Dickinson (Seasons 1&2)
Year: 2019-2021
Created by: Alena Smith
Starring: Anna Baryshnikov, Adrian Blake Enscoe, Ella Hunt, Toby Huss, Jane Krakowski & Hailee Steinfeld
Episodes: 20 (2 Series)
BBFC: 15
Published: 11/03/21
Created by: Alena Smith
Starring: Anna Baryshnikov, Adrian Blake Enscoe, Ella Hunt, Toby Huss, Jane Krakowski & Hailee Steinfeld
Episodes: 20 (2 Series)
BBFC: 15
Published: 11/03/21
Apple is new on the streaming scene with TV+ and to be frank there isn’t a whole lot on offer. The service has been going for well over a year now and whilst some of their shows have gotten second seasons, there isn’t a lot of new content coming. But Dickinson was one of their big shows from the launch of the service which has just finished its second season run. Having recently purchased a new iPhone and received a free year of Apple TV+ with it, I decided I would take a dive into the world of Emily Dickinson and see whether it warrants subscribing to the service as one of its flagship comedy series.
Based on the real-life poet Emily Dickinson, her family, and friends; Dickinson is a fictionalised and sensationalised version of events about the young female poet (Hailee Steinfeld) from which the plot has been constructed using known information, analysis of her poems, and a modern retrospective social analysis of what life would be like in the early years of America.
The first season contends with Emily’s struggle to be taken seriously as a poet. Her peers consider her strange and her only friend is Sue (Ella Hunt). Sue sees the potential Emily’s poems have and constantly pushes her to get them published wherever possible, however she is contending with the death of her whole family and new relationship with Austin (Adrian Blake Enscoe), Emily’s older brother. Mrs. Dickinson (Jane Krakowski), Emily’s mother simply wishes for Emily to be ‘normal’ like her sister Lavinia (Anna Baryshnikov), however she is often causing trouble for herself in their town of Amhurst, New England.
Emily’s father Edward (Toby Huss) doesn’t approve of women being published writers and so does whatever he can to stand in Emily’s way, but simultaneously doing whatever he can to keep Emily unmarried and at home so she may keep him company as she is clearly his favourite child.
Whilst this season does have a narrative running through its episodes, there’s little build to it, at least for Emily anyway. She’s more an observer of what’s happening around her whilst the cogs fall into place for everybody else.
The second season however puts Emily firmly in the driving seat as she and Sue press for her poems to be published by newspaper editor Samuel Bowles (Finn Jones), and the many trials that come with this. Bowles also acts as the disruptor of the peace that was constructed over the course of the first season and becomes an integral part of almost all the storylines.
Based on the real-life poet Emily Dickinson, her family, and friends; Dickinson is a fictionalised and sensationalised version of events about the young female poet (Hailee Steinfeld) from which the plot has been constructed using known information, analysis of her poems, and a modern retrospective social analysis of what life would be like in the early years of America.
The first season contends with Emily’s struggle to be taken seriously as a poet. Her peers consider her strange and her only friend is Sue (Ella Hunt). Sue sees the potential Emily’s poems have and constantly pushes her to get them published wherever possible, however she is contending with the death of her whole family and new relationship with Austin (Adrian Blake Enscoe), Emily’s older brother. Mrs. Dickinson (Jane Krakowski), Emily’s mother simply wishes for Emily to be ‘normal’ like her sister Lavinia (Anna Baryshnikov), however she is often causing trouble for herself in their town of Amhurst, New England.
Emily’s father Edward (Toby Huss) doesn’t approve of women being published writers and so does whatever he can to stand in Emily’s way, but simultaneously doing whatever he can to keep Emily unmarried and at home so she may keep him company as she is clearly his favourite child.
Whilst this season does have a narrative running through its episodes, there’s little build to it, at least for Emily anyway. She’s more an observer of what’s happening around her whilst the cogs fall into place for everybody else.
The second season however puts Emily firmly in the driving seat as she and Sue press for her poems to be published by newspaper editor Samuel Bowles (Finn Jones), and the many trials that come with this. Bowles also acts as the disruptor of the peace that was constructed over the course of the first season and becomes an integral part of almost all the storylines.
Despite the fact that Dickinson is a comedy, I wasn’t expecting it to be as funny as it was. It mostly stems from its peculiar blend of period acting and modern sensibilities. The women are the stars of the show here, they get all the best lines, deliver the best performances, and get to do the best jokes. I found myself with tears in my eyes as one episode saw Mrs. Dickinson absolutely plastered whilst trying to host a dinner party; or another where the ladies take a trip to the spa. The men are so bafflingly stupid at times, but it’s never unbelievable. It’s this great spin on a period piece where the women are the ones totally in control, yet allow the men to believe they have all the power just for the fun of it.
That’s not to say that Dickinson can’t do serious. There are some very sombre moments in the show where it deals with death, disease, infidelity, and the constant threat of the impending civil war brewing. These moments are given their time to shine in every episode, but the mood is never allowed to dip too low even when things seem to be at their most dire.
The delicate balance of these tones is executed perfectly by the entire cast, with Steinfeld shining brightest as the standout performance. But almost everyone involved in the show gives a stellar performance and commit everything to their characters.
If you’ve bought an Apple product recently and have an Apple TV+ trial you’d be stupid not to take a look at Dickinson as it is a fantastic show. But is it worth subscribing to the service just for that? That’s a question I can’t really answer. There’s not much on Apple TV+ right now, and I don’t know how long it will take for more content to be produced. But I’m very happy I go the opportunity to see Dickinson, and I’ll likely renew my membership for a month to binge each season as they drop if nothing else interesting comes to the service.
That’s not to say that Dickinson can’t do serious. There are some very sombre moments in the show where it deals with death, disease, infidelity, and the constant threat of the impending civil war brewing. These moments are given their time to shine in every episode, but the mood is never allowed to dip too low even when things seem to be at their most dire.
The delicate balance of these tones is executed perfectly by the entire cast, with Steinfeld shining brightest as the standout performance. But almost everyone involved in the show gives a stellar performance and commit everything to their characters.
If you’ve bought an Apple product recently and have an Apple TV+ trial you’d be stupid not to take a look at Dickinson as it is a fantastic show. But is it worth subscribing to the service just for that? That’s a question I can’t really answer. There’s not much on Apple TV+ right now, and I don’t know how long it will take for more content to be produced. But I’m very happy I go the opportunity to see Dickinson, and I’ll likely renew my membership for a month to binge each season as they drop if nothing else interesting comes to the service.