‘Poldark’ Only Wanted to Entertain Us — Is That So Bad?

After five seasons, Poldark has finally come to an end. The series debuted in 2015, and was positioned as a scintillating adventure series about a roguish gentlemen and his romances. Starting towards the end of Downton Abbey‘s reign, Poldark represented what was meant to be a younger, pulpier, and even sexier version of Masterpiece offerings. (I mean, that scything scene wasn’t the sort of thing you’d see on Bleak House.)

As someone who has covered Poldark closely over the years, I’ve noticed that the series has always had some narrative ups and downs. The first season focused on the awkward love pentagon between Revolutionary War hero Ross Poldark (Aidan Turner), his scullery maid Demelza Carne (Eleanor Tomlinson), his wealthy cousin Francis Poldark (Kyle Soller), his childhood sweetheart Elizabeth Chynoweth (Heida Reed), and his long-time nemesis George Warleggan (Jack Farthing). It was frothy, it was fun, and it was engaging. However, as the seasons bore on, Poldark’s drama became repetitive, convoluted, and at times, extremely problematic. In Seasons 2 and 3, the show felt caught on a loop, with Ross and George falling into the same arguments, and the love triangle between Ross, Elizabeth, and Demelza repeatedly hitting the same notes.

While Season 4 showed some stark signs of improvement — specifically giving Ross some much needed personal growth — Poldark‘s final season felt…well…at times, nonsensical. Out of nowhere, our gentleman maverick becomes James Bond in a tricorn hat? Real life characters like Ned Despard are retconned into the world of Poldark’s Cornwall? Ross and his friends become the secret heroes of the Napoleonic Wars? And the series ends well for most of Ross’s friends and family, but he sails off again, leaving a pregnant Demelza waiting for him. What exactly was Ross’s journey? To learn how to get over Elizabeth and love Demelza? To always keep inserting himself in the drama of the age? To never really get a comeuppance for any of his arrogant antics?

All in all…what was the point of Poldark?

Perhaps that is an unfair question as narratively, the show has long favored soapy drama over profound storytelling. Poldark was at its best when Ross and Demelza’s relationship was going well, George Warleggan was allowed to be ridiculously pompous, and some small intrigue was on the cusp of ruining it all. Poldark is not a meditation on the human spirit like Breaking Bad, nor is it a meticulously crafted drama like The Crown. No, it’s purse escapist fun, set on beautiful coastal cliffs and dressed up in thigh-high boots and tight corsets.

Still, what was the point of Poldark for PBS’s Masterpiece? When it first hit PBS, Poldark was being positioned to be the next big thing after Downton Abbey finished. While it’s certainly been popular, it’s never been a hit with the critics the way Julian Fellowes’ upstairs/downstairs saga had been. Poldark was also a victim of its timing. In days gone by, PBS’s Masterpiece was one of the only places Anglophiles could sample the best of British drama. For decades, that meant stories culled from best-selling classics and historical settings. The lavish settings, top notch acting, and period drama trappings were enough to satiate most of our American imaginations. We took for granted that Masterpiece was the best in British drama. However, when Poldark debuted, that was already changing.

Poldark’s run coincides with the rise of streaming, and with it, the battle for streaming services to grab up all sorts of foreign programming. There are not only entire streaming services dedicated to curating the best in British television, but Netflix, HBO, Hulu, and Amazon all have deals with major British production companies for exclusive streaming rights to big hits. Think Bodyguard and Black Mirror hitting Netflix, Gentleman Jack and His Dark Materials going to HBO, Harlots on Hulu, and Vanity Fair on Prime Video. Masterpiece is no longer the de facto home of great British drama in the USA, but yet another competitor in an ever-crowded landscape.

Poldark is the kind of show that would have been more at home in an earlier era. You know, one where we Americans didn’t get to sample the best and brightest of British television at our leisure. (Kind of like the time period that made the original Poldark in the 1970s a massive transatlantic hit.) We wouldn’t be able to compare Poldark‘s narrative flaws against those of its peers, nor would we want for more than just a swashbuckling romance with cravats and tricorn hats. Now, with a glut of content, we not only have more shows distracting us away from the simple pleasures of PBS, but we have a consistent run of programming that is pushing the envelope on what television as an art form can be. Poldark’s not that ambitious. It’s just a tall tale about handsome man in 18th century Cornwall who literally kicks ass and figuratively takes names.

So what was the point of Poldark? Sheer entertainment. Poldark wasn’t always great, but it did always want its audience to lose itself in the irrational adventures of its hero.

Where to stream Poldark