The Cutprice Guignol

I can’t believe we’re halfway through the season already. The first couple of episodes of The Mirror and the Light have been outstanding so far, and we’re starting to see the slow unravelling of the Thomas Cromwell the show set up in the first season – after rejection from Wolsey’s daughter and whispers of traitors in his own ranks, things are, decidedly, not going well for our favourite (well, at least in the top ten) minister of the Tudor court.

This particular episode focuses on one of the most interesting aspects of the season so far: the relationship between Cromwell and Mary, Henry’s daughter by his first wife. Cromwell’s vow to her mother to keep her safe is challenged when an uprising in the North threatens her security, and he has to balance threats to his life with Mary’s safety as the King’s dominance is threatened.

After Mary is returned to the King’s side, Rylance and Lilit Lesser share a strikingly intimate scene where they discuss her future in the court, and specifically, her prospects for marriage – it’s a masterclass in what’s left unsaid, both Rylance and Lesser pacing around the edges of the issue of Cromwell’s rumoured interest in marrying her. The tension in this scene, the chemistry, it’s some of the best in the entire show; on a technical level, it’s a simple set-up, just the two of them in a medium shot talking, but the performances soar against the stark backdrop. Cromwell has been Mary’s protector far more than Henry ever has, and the history, the potential future, and the weight of just what that might mean hangs heavy over the entire scene. In a just world, this will be a star-making role for Lesser, and I sincerely hope it turns out that way.

Elsewhere, Cromwell is doing his best to manage the various relationships with women in his life – and the lack thereof. In trying to organise a marriage between Jane’s sister Bess (Maisie Richardson-Sellers) and his son, he inadvertently leads the younger woman to believe that he wishes to marry her – and, in the process, draws even more attention to his continued single status. After the rejection from Wolsey’s daughter last week, it’s becoming increasingly clear that his status and wealth do not make for a good match with his singledom, at least in the public eye, and it’s serving to draw unwanted attention that he could sincerely do without. He even sees visions of Anne Boleyn, pleading with him to assure her that he trusts she has not done what she’s accused of – grimly reflective of his own present, as he struggles to find those who trust him enough to take his word.

Because, as this episode goes to great lengths to remind us, Cromwell is and always has been an outsider amongst the people he works alongside. Early in the episode, a confrontation with the Duke of Norfolk (Wolf Spall fans unite!) serves to underline the gulf in class that has allowed Cromwell both the benefit of an outsider’s view into the politics of the court – but that always keeps him at a distinct distance from the upper classes he rubs shoulders with. Where once Cromwell’s background was a sign of his hard work, diligence, and connection to the needs of the common people, it’s more and more starting to look like a problem. He does not have the same protections that titled members of old families around him lay claim to – he’s his own man, but, in a world like this one, it leaves him decidedly vulnerable. In this episode, his own son takes issue with how Cromwell’s treated Bess, warning him away from his new wife – even his own family legacy, it seems, is not to be relied on.

Unless, of course, the woman who appears at the end of this episode and declares herself his long-lost daughter is to be believed. Wolf Hall doesn’t often end on a cliffhanger, but this one was well-seeded through the episode (in his comments to Beth about not having a daughter of his own), and, while I won’t speculate too much on what it might mean, it certainly gives us some serious questions for next week.

And Cromwell is not the only person to be welcoming in a new child, as Jane announces her pregnancy in this episode – not that she’s entirely overjoyed about it. Lady Rochford (Lydia Leonard, who played Anne Boleyn in the stage adaptation of Wolf Hall in 2015, sly, canny, and brilliant) serves as Cromwell’s insight into the Queen’s state of mind, and, not unfairly, Jane is pretty damn concerned about bearing Henry a girl instead of the male heir he so single-mindedly wants. She saw what happened to the last Queen who did not bring him a male heir, and Henry’s humour with her seems to be wearing thin. In a scene where she pleads with him to restore the dominion of the Catholic church, it’s unsettling to see Damien Lewis take Henry from the façade of benevolent, loving husband to the King frustrated at his wife’s perceived disrespect, the way he slips from “sweetheart” to snapping her first name like an errant child.

Do I even need to say that this was another brilliant episode of The Mirror and the Light? No, but I’ll go ahead and say it anyway. Defiance is a scene-setting episode for the second half of the series, with Jane’s death looming large on the horizon, and the pieces falling into place for Cromwell’s eventual downfall. But, because this is Wolf Hall, those pieces are moved with the brilliant skill of genuine masters of the craft, and it’s almost a ridiculously sumptuous joy to watch as a result.

Halfway through the season, what do you make of Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!

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(header image via BBC)