Thursday 18 / April / 2024
Great empires make for great tales, something especially true for the Mongol Empire, which, through brutal conflict, bloody battles, and a relentless thirst for warfare, spread over the steppes of Central Asia, from Vietnam and Korea in the East, to Poland, Hungary, and Lithuania in the West.
Marco Polo does a fantastic job of dissecting the fascinating ways of the Mongols, exposing the dangerous realities of life at court and on the battlefield. The famous Genghis Khan used a combination of brute force and (rarely) diplomacy to establish himself as the Khagan, or the leader of the Mongol Empire, as well as Emperor of China. Marco Polo follows his grandson, Kublai Khan, who rules over the vast tracts of land. Portrayed by British-Chinese actor Benedict Wong, who featured in both Prometheus and Doctor Strange, the actor is flawless in the role of the self-styled Khan of Khans.
We learn early on that Mongols value physical strength and martial prowess above all else, thus Kublai knows he needs to keep winning in order to appease his court and his subjects. Fortunately for him, there are plenty who need quelling, both within and outside of his empire. When we first join Kublai in season one, he’s got the Chinese on the run in the south, but knows he will need ingenuity and a flawless strategy to defeat Chinese engineering with Mongol military might.
Enter our show’s narrator, the explorer Marco Polo, played by the Italian actor Lorenzo Richelmy, whose slightly bemused expression belies a steely resolve and sharp wit that allow him to acclimatise from the genteel opulence of Venice to the barbaric practices of the Mongols. Over time Polo sees that there is more to the Mongols than meets the eye, and develops a deep admiration for the place and the people.
Kublai and the more martial characters to be loud in speech and manner, and are excellently complemented by the more subtle players in this game of courtly intrigue. Joan Chen, previously of Judge Dredd and MacGyver, plays Empress Chabi, Kublai’s wife, the yin to Kublai’s yang. She roots out deceit within the palace walls to ensure Kublai is able to pursue his ambitions outside them. Her quiet, subtle presence on screen is the perfect foil to Kublai’s more boisterous, forceful mannerisms.
The show transitions wonderfully between the action on the battlefield, courtly affairs, and the lives of the common Mongolian people, providing brilliant perspective on the entire strata of Mongol society.
The costumes, sets, and props are thematically excellent and leave little to be desired in terms of quality. And the chemistry of the international and Mongoloid actors on-screen ensures the viewer will be utterly transported into 13th century China from episode one. With two seasons now available, this latest undertaking from The Weinstein Company, is well worth a watch this weekend. But be warned, with a series this engaging, you might find yourself glued to the sofa for 20 hours straight. —[email protected]
The Short and Skinny
• What to Download: Marco Polo
• Genre: Historical drama (with loads of battles for the action lover)
• What it’s About: The rise of the Mongol Empire as told through the eyes of Marco Polo
• Number of Seasons: 2
• Episodes per Season: 10
• Run Time per Episode: 1 hour
• Cast: Lorenzo Richelmy, Benedict Wong, Zhu Zhu, Joan Chen, Tom Wu, Amr Waked, Mahesh Jadu, Rick Yune
• IMDB Rating: 8.1/10
