TV

The Tudors

Late in the first season of Showtime’s The Tudors, Sir Thomas More muses that the king should always be told what he should do, not what he can do: “If the lion knows his own strength, no man could control him.” Unfortunately for the citizens of England, no one took those words to heart.

As the second season of The Tudors premieres this week, Henry VIII has realized his own power, which spells a violent end for anyone who crosses him.

The new season starts exactly where the first ended. Desperate for a male heir, Henry (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is continuing his powerhouse crusade to divorce Katherine of Aragon (Maria Doyle Kennedy) and marry Anne Boleyn (Natalie Dormer). More’s warning has come to pass: Freed from the counsel of the now-deceased Cardinal Wolsey, Henry is a man in complete control of his kingdom, and no one will tell him otherwise—not his friends, the Catholic Church or even Moore, who, like many others, will find himself a head shorter before the season is up.

The Tudors makes historical drama look easy, hewing surprisingly close to the side of accuracy while adding just the right amount of embellishment and panache. The result is a show that’s gripping from start to finish, perhaps even more so now as the dominos start to fall and events move with blinding speed and viciousness.

The superb cast is headed by Rhys Meyers’ Henry, who shifts easily and suddenly from mirth to venom. He’s sometimes laudable, often despicable, but always compelling. Sam Neil’s Cardinal Wolsey is missed, but the show gets a boost from the addition of the legendary Peter O’Toole as Pope Paul III. O’Toole is in only a handful of scenes early on, but he owns them all with an imperious snarl as a proud pope who thinks he can keep Henry in line.

The first season of The Tudors was an unqualified success for Showtime, and the improved second season is poised to do even better. With Boleyn slated to get the ax by season’s end, and with third-wife-to-be Jane Seymour on deck, it’s a safe bet that we’ll get to see all of Henry’s wives.