Reign - Recap: There's Something About Mary

Credit: The CW

Let's get the biggest development out of the way first. Five episodes in, and Reign is already pulling the trigger on the inevitable love triangle between Mary (Adelaide Kane), Francis (Toby Regbo), and Bash (Torrance Coombs), which is something I seriously thought they'd save for further on down the line, considering the show was teasing just last week that Bash would be occupying his time flirting with starry-eyed Lola (Anna Popplewell). Of course, the love triangle is still effective, even if I feel it's coming a bit early. The reason it works so well is because it feels like a natural extension of the division between Mary and Francis: though it seems like they're back on track after last week, going so far as to promise themselves to one another at the top of the episode, things quickly go awry with the arrival of Olivia, a former lover Francis had prior to Mary's arrival in France. Olivia and Francis once shared a math tutor...and a lot more. Essentially, Olivia and Francis were discovered "together" in a boathouse, infuriating Catherine (Megan Follows), who hated Olivia in much the same way she presently hates Mary. But Olivia wasn't long for court, as she received a marriage proposal and departed to be with her new husband. However, the marriage arrangement fell through when her husband-to-be discovered her prior affair with Francis, and she was no longer deemed marriageable. Shamed, she returns to court looking to win Francis's favor, believing that it will compel society to forgive her for her misdeeds, and it prompts Mary to speculate as to whether a girl should really have to endure a lifetime of condemnation for what was basically a youthful indiscretion.

Credit: The CW

This is a point that's far more relevant to Mary's situation than she even realizes at the time. As Mary quickly learns, Olivia isn't exactly a doe-eyed innocent. In fact, she takes great pleasure in rubbing Mary's nose in her past affair with Francis, saying that he went as far as to speak of marriage, despite the marriage pact that's existed between he and Mary since they were children. Jealous and more than a little angry, in addition to being quite a bit tipsy from having too much wine and not enough food, Mary confronts Francis and demands to know the truth, at which point Francis reveals his conflicted feelings about the situation. He states that something happened between himself and Olivia, but adds that he stopped it before it went too far. Mary, who has just learned from Catherine that Kenna (Caitlin Stasey) has become King Henry's mistress, bitterly compares Francis to his father, passive-aggressively giving him the okay to take Olivia as a mistress if that's what he really wants. This leads to a huge blow-up in which Francis exerts his authority as future king of France, saying that it's his right to do as he pleases in all matters, prompting a devastated Mary to seek comfort in the company of Bash, who says that Francis would be crazy to think of looking at another women when he has her. Taken aback by his candor, Mary kisses him, then immediately pulls back and apologizes. In a fit of passion, Bash says he should have been the one to kiss her...so he does just that. And as they're making out, here comes Francis to witness the whole thing and head off in a huff.

Is it contrived? Absolutely, but it comes from a fairly reasonable place when you consider that Mary is just a teenager prone to flights of impulse. She's spent so long having her royalty drilled into her head that she's rarely had time to do the kinds of things teenagers do, to act on the kinds of impulses that teenagers have. So of course she would kiss the rugged, handsome, older Bash, who is swarthier and more mysterious than his brother, but also less prone to temperamental outbursts. Mary recognizes she's made a mistake, and tries to make amends with Francis, who withholds the knowledge that he witnessed her kissing his brother. In essence, Francis acts cold to Mary, and she's mistaken as to the reasons why, assuming that it was all due to their fight from earlier. Unfortunately, the matter is far from resolved by episode's end, and to make matters worse, it's far from the only thing on Mary's mind. Aylee (Jenessa Grant) reveals to Mary that Catherine has been forcing her to intercept the letters she writes. Aylee is to basically spy on Mary, and it's an act Aylee can't live down. Once she confesses, Mary has all the evidence she needs to confirm, in her own mind, that Olivia was brought back to court by Catherine specifically to break up her betrothal to Francis.

Credit: The CW

And she's right: we see Olivia meeting with Catherine, who commends the girl on the job she's done so far, adding that she wants her to hurry up and get pregnant so Francis won't have to marry Mary anymore. But it goes much further than that, as Catherine actually wants Olivia to be the next Queen of France, arguing that she's easier to control than Mary (a strange thing to tell a person to their face, but then, Catherine has never really been all that subtle). What this episode does well, where Catherine is concerned, is paint a picture that reveals why the Queen is so desperate to get rid of Mary. Sure, we know it's because Nostradamus (Rossif Sutherland) foresaw that Mary would bring about Francis's death, but at a deeper level, we can see that Catherine wants to hold on to Francis not just because he's her son, but because he's essentially all she has. In a rare moment of vulnerability, Catherine explains to Mary that she married Henry when she was 14, and they had actually been in love for a time. But that love turned, like all love tends to turn, and now things are as frigid between them as between two strangers. Francis is the only pure love Catherine has in her life, and Mary is a direct threat to that. So of course she's going to do everything in her power to see Mary exiled. I really found it to be a nuanced portrayal of Catherine's depression and desperation, and her fidelity to the one true thing that remains in her life. Megan Follows was tremendous in what amounted to an all-too-brief role in this episode.

Credit: The CW

Other storylines this week were a tad less compelling: Greer (Celina Sinden) agrees to see the baker boy, saying that she doesn't want to regret not having lived more in her youth once she becomes the wife of some titled lord in the future. However, she tells him that no one can know about them, and any time that's a guideline for a relationship, it's virtually impossible that said relationship will end well. But I suppose we'll see, as I can't imagine things between those two being anywhere near as complicated as the issue facing Bash this week. While out on the road, he interrupts a sacred blood rite involving a boy being sacrificed. Though the boy ultimately dies anyway, despite Bash's efforts, the ominous band of heretics feel Sebastian owes them a debt. And so Bash is confronted by one of the heretics, saying that he must choose someone to sacrifice in the boy's place. Failure to choose will compel the heretics to choose for him, and it's unlikely Bash will like the choice they make. And so Bash is faced with having to either lead an innocent person to slaughter, or fight an entire band of heretics. Here's hoping he chooses option B. After all, the guy has to maintain his fidelity to his own moral compass...well, except in matters regarding his brother's insanely gorgeous fiance. But hey, we all have weaknesses.

"A Chill in the Air" is a fairly strong episode, held together by the organizing theme of fidelity. Catherine sets this entire plot in motion, and although Olivia's feelings for Francis are true, the result of those feelings is more turmoil and heartache, which in turn leads to a potential rift in an alliance between nations. It's a great way to tell a story, and I think Reign is doing a damn fine job getting the hang of its storytelling approach from one episode to the next, even if the overarching narrative of the season remains a bit hazy at times.