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| Mary (Montgomery)- center, John (West)- left, Cotton (Gabel)- right / (Photo courtesy of WGN.) |
Imagine if you will
that the entirety of the Salem witch trials happened due to a war which lasted
too long and a young pregnant girl who’s fear of a lost love would lead her
into a Faustian pact with the devil.
“Salem” airs Sundays at 10 pm ET
on WGN America. Created by Adam Simon and Brannan Braga (who has done various
works on “Star Trek”) “Salem” marks WGN
Americas first original series (which debuted last month to 1.5 million viewers) takes the Salem
witch trials, (a tragic event in United States history full of religious and
fear driven hysteria, paranoia, and sexism) and shapes and alternate history
full of magic, deceit, love, and of course an abundance of witches.
The result is a
fictional historical dramas which, at its heart, is one of the sexiest and most
horror filled shows of its kind to date. This is no sweet and pretty love
story. It's a brimstone and black-magic filled headlong rush into the characters'
personal struggles, rife with dark imagery and frightening moments in ways most
other shows of its genre don’t even come close too.
-///- Warning!
Spoilers ahead.
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| Mary (Montgomery) / (Photo courtesy of WGN.) |
Mary (British actress Janet Montgomery) is a young,
unwed pregnant girl in Salem Massachusetts, a Puritanical town. She believes
her love, John Alden (Shane West), has died in the war, since he has sent no
letters since leaving. She must now either face the punishment of Puritans’
stocks and the painful torture of forehead branding or sell her soul to the
devil via a sorceress (“Revenge's” Ashley Madekwe) just
as Faust of old and Blues musician Robert
Johnson of more contemporary tales had done.
Having chosen to take
the less than savory deal, she begins to bring her machinations to fruition
when she marries George Sibley, an influential member of the town, who she then
enslaves and quickly usurps his wealth and power. Mary’s plan begins to unravel
however as Preacher Cotton Mather (Seth
Gabel) soon believes witches have arrived in Salem seeking dominion of the “New
World”, it seems though the good Preacher is only half right. The witches it
seems have existed long before the Puritans learned of their presence as the
shows character Tituba can attest. Interestingly, “Salem” makes use of witches both
male and female making little distinction as to any difference between the two.
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| John and Mary- (Photo courtesy of WGN) |
As fate would have it John returns home to
witness a witch hunt in which Mary is attempting to use the trials as a way to
have the Puritans kill each other in hopes of allowing the witches freedom from
their persecution as well as other reasons. Finding that Mary is now wed, John
is at a loss and begins to become involved in town affairs as he keeps a
watchful eye on his lost love. As events continue to escalate we learn that
John, who at first held little belief of the witches, is a long time frenemy of
Cotton and soon the two come to a kind of understanding concerning their mutual
roles in the show.
Using a variety of
historical names and facts such as Cotton Mather and
Tituba, the show
reveals only enough for viewers to recognize their significance before addressing
the characters in a fictitious manner. With bits of truth along the way, “Salem”
creates its own revised history in such a manner as to leave the show feeling
almost like a continuation of the historical events it takes place in.
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| "Salem" cast in costume in church. (Photo courtesy of WGN) |
Their approach is intriguing
and captivating. The sets and costume designs match the late 17th century to an
impressive degree and the setting is so well conceived that the viewer is almost
immediately pulled into the town of Salem.
The show has many of
the same production and story elements of two other series with witches and the
supernatural: “American
Horror Story” and “Sleepy
Hollow.” Often going over the top and making no apologies when it does, the
show holds elements for not only younger viewers with its many fantastic
moments but also adults with its development of romance and personal
relationships.
With the show often
brazenly pushing the limits of cable television the writers have their job cut
out for them as the story is cultivating a dynamic that promises much as the
show continues to develop. The viewer can easily become immersed and lost
within the darkened streets of Salem as you watch by the small guttering flames
of candles as men are punished for looking upon the form of women and an unwed
mother can face penalty of death for her bastard child.
I give “Salems” dark and
gritty historical makeover a GO and recommend fans of the genre or anyone
looking for a good story to tune in Sundays and watch Mary and her magic on WGN
America.
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| Photo courtesy of WGN. |
Salem
TV listings: wgnamerica.com/schedule
WGN America, Sunday nights at 10,
Eastern and Pacific times; 9, Central time.
Produced by Fox 21. Created and
written by Brannon Braga and Adam Simon; directed by Richard Shephard; Mr.
Braga, Mr. Simon, Josh Barry and Jeff Kwatinetz, executive producers; Liz
Sarnoff, Tricia Small, Jon Feldman and Vahan Moosekian, co-executve producers.
WITH Janet Montgomery (Mary Sibley),
Shane West (John Alden), Seth Gabel (Cotton Mather). Ashley Madekwe (Tituba),
Xander Berkeley (Magistrate Hale), Iddo Goldberg (Isaac Walton), Tamzin
Merchant (Anne Hale) and Elise Eberle (Mercy Lewis).
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