN Arthur.
Another familiar name is Merlin, played by Gustaf Skarsgard, who is most famous for his role as Floki in TV series Vikings and being Alexander and Bill's brother.
He portrays the legendary wizard as a burnt-out rock star with a touch of old-school Russell Brand. This Merlin is not the force he once was, but the arrival of Nimue and her sword awakens long-dormant powers.
It's all quite fun, and watching to the end will yield a fair few surprises, although it does feel at times to be positioning the characters ready for a more recognisable take on the King Arthur story.
But while this first season is hugely watchable, has this show anything left to say in season two?
That's the problem with origin stories. They're cursed to only take you so far before you've heard it all before.
Rating: M18
SCORE: 3.5/5
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