There are few times a TV show moves me to such tears I can barely watch the ending, but this did it. I am a bagpiper. The way the writers and directors portrayed the Royal Piper was both unexpected and highly appreciated. I clearly remember PM Paul Burns playing "Sleep Dearie Sleep" at the Queen's funeral. Seeing the back story done with such dignity and professionalism is not something one sees very often. The actual piping in the show is top-drawer. So many times pipers on TV shows seem to know nothing about how to tune their instruments. In the show the pipes are pristine-just as one would expect of a professional Piper. His technique and musicality are faultless. Thank you to the producers of "The Crown" for spotlighting the Great Highland Bagpipes in the final show.
18 Reviews
What a finale
goncasoliveira16 December 2023
I must admit I wasn't too fond of season 5, with little dialogue and Imelda playing a somewhat insensitive queen. What a turn in season 6!!!! Imelda is perfect and the last episode was done beautifully :) I still wish it had more dialogues, more reaction from everyone, more emotion as the Queen is left alone by her loved ones, but they keep short sentences and looks, leaving you wondering instead of knowing the director's intention... But thats just my opinion... Most of the cast was perfect, Leslie Manville, Imelda Staunton, even Camilla and Charles and the boys.. Just a plaesure to see... Emmys for everyone!!!
The End...or The Beginning
IamTeo15 December 2023
I have just ended the series moments ago, and I'm out of words. I have never, or maybe once or twice, felt such a cocktail of emotions. I'm both sad and happy, content and impatient.
For one thing, I believe they could have kept the series and given more time to the new actors. The end was peaceful, but for me, it only made it harder to accept that it was done.
I'm for real when I tell you that I would like to wake up and find out it will go on, at least with one season, or a movie that would continue the story just a little.
The Crown is not a person, it transcends humanity, the material life. In my view, the show has a beautiful future ahead, if only it sees it that way. I trust the story will get more content in the future. I vow that I will rewatch it, as for me it brings memories from the years that have passed since season 1, especially the pandemic and all that went on afterward, leading to the end of 2023. I did not expect it to leave such a mark on me, maybe because I was a fan of it, of the whole show, and of the magnificent cast, to whom I wish good luck in their future projects.
I want to say that Peter Morgan has my respect for life for how the series went on. I am a Crown fan to the end. Great show, a great time, and an experience I will surely look back to.
*I was not joking around when I said there is content for at least one more season 😊
For one thing, I believe they could have kept the series and given more time to the new actors. The end was peaceful, but for me, it only made it harder to accept that it was done.
I'm for real when I tell you that I would like to wake up and find out it will go on, at least with one season, or a movie that would continue the story just a little.
The Crown is not a person, it transcends humanity, the material life. In my view, the show has a beautiful future ahead, if only it sees it that way. I trust the story will get more content in the future. I vow that I will rewatch it, as for me it brings memories from the years that have passed since season 1, especially the pandemic and all that went on afterward, leading to the end of 2023. I did not expect it to leave such a mark on me, maybe because I was a fan of it, of the whole show, and of the magnificent cast, to whom I wish good luck in their future projects.
I want to say that Peter Morgan has my respect for life for how the series went on. I am a Crown fan to the end. Great show, a great time, and an experience I will surely look back to.
*I was not joking around when I said there is content for at least one more season 😊
A Graceful Finale
mgalercail15 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I believe that The Crown now has a place in history on its own. From episode one, the presentation and writing has been consistently immaculate with a serving of incredible actors that elevate the material to Shakespearean levels of goodness
Series 1-2 will always remain the best. Best cast, best sets, storylines and music. I mean who doesn't miss Claire and Matt, such chemistry.
3/4 had a tough act to follow, but everyone brought their A game to continue the story and everyone played their parts so well. Gillian being the highlight matching the ever so talented Olivia.
Then came 5. Now I'll say this, it was a dry season.
With the exception of Diana and the Fayed episode: it just felt like filler to me. The show always had a steady pace and it really came to a crawl in those episodes. I wasn't feeling the new cast besides Diana and I wished the writing was stronger.
The final season arrived and I must say it picked up the slack. The pacing was back to normal. Everything felt a bit more familiar this time and the beats just felt right.
By the end, I did indeed warm up to the cast.
West and Pryce are still weak in their roles though.
It's sad because both have done such great work.
Just felt really phoned in.
Just need to say this. There is no way in he** that Charles cried over Diana; nor was he eventually warm towards his sons. Good lord. No way, I didn't care for that interpretation. He was always selfish. Granted they touched on that. But still, they went easy on him later on. Josh Charles was who he was. At least in spirit.
I just can't buy it. I wish they saved Charles Dance for Philip instead: a better choice. As for West; just felt basic to me. Going through the motions like a tv episode guest star. Pryce seems to finally, "get it" near the end acting all grumpy one scene. Yet where was this earlier?
Harry and William were wonderfully cast though and I can't believe these are their first roles! I see a bright future ahead.
Leslie Manvile gets her swan song in the final days being Margaret; such a classy dame.
Elizabeth D in her remaining eps still brings her A game and it's like looking in a mirror. You feel every bit she is feeling in her scenes. Harrowing and I think the accident was handled respectfully. And glad they shown the funeral from afar instead of a big scene; it's the right thing to do.
This season flew by as I watched it and I didn't mind them splitting the episodes as the beginning is quite somber as we all know.
The finale episode here was such a lovely tribute to the previous queens.
Her conversations with her younger selves I think were done perfectly. It was not too much or heavy handed. It was just right.
Got chills when Claire returned like you wouldn't believe. The intensity of Miss Foy is unmatched. You almost wish they simply used age makeup and just kept her along. Would've been the wise choice..maybe.
Olivia just as commanding in her own way and Imelda brings it home with a more gentle touch and portrays her just as she was in her final years.
Final series can be hard to pull off and a good finale is even harder. But as gracefully as the queen took the throne: so does she as she exits the cathedral into brightly lit door Regardless of how you felt about these people and the Queen; Her legacy is unparalleled While this series took many many liberties with its history As dramatic fiction; its solid television and will certainly be in my rewatch Que at some point again in life.
God save the queen!
Series 1-2 will always remain the best. Best cast, best sets, storylines and music. I mean who doesn't miss Claire and Matt, such chemistry.
3/4 had a tough act to follow, but everyone brought their A game to continue the story and everyone played their parts so well. Gillian being the highlight matching the ever so talented Olivia.
Then came 5. Now I'll say this, it was a dry season.
With the exception of Diana and the Fayed episode: it just felt like filler to me. The show always had a steady pace and it really came to a crawl in those episodes. I wasn't feeling the new cast besides Diana and I wished the writing was stronger.
The final season arrived and I must say it picked up the slack. The pacing was back to normal. Everything felt a bit more familiar this time and the beats just felt right.
By the end, I did indeed warm up to the cast.
West and Pryce are still weak in their roles though.
It's sad because both have done such great work.
Just felt really phoned in.
Just need to say this. There is no way in he** that Charles cried over Diana; nor was he eventually warm towards his sons. Good lord. No way, I didn't care for that interpretation. He was always selfish. Granted they touched on that. But still, they went easy on him later on. Josh Charles was who he was. At least in spirit.
I just can't buy it. I wish they saved Charles Dance for Philip instead: a better choice. As for West; just felt basic to me. Going through the motions like a tv episode guest star. Pryce seems to finally, "get it" near the end acting all grumpy one scene. Yet where was this earlier?
Harry and William were wonderfully cast though and I can't believe these are their first roles! I see a bright future ahead.
Leslie Manvile gets her swan song in the final days being Margaret; such a classy dame.
Elizabeth D in her remaining eps still brings her A game and it's like looking in a mirror. You feel every bit she is feeling in her scenes. Harrowing and I think the accident was handled respectfully. And glad they shown the funeral from afar instead of a big scene; it's the right thing to do.
This season flew by as I watched it and I didn't mind them splitting the episodes as the beginning is quite somber as we all know.
The finale episode here was such a lovely tribute to the previous queens.
Her conversations with her younger selves I think were done perfectly. It was not too much or heavy handed. It was just right.
Got chills when Claire returned like you wouldn't believe. The intensity of Miss Foy is unmatched. You almost wish they simply used age makeup and just kept her along. Would've been the wise choice..maybe.
Olivia just as commanding in her own way and Imelda brings it home with a more gentle touch and portrays her just as she was in her final years.
Final series can be hard to pull off and a good finale is even harder. But as gracefully as the queen took the throne: so does she as she exits the cathedral into brightly lit door Regardless of how you felt about these people and the Queen; Her legacy is unparalleled While this series took many many liberties with its history As dramatic fiction; its solid television and will certainly be in my rewatch Que at some point again in life.
God save the queen!
Magnificent end to a magnificent series
terrylarosa19 December 2023
Fitting end that the finale focused almost entirely on the Queen. Terrific and superb performances from the entire cast though the standouts for the season were West and Staunton ( if they both don't at least get nominated then there is no justice ). I will admit that I was rather bored with the Diana storyline since I've never understood her popularity. The season was not as good as the first four but stuck the landing in the finale ( especially with Staunton's subtle, magnificent performance). The final five minutes were sublime; especially the beautiful music. The final scene also, was perfect. The Crown will be missed.
A love letter to History
thinkMovies24 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
History is, of course felt in the eye of the beholder. A last chapter can close an era but can also hint at the future and the past beyond any particular era. The last scenes of The Crown succeed in establishing a new high bar for how to embed all that in our hearts and minds.
The choice of showing the older Queen, Imelda Staunton, converse with her younger selves, Olivia Colman and Claire Foy is a beautiful device by which to add further depth to her character. Each one of us, a monarch included, consists of all the people we've each been, evolving through our lives.
The last scene with Prince Philip and the Queen discussing their funerals and their place in life, and death, is insightfully done.
But the scene, set in 2005, where the Queen walks past her own future coffin, laid out in the Cathedral, which only she can see, and then from behind the coffin she sees her 1945 young 19-year-old self in her Auxiliary Territorial Service uniform is a showstopper, and a heart stopper that brings a tear to the eye. Then the young Princess, in uniform, gives a military salute to the 80-year-old Queen and then smiles at her with approval. That was a brilliant decision by Peter Morgan.
Then, the Queen walks away from us, the full length of the 17 years to come, to the exit of the Cathedral, into the light, with the door closing behind her.
The last scenes of this six-season series are, I think, a perfect testament to the soul of the entire series and of the British Crown, and it will be seen again and again by those who rewatch parts or snippets of it in the future. Well done.
In your beloved Balmoral, to the sound of the Highland Pipes, Sleep, Dearie Sleep.
The choice of showing the older Queen, Imelda Staunton, converse with her younger selves, Olivia Colman and Claire Foy is a beautiful device by which to add further depth to her character. Each one of us, a monarch included, consists of all the people we've each been, evolving through our lives.
The last scene with Prince Philip and the Queen discussing their funerals and their place in life, and death, is insightfully done.
But the scene, set in 2005, where the Queen walks past her own future coffin, laid out in the Cathedral, which only she can see, and then from behind the coffin she sees her 1945 young 19-year-old self in her Auxiliary Territorial Service uniform is a showstopper, and a heart stopper that brings a tear to the eye. Then the young Princess, in uniform, gives a military salute to the 80-year-old Queen and then smiles at her with approval. That was a brilliant decision by Peter Morgan.
Then, the Queen walks away from us, the full length of the 17 years to come, to the exit of the Cathedral, into the light, with the door closing behind her.
The last scenes of this six-season series are, I think, a perfect testament to the soul of the entire series and of the British Crown, and it will be seen again and again by those who rewatch parts or snippets of it in the future. Well done.
In your beloved Balmoral, to the sound of the Highland Pipes, Sleep, Dearie Sleep.
A Bit Too Contrived
Hitchcoc30 December 2023
Well, we say goodbye to years of The Crown. My wife and I were loyal to the show. It had its ups and its downs, but overall it was good entertainment. I was in first grade when we read in The Weekly Reader that there was a new Queen of England (this and the Olympics in some place called Melbourne). My generation have been there for all the turbulence and drama of the royal family. Not being British, I have no idea what it was like to have the tabloids attacking day after day, week after week. But I could sympathize with them to a degree, even though their opulence was a bit much. This episode shows the Queen having her mortality thrown in her face, force to confront the fact that she would not be a queen forever. She begins to wonder whether she should step down. Meanwhile, Charles wants to marry Camilla, and all those windbag clergy, living in the Dark Ages, are the stumbling block. But the marriage takes place, as we all know, and then, as we also know, Charles continues as Prince of Wales for many years more. The show ends on an ethereal note with the Queen walking interminably off the stage, through a door to the future. This series was well done. If nothing else, it caused me to some reading about those days.
The best TV can possibly have to offer
kerstenwouter28 December 2023
I imagine that even viewers who have a staunch dislike of the royals might be able to appreciate what they did in this episode and the ones leading up to it; making use in a very clever way of using different actors (m/f) during the seasons. It is one of the ways how series that take time to let a story unfold can trump movies that have to squash everything in 2-3 hours.
The way how expectations, assumptions, snippets of facts and a good sense of what makes good television are merged is superb.
Also, I am not in agreement with critical reviews that wanted to stretch the whole period for another 1,5 decade just to touch current events. Why? That's another genre altogether. Nor with criticisms (like from a former PM) who somehow interpreted the final episodes as too discreditable to the royals.
So even if brought down by hating-filled emotions, please manage to appreciate how well the whole story line was played out entertainment wise.
The way how expectations, assumptions, snippets of facts and a good sense of what makes good television are merged is superb.
Also, I am not in agreement with critical reviews that wanted to stretch the whole period for another 1,5 decade just to touch current events. Why? That's another genre altogether. Nor with criticisms (like from a former PM) who somehow interpreted the final episodes as too discreditable to the royals.
So even if brought down by hating-filled emotions, please manage to appreciate how well the whole story line was played out entertainment wise.
Suitable bittersweet ending
dierregi25 December 2023
The focus of this series was the queen upon which head the crown landed so unexpectedly and it is fitting that the last episode is about her confronting the past, but especially the future.
The queen must revise the plan for her funeral since she'll be 80 soon and this makes her think about "retiring", also because Charles wants to marry Camilla and once he's settled and his situation "regular" he could get the crown without sullying it because of his past misdemeanours.
However, the queen is undecided, because she knows she's the last real "royal". Her family is disappointing and the monarchy itself on the way out. A peaceful way out, for lack of need of such aloof symbols, but way out nonetheless.
The queen's choice of music was quite moving and so was the last scene, very well done.
After Elizabeth, Charles will take the crown on his way out, followed by "approachable" William, with his ordinary wife and his family squabbles with his brother who makes everything public. Goodbye aloofness, but also dignity. Enter the social media era, it's not just a queen who dies, is royalty that vanishes.. and I'm not even a monarchist.
The queen must revise the plan for her funeral since she'll be 80 soon and this makes her think about "retiring", also because Charles wants to marry Camilla and once he's settled and his situation "regular" he could get the crown without sullying it because of his past misdemeanours.
However, the queen is undecided, because she knows she's the last real "royal". Her family is disappointing and the monarchy itself on the way out. A peaceful way out, for lack of need of such aloof symbols, but way out nonetheless.
The queen's choice of music was quite moving and so was the last scene, very well done.
After Elizabeth, Charles will take the crown on his way out, followed by "approachable" William, with his ordinary wife and his family squabbles with his brother who makes everything public. Goodbye aloofness, but also dignity. Enter the social media era, it's not just a queen who dies, is royalty that vanishes.. and I'm not even a monarchist.
Excellent ending to an epic docudrama
dbuckshnis29 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
This was a well executed, ending to the series. The fact that writers brought back previous queens (Olivia and Claire) to talk to the queen about her role in all of this ending drama with all the family members was exceptional. Her listening to the bag piper for her "ending Finale song" put tears in my eyes. Also her speech at Charles wedding was also exceptional. Adding the "coffin truck" of Prince Phillip in the storyline also was touching.
The system protects #1 was a great ending to a superb series. At first I thought the casts of second sequel should have been aged as Charles was too handsome, the Queen and Philip didn't have the same chemistry - and so on ... but they did grow on me.
The continued storyline of both Harry and William would make an excellent sequel - but it was already captured in Harry's book.
The system protects #1 was a great ending to a superb series. At first I thought the casts of second sequel should have been aged as Charles was too handsome, the Queen and Philip didn't have the same chemistry - and so on ... but they did grow on me.
The continued storyline of both Harry and William would make an excellent sequel - but it was already captured in Harry's book.
Excellent.
thebenstrongbs14 January 2024
While the line between fact and fiction was obviously blurred throughout (because no one but those present know what truly happens behind closed doors), this ending did both justice to an outstanding series and to a marvelous world leader.
While I understand having such a strong focus on Diana as she represents a major chapter in the story of the royal family (and the drama and conspiracies that surround and abound), I wish the final season had been more centric on the Queen, herself (as I feel is represented by others judging other season 6 episodes much lower than the finale).
Judging gathered from the series as well as reception after her death, it's clear that she understood her role and fulfilled it with honor, duty, dignity, and (seemingly) humility.
The writers and cast did phenomenally, and we could not possibly ask for a better ending.
They are correct. The Queen was of a dying breed.
While I understand having such a strong focus on Diana as she represents a major chapter in the story of the royal family (and the drama and conspiracies that surround and abound), I wish the final season had been more centric on the Queen, herself (as I feel is represented by others judging other season 6 episodes much lower than the finale).
Judging gathered from the series as well as reception after her death, it's clear that she understood her role and fulfilled it with honor, duty, dignity, and (seemingly) humility.
The writers and cast did phenomenally, and we could not possibly ask for a better ending.
They are correct. The Queen was of a dying breed.
Perfect ending
cruzycat22 January 2024
Warning: Spoilers
What an incredible series this was! There were, no doubt, liberties taken with the true events, but it seemed so well done.
This episode, in particular, wrapped things up perfectly.
=======Spoiler coming=======
I couldn't imagine how the Queen's death could be portrayed without making the whole thing too morose. Having her talk things through with her younger selves was a great idea. It gave insight into her thinking. The last scene was so very poignant .. from the bagpipe in the balcony to her visualizing the coffin, and ending with her solitary walk into the light.
I enjoyed the whole series, but that last scene was the perfect denouement.
This episode, in particular, wrapped things up perfectly.
=======Spoiler coming=======
I couldn't imagine how the Queen's death could be portrayed without making the whole thing too morose. Having her talk things through with her younger selves was a great idea. It gave insight into her thinking. The last scene was so very poignant .. from the bagpipe in the balcony to her visualizing the coffin, and ending with her solitary walk into the light.
I enjoyed the whole series, but that last scene was the perfect denouement.
Season 6 Review
Davalon-Davalon15 January 2024
Warning: Spoilers
I was really rooting for this series, especially after what I felt was a disastrous Season 5. Regrettably, despite some great moments, Season 6 did not right all the wrongs.
It did, however, prove that Elizabeth Debicki, as Princess Diana, has the stuff of a major movie star. As opposed to Season 5, where I felt she was a great mimic, in Season 6, I felt she inhabited Diana. I felt like Diana had come back to earth and spirited herself into Elizabeth's body. She was outstanding.
I also felt like Dominic West as Prince Charles came into his own. I felt he made an extraordinary effort to give the sense of the real Charles, and we got a window into Charles's humanity, which made him a lot more three-dimensional.
Obviously, as the show understands, the arrival of Diana completely turned the world of these very dull, isolated "royals" upside down. But, as is well known, instead of embracing her, they expected her to be dull, boring and dowdy like them. We also know how that ended.
Season 6 spent a lot of time focused on Diana's ultimate demise, her children William and Harry (William, in particular, played Ed McVey), and/or, perhaps more importantly, the relationship between William and Kate Middleton (Meg Bellamy).
We could see that with Diana gone, the paparazzi were going to focus on Will and would be relentless, all over again. It was quite sad.
And finally, the whole reason I had any interest in watching the show in the first place: The Queen.
Again, as I was in Season 5, despite Imelda Staunton's many gifts as an actress, her very pinched face and her very tiny stature did not lend herself to the Queen, who had real presence when she walked into a room, much like her previous incarnations, Claire Foy and Olivia Colman. So, while I enjoyed watching her as an actress, I could not stop thinking that she resembled an antique doll. It was sad.
The other standout was Lesley Manville, as Princess Margaret. In her big dying episode, she was fantastic. You could sense that this woman had lived this incredible life. It was powerful.
Ultimately, though, I came away from this not understanding why we have "royal families" anymore, and, more importantly, that these people were human beings. And they are susceptible to all of the problems that the rest of us are, but they can dress it up better than we can.
It did, however, prove that Elizabeth Debicki, as Princess Diana, has the stuff of a major movie star. As opposed to Season 5, where I felt she was a great mimic, in Season 6, I felt she inhabited Diana. I felt like Diana had come back to earth and spirited herself into Elizabeth's body. She was outstanding.
I also felt like Dominic West as Prince Charles came into his own. I felt he made an extraordinary effort to give the sense of the real Charles, and we got a window into Charles's humanity, which made him a lot more three-dimensional.
Obviously, as the show understands, the arrival of Diana completely turned the world of these very dull, isolated "royals" upside down. But, as is well known, instead of embracing her, they expected her to be dull, boring and dowdy like them. We also know how that ended.
Season 6 spent a lot of time focused on Diana's ultimate demise, her children William and Harry (William, in particular, played Ed McVey), and/or, perhaps more importantly, the relationship between William and Kate Middleton (Meg Bellamy).
We could see that with Diana gone, the paparazzi were going to focus on Will and would be relentless, all over again. It was quite sad.
And finally, the whole reason I had any interest in watching the show in the first place: The Queen.
Again, as I was in Season 5, despite Imelda Staunton's many gifts as an actress, her very pinched face and her very tiny stature did not lend herself to the Queen, who had real presence when she walked into a room, much like her previous incarnations, Claire Foy and Olivia Colman. So, while I enjoyed watching her as an actress, I could not stop thinking that she resembled an antique doll. It was sad.
The other standout was Lesley Manville, as Princess Margaret. In her big dying episode, she was fantastic. You could sense that this woman had lived this incredible life. It was powerful.
Ultimately, though, I came away from this not understanding why we have "royal families" anymore, and, more importantly, that these people were human beings. And they are susceptible to all of the problems that the rest of us are, but they can dress it up better than we can.
Excellent Queen Casting
johnlannen197122 January 2024
What a journey!! Yes, some episodes have been better than others, but overall the whole series has been great! If they were giving out Oscars for the role of the Queen every actress would be worthy of one. Every performance was exceptional and sublime. I loved how they brought back Claire Foy and Olivia Colman for the last episode. It was so well done. The casting of Prince William was spot on. Harry not so much. The Queen's mother - nothing like her. Absolutely loved Lesley Manville is a brilliant actress. Olivia Colman already has an Oscar. I have no doubt it's only a matter of time before Lesley and Imelda are acknowledged. Both previous nominees.😊
Excellent Summing Up
barryrd6 April 2024
This was a terrific finale. I'm glad I finally took time to see it. During Elizabeth's reign of 70 years, the Queen and the Crown became inseparable and this final episode uses an unexpected plot to show just that. It seems reasonable to assume that at some point following the death of the Queen Mother and the Golden Jubilee in 2002, the Queen came to the realization of her own mortality and was able to look back on how she grew into the role and also became the embodiment of it. This is not a stretch; after 70 years, only a relatively few could remember the country without her at the helm. In this episode, we see how she knew that she had inherited a position that she could execute far better than anyone else in the realm. We see the Queen, performed superbly by Imelda Staunton, conversing with her younger self - Claire Foy and Olivia Coleman, as the more youthful Queen in earlier episodes. In this finale, we see the fallout from the death of Diana, Princess of Wales and how the monarch had to rise above the controversy. She also had to deal with the problem of Charles and Camilla and steer her way through the protocols of the Anglican Church to place their personal lives on a secure footing. Diana's two boys reach adulthood with all the attendant problems of young Royals with the paparazzi, not to mention the lingering sorrow of Diana's passing. Jonathan Pryce as the Duke of Edinburgh was excellent as the Queen's most able and trusted confidante. Dominic West as Prince Charles and Ed McVey as Prince William were both excellent. In fact, the cast for the whole series drew many fine acting talents too numerous to mention. Some very accomplished ones played minor roles for a variety of prime ministers, aides, politicians of all stripes, ladies in waiting etc. All in all, an excellent ending for an outstanding series.
Rushed!
douglasmcbroom16 December 2023
And so ends the reign of 'The Crown.'
In a previous review for the Series, through Season 5, I rated this very highly: 8 stars. I was very impressed with the consistently good writing, directing, and the superb acting. I continued to feel the same for the first half (4 Episodes) of Season 6. The portrayal of the events leading up to, and including the death of Diana, were superb.
Then came the second half of Season 6, and it was as if the producers said: 'Enough. We're tired of this. Let's end it and move on.' So, of the final 6 episodes, they devoted one entire episode to William at University, and one entire episode to the declining, and ultimately dying, Margaret; leaving a scant 4 episodes to bring the story from Diana's death to the marriage of Charles and Camilla to a conclusion.
The series should have continued on and ended with the coronation of Charles, thus covering the deaths of both Phillip and the Queen. Shame on the producers!
As I previously noted (in my review of the first 5 Seasons), the multiple castings of the main characters, as they aged, was near-note perfect. I thought they made only 3 major casting errors: John Lithgow, as Churchill; Bertie Carvel, as Tony Blair; and in the final half, Luther Ford, as Harry. The actor is good, but he looked nothing like Harry, other than the Ginger hair. But, Ford and the writers, did a great job of portraying Harry as the petulant, spoiled, jealous, self-absorbed, vindictive, sniveling, backstabbing, disloyal weakling that he is indeed!
There was a very nice touch, in the finale, bringing back all three of the actresses who portrayed QEII, in the form of internal monologues. Brilliant!
In a previous review for the Series, through Season 5, I rated this very highly: 8 stars. I was very impressed with the consistently good writing, directing, and the superb acting. I continued to feel the same for the first half (4 Episodes) of Season 6. The portrayal of the events leading up to, and including the death of Diana, were superb.
Then came the second half of Season 6, and it was as if the producers said: 'Enough. We're tired of this. Let's end it and move on.' So, of the final 6 episodes, they devoted one entire episode to William at University, and one entire episode to the declining, and ultimately dying, Margaret; leaving a scant 4 episodes to bring the story from Diana's death to the marriage of Charles and Camilla to a conclusion.
The series should have continued on and ended with the coronation of Charles, thus covering the deaths of both Phillip and the Queen. Shame on the producers!
As I previously noted (in my review of the first 5 Seasons), the multiple castings of the main characters, as they aged, was near-note perfect. I thought they made only 3 major casting errors: John Lithgow, as Churchill; Bertie Carvel, as Tony Blair; and in the final half, Luther Ford, as Harry. The actor is good, but he looked nothing like Harry, other than the Ginger hair. But, Ford and the writers, did a great job of portraying Harry as the petulant, spoiled, jealous, self-absorbed, vindictive, sniveling, backstabbing, disloyal weakling that he is indeed!
There was a very nice touch, in the finale, bringing back all three of the actresses who portrayed QEII, in the form of internal monologues. Brilliant!
All's Well that Ends
jgreco715 December 2023
Netflix's "The Crown" concludes Monarchymania with a collective sigh of relief, and one, big, fat, Royal anticlimax of the century, as Charles, at last, is allowed to reside legally inside Camilla's knickers.
Uncle Walt once explained: "I don't want the public to see the world they live in. I want them to feel they're in another world." And so, not coincidentally in Windsorworld, as Elizabeth explains Britain's need for pomp and circumstance, such is the duty of the Monarchy to lift people out of their ordinary existences and into another realm, and certainly not, heaven forbid, remind them of what they already have. That's how privilege justifies its right to be privileged, and, as a matter of right, its prerogative to own swans.
That the Queen might have ever contemplated abdicating the throne to number two, one can only guess, is Peter Morgan's fairytale ending. But Mummy always knew best, that Charles' lack of spine and interest in people would not a Monarch make, not in her lifetime anyway. If she was anything, she was sensible, and not just in her shoes, but in honoring, to the grave, what she (or Morgan) acknowledges is a "dreadful," "unnatural" system.
After all, that was the promise she had made to her subjects before taking on the job, as Olivia Colman reminds her, along with the other incarnation, Clair Foy, who return to tie up the Queen's narrative in a clever, neat bow. It's a nice trick to give some element of humanity to a living anachronism, and attribute a conscience to a woman who always appeared to act as if programmed by obligation. Perhaps had Liz, occasionally, let down her hair and loosened her garters, like debauched, gin-swilling, chain-smoking Margaret (either alter-ego or anti-hero), she might have seemed less aloof and more able to relate to the commoners. At least, that is what Morgan poses in his alternate narrative, not so much as a criticism of the Queen, as a re-evaluation.
Perhaps it's true (who knows?), Elizabeth lived vicariously through Margaret's adventures in hedonism, her champion of modernity; and how she lived, endured, evidently, but lived, nevertheless, life from head to entrails, drowning regrets--she had a few--in martinis, stroke by stroke, that at times she seemed to have nine lives. Acting as her apologist, Morgan reminds us that Margo the cat died peacefully in her sleep, the final reward for one who had been handed a privileged life and, for spite maybe, or sheer orneriness, pissed it away. Well, she had reasons.
Looking ahead, he does rather set the stage for more merry lives of Windsor, alluding to the double-teaming mother and daughter Middletons, laying a trap for "shy old thing" William, and the outcast Harry, number two, unwilling to be a company man, glaring daggers from the sidelines at brother Will.
Now begins the reign of Charles II and his mop-headed Queen: Will and Kate biding their time in the wings, Harry and Meghan whiling away their time in exile. The story writes itself.
Uncle Walt once explained: "I don't want the public to see the world they live in. I want them to feel they're in another world." And so, not coincidentally in Windsorworld, as Elizabeth explains Britain's need for pomp and circumstance, such is the duty of the Monarchy to lift people out of their ordinary existences and into another realm, and certainly not, heaven forbid, remind them of what they already have. That's how privilege justifies its right to be privileged, and, as a matter of right, its prerogative to own swans.
That the Queen might have ever contemplated abdicating the throne to number two, one can only guess, is Peter Morgan's fairytale ending. But Mummy always knew best, that Charles' lack of spine and interest in people would not a Monarch make, not in her lifetime anyway. If she was anything, she was sensible, and not just in her shoes, but in honoring, to the grave, what she (or Morgan) acknowledges is a "dreadful," "unnatural" system.
After all, that was the promise she had made to her subjects before taking on the job, as Olivia Colman reminds her, along with the other incarnation, Clair Foy, who return to tie up the Queen's narrative in a clever, neat bow. It's a nice trick to give some element of humanity to a living anachronism, and attribute a conscience to a woman who always appeared to act as if programmed by obligation. Perhaps had Liz, occasionally, let down her hair and loosened her garters, like debauched, gin-swilling, chain-smoking Margaret (either alter-ego or anti-hero), she might have seemed less aloof and more able to relate to the commoners. At least, that is what Morgan poses in his alternate narrative, not so much as a criticism of the Queen, as a re-evaluation.
Perhaps it's true (who knows?), Elizabeth lived vicariously through Margaret's adventures in hedonism, her champion of modernity; and how she lived, endured, evidently, but lived, nevertheless, life from head to entrails, drowning regrets--she had a few--in martinis, stroke by stroke, that at times she seemed to have nine lives. Acting as her apologist, Morgan reminds us that Margo the cat died peacefully in her sleep, the final reward for one who had been handed a privileged life and, for spite maybe, or sheer orneriness, pissed it away. Well, she had reasons.
Looking ahead, he does rather set the stage for more merry lives of Windsor, alluding to the double-teaming mother and daughter Middletons, laying a trap for "shy old thing" William, and the outcast Harry, number two, unwilling to be a company man, glaring daggers from the sidelines at brother Will.
Now begins the reign of Charles II and his mop-headed Queen: Will and Kate biding their time in the wings, Harry and Meghan whiling away their time in exile. The story writes itself.
this terrible ending is on par with a mediocre season
iamangelcortes19 December 2023
This episode is excessively long and boring. Now it looks like a parody of The Crown. The scene where Claire Foy appears made me laugh, it seems like a parody. A waste of time. These last two seasons 5 and 6 are bad, but season six is worse. Absolutely nothing interesting happens in this episode, just scenes of empty dialogue. It looks like this episode wasn't written by Peter Morgan. And the final scene, what nonsense, a sequence of cheap symbolism where we see the three actresses who played the Queen, as if this were a Marvel movie (the three Spider-Mans). Imelda Staunton, sadly, was the worst Queen ever. I think she got the worst scripts. Imelda is clearly a good actress, but The Crown was not up to par with her. I hated Dominic West as Carlos, he didn't fit in. In one scene, a young man dressed as the Queen appears and sings I Want to Break Free, a clear example that not even Peter Morgan is taking this very poor season seriously. ALL WRONG. A waste of time.
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