Reign rules supreme

Most people would not jump at the chance to travel back to 16th century France. However, after watching the television series Reign, you may change your mind.

Reign is (extremely) loosely based on the life of Mary, Queen of Scots. While the show is highly fictionalized, the main plotline--that teenage rulers Mary of Scotland and Francis II of France are set to be married--is true.

Adelaide Kane (Teen Wolf, The Purge) plays Queen Mary, and does a fantastic job of bringing this iconic queen to life in a modern way. Toby Regbo (The Last Kingdom, Treasure Island) plays her fiancé and the future king of France. Their chemistry is fantastic, and their story is truly one of the highlights of this series.

While the primary plot is true, the rest of the show is far from the truth. The writers do a great job of taking this small bit of fact, and adding different elements to advance plotlines. This can be seen through characters created specifically for the show, supernatural beings, and plenty of fictional drama.

If you aren’t a history buff, never fear, as the show never comes off feeling like a history lesson. Due to the highly fictional nature of the show, it is always pure entertainment.

There truly is something for everyone in Reign, ranging from romance to swordfights, backstabbing plots to castle ghosts, and inspiring speeches from monarchs to sarcastic humor.

While it’s easy to get hooked on the story, another amazing aspect of the show is how visually stunning it is. The costumes are gorgeous, and it is obvious lots of time went in to giving each character their own style. The sets are equally enchanting, and are sure to make you want to live in a castle more than ever.

If there was anything bad to say about Reign, it would only be that sometimes the characters make questionable decisions the viewer may not personally agree with. However, this just makes you want to keep watching and waiting to see what will happen next.

All four seasons of Reign are available on Netflix. Each season has roughly 20 episodes, each lasting about 40 minutes, making it the perfect length to binge watch for some time without getting bored.

Overall, every aspect of Reign is brilliantly executed, from the acting and costumes to the writing and sets. Reign should absolutely take the top spot in your list of series to watch.