The Queen’s Gambit has officially hit a record-setting 62 million households in its first 28 days making it Netflix’s biggest scripted limited series to date. The smash miniseries about chess prodigy Beth Harmon – set during the Cold War – is based on the 1983 novel by Walter Tevis, which has now also entered The New York Times bestseller list, 37 years after its release.
After hearing such positive buzz over the period piece about an orphan with a passion for chess, I finally hunkered down last week for a binge sesh, but after the neverending first episode, I was sure I was watching the wrong show.
Were the matches exquisitely shot? Sure. Did Beth repeatedly triumph over mediocre men in glamorous outfits? Of course. Does Anya Taylor-Joy (who plays Beth) deserve all the awards? Absolutely. Did the whole thing feel entirely monotonous? One thousand percent.
Beth (a natural feminist) is unaffected by the challenges her gender – in 1950’s and 1960’s America – presents, but rather embraces her feminity. Okay, so yes, she’s a boss ass bitch in a man’s world, but Beth (who I found highly unlikeable) is by no means some lonely prodigy, but rather a female surrounded by men who continuously rescue her when she spirals. The fact that none of these “friends” suggest rehab is concerning. Might it be because most of the series we are led to assume she’s only good because of her dangerously dependent substance abuse – a product of growing up in an orphanage that supplied her with tranquilizers?
Overall, the series fell flat for me and I am still questioning if I watched the same show as everyone else. The Queen’s Gambit made the Top 10 in 92 countries and ranked #1 in 63 countries so what am I missing?..
