Part fantasy, part family historical drama. I wasn't sure what I was in for when I saw 'Renegade Nell' pop up on Disney+ in the UK, but I was happily (on the whole) entertained enough to watch it all in a couple of days.
Set in England in 1705, the story centres around the young Nelly Jackson, returned from war in Europe, Nelly finds herself and her family unjustly accused of murder, and so the adventures, and her increasingly long list of crimes, play out. Into this is dropped the fantasy element as Nell and her adversaries have 'powers' - not in a 'superhero' sense - more of a mash-up between Peter Pan (think Tinkerbell) and Harry Potter (think Voldermort).
And once you remove the expectation of this being an accurate historical drama, and accept the fantasy element, then you'll enjoy a well shot, entertaining, amusing and engaging series. You can feel Disneys hand, especially in later episodes when the insertion of a musical number feels out of place from what has gone before. And while the classic good versus evenly plays out, the script is, at times, a little too 'preachy'. Occasionally forcing commentary on social and racial inequalities as though this were an opportunity to be a social education platform rather than dramatic entertainment.
But it's still a fun, well put together and shot series, with high production values, and a nice cast and characters. Try to ignore 'Tinkerbell', which feels like a random Disney wash and which sits awkwardly amongst everything else going on, and you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Set in England in 1705, the story centres around the young Nelly Jackson, returned from war in Europe, Nelly finds herself and her family unjustly accused of murder, and so the adventures, and her increasingly long list of crimes, play out. Into this is dropped the fantasy element as Nell and her adversaries have 'powers' - not in a 'superhero' sense - more of a mash-up between Peter Pan (think Tinkerbell) and Harry Potter (think Voldermort).
And once you remove the expectation of this being an accurate historical drama, and accept the fantasy element, then you'll enjoy a well shot, entertaining, amusing and engaging series. You can feel Disneys hand, especially in later episodes when the insertion of a musical number feels out of place from what has gone before. And while the classic good versus evenly plays out, the script is, at times, a little too 'preachy'. Occasionally forcing commentary on social and racial inequalities as though this were an opportunity to be a social education platform rather than dramatic entertainment.
But it's still a fun, well put together and shot series, with high production values, and a nice cast and characters. Try to ignore 'Tinkerbell', which feels like a random Disney wash and which sits awkwardly amongst everything else going on, and you'll be pleasantly surprised.
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