Becoming The Muse

Renegade Nell Review

Renegade Nell is a British historical fantasy adventure television series written by Sally Wainwright. It was produced for Disney+ and  premiered on the 29^th of March 2024.

The premise of the story follows Nell Jackson who finds herself framed for crimes she did not do, ending up an outlaw, with a large bounty on her head becoming entangled in a grand plot destined for great things….

The Good

I started watching this looking for a something fun and light that would provide an amusing diversion from the current ZiG zag state of our economy and Renegade Nell provided laughs, a whimsical tale and some surprisingly chilly goosebumps.

The production is beautifully shot, bringing the 18^th century aesthetic to vivid life, with characters as colourful as their customs, wigs and all… The wardrobe department was having a blast and it shows.

The titular character Nell Jackson played by Louisa Harland is quite the odd-ball, sharp-tongued, heroine who never quietly accepts what’s dished out, but stands up and makes herself heard, a damsel that doesn’t need saving…  Some aspects of it reminded me of Netflix’s Damsel movie.

Renegade Nell doesn’t take itself seriously and instead carries you along for a wild carriage ride to destinations unknown, through some dark and twisted paths which can get surprisingly very intense real quick.

“Ours is not to reason why. Ours is just to get on with things.”
-Billy Blind

It’s a mostly family appropriate show you can watch with whole family without worrying about having to find the suddenly missing remote control to skip past some scenes, although it has some rather dark themes.

The Bad

While the show generally has good pacing and each episode has some action set-pieces usually ending on a cliff-hanger – the plot isn’t as tightly knit as it could nor are the characters fully developed beyond the demands of each episode – but hey this was a show meant for a younger audience and not for hardcore critics.

I would have really liked a bit of backstory as to how things got to the way they are but all you have for an explanation is that Nell is destined for greatness without so much as a hint as to what that is, why or how…..

“I’m beginning to wonder if you’re not destined for very great things, Nelly Jackson. I’m beginning to wonder if you’ve been sent to the planet for something special.”
-Billy Blind

The show can get rather dark in some aspects following an almost Faustinian plot which might be a bit unsettling for a younger audience – and devilsihly terrifying for older one too.

The Ugly

The show does not quite stand on business in portraying the subtle messages it is sending about women’s disenfranchisement, feminism, femininity, racism, slavery, social injustice and class prejudices where the wealthy can get away with literal murder…

Its as if the show wanted to send a message then decided halfway through, you know what lets go on a frivolous fantastical adventure instead –

Final Thoughts

Renegade Nell is a fun and whimsical watch that blends the genres of historical fiction with fantasy and supernatural in a Tinkerbell meets Robinhood in Tottenham forest tale…

How serious do you want your viewing or historical fiction?