The Crown (TV Series) Favourites (2020) User Reviews

Good character development - or lack thereof

[dierregi · 8/10 · 22 November 2020]

As pointed out many times, this is fiction, loosely based on reality. Therefore one should not expect a documentary or unimaginative episodes about events of historical importance during the 80s.

This episode may be considered low key or even superfluous, but it explores - with wonderful logic and insight - the queen's personality. So far, the queen has been portrayed as a woman of low culture but great determination and and unshakable sense of duty. She has some admirable qualities, but knowing herself (and others) is not her strong point.

One could even venture to say that digging deeper into her own personality would probably disturb her and such is the extent of lack of "intimate knowledge" that challenged by Prince Philip, she cannot even name her favourite child.

In fact, her sense of justice and equality is appalled at the idea of having to "pick a winner" - so to speak. But, intrigued by Thatcher candid acknowledgement that Mark is her favorite son, the queen embarks in a series of one-to-one with her four children, only to discover that they are all lost in their own peculiar way.

Psychologically brilliant and one of my favourite episodes. PS and BTW her favourite is... just do yourself a favour and watch this episode ;-)

Disservice.

[W011y4m5 · 7/10 · 21 November 2020]

As strong as this episode was in comparison to the 3 which preceded it, I still can't shake the insurmountable feeling that the creators are speeding far too quickly through the British periodical timeline this season - with 3 / 4 years somehow covered within the first 4 episodes - contrasted by the fact that each of the 2 seasons the show launched with covered only 7 years in either (featuring Claire Foy as monarch). Now if the Thatcher era was relatively low-key & uneventful, I could've understood this creative decision but obviously, it was the complete opposite; incredibly interesting, brimming with pivotal moments in British history - that should've been featured, had they devoted more time to this adaptation.

Therefore, the stark difference in pacing leaves the episodes feeling noticeably less developed than before - which is a tremendous shame, because as I've already stated, the 80s arguably contained the highest concentration of defining moments since WW2 in our nation's past (Charles & Diana, Diana at the White House, the IRA, royal intrusion, miner's strike, recession, protests, the battle of Orgreave, gay rights, Hillsborough disaster, Dennis Nilsen, Pan Am Flight 103, the AIDS crisis, Falklands, Yorkshire Ripper etc.) & thus, although some of these events are included or referenced subtly, this decade deserved to have that richness reflected in full & far more detail - with the amount of time Peter Morgan invested in to their inclusion mirroring their significance. To do otherwise trivialises their importance - which should be accepted.

Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case & consequently, already, there's a growing list of important moments that have been ignored / skimmed over / left out entirely.

Mommy's Boys and Daddy's Girls

[tamsin-parker-262-538925 · 8/10 · 31 January 2021]

This episode somewhat places parallels between the Queen and the Prime Minister in their relationships with their children. It also tries to convey the message that in both families, the men have done a better job raising daughters than the women have in raising sons. Mark Thatcher and Prince Andrew are portrayed as spoiled mommy's boys. Mark has his mother dote on him every moment and complains like a wounded Ares, while Andrew eagerly confides with Elizabeth on his playboy antics. It has been floated around that it's actually Prince Edward who is Elizabeth's favourite, and therefore the new and less brash mommy's boy. Carol Thatcher and Princess Anne are daddy's girls. Lionel Thatcher calls him and Carol a double act, and Anne is obviously closest to Philip; in the previous season we learn that Philip calls her "sweetie". I'm being very simplistic with this review but this is a very stark pattern the episode conveys.

The Children

[littlebizzare · 10/10 · 15 November 2020]

The contrast between all of the Queen's heirs was interesting to see. Anne has grown furious and scared of the spotlight, Andrew is being very reckless and endangering his own life due to his passions, Edward has grown to become a vengeful yet privileged teenager who's also aware and embracing of his privilege, and Charles is destroying his marriage due to his love for Camilla and for his disrespect of Diana's wishes of staying in London.

The Queen doesn't like any of them

[wiseguy233 · 9/10 · 7 November 2021]

The Queen has maternal love for them all but there are moments when her revulsion toward them is apparent. When she's having lunch with Edward and he tells a joke about eating so much fish he wonders they don't have gills. She not only doesn't laugh but looks tortured by the cheese and his ringing fake laugh. She also doesn't like how he's turned into a cold authoritarian. He's not embraceable.

Ann is emotional. She's bleating on about her despair about nothing. Yes there is an oppressiveness with being in the royal family but recklessness and drama is not relatable for the Queen Elizabeth. They are different and again there's an intimacy gap.

Yes Phillip believes Andrew is her favorite but she looks like she wants to walk out. She's not just recoiling because it's not natural for her to talk about sex with her son but Phillip is callous to humane boundaries. He doesn't have empathy for anyone not even his mom who he is torturing at the moment. Would he kill Charles and his children. Who knows? Everything is good fun and can be re-framed as art or modernization.

I thought Charles was written poorly until I realized the dialogue isn't ridiculous, pompous and superficial - Charles is. And she can barely look at him. She laughs, scold, mocks him for his dry self absorption. He's sullen, cold and a walking satire of English pretension. I don't like Charles but when she demanded they get on with her lunch because she needs to get back- I felt bad for him. He's not likable. Even his mother needs distance from him and Queen Elizabeth relates to Diane who is hiding from him.

Lost but not "found"

[ckckyang · 16 November 2020]

This episode centers around the four children of Queen Elizabeth the Second and the relationship between Margaret Thatcher and her two children, unfolding the prelude of the Falklands War.

A fairly interesting episode I must admit, the performances and the episode itself is as mesmerizing as always. This is also the first time we see Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, which leads to the recurring theme of this episode: children.

Margaret Thatcher's son went missing, due to her emotional behavior before Her Majesty, the Queen started to plan the meetings with her children, but by doing so, Her Majesty started to realize her powerless and again revaluate the position she's in for "doing nothing", to simply "wait" and observe their childhood (the shower) fades.

Margaret is also in a position of reevaluating the relationship with her daughter and son, but in contrast to Her Majesty, she's unable to let go of her past (by favoring her son), symbolizing her struggle and stubbornness of the "limit" she can't bare, but in reality she is also in a limited point of view. But, instead of staying as an observer, Margaret chooses to intervene (to act), so in a way, both the Queen and the PM has similar kind of mindset and both of them have their "favourites", the difference lies on the decision of "protection", resembling the act on leaving for Falklands to war, using this as a metaphor of defending the country (the children) or not.

Of course, it's still only just my own observation, thus though I personally think this episode is a bit artificial and obvious, but it's still a fantastic episode.

Very interesting

[tenealesharman · 8/10 · 18 November 2020]

I couldn't help but laugh during the lunch with the Queen and prince Andrew, displaying even as a young man his disregard of the rules, his abuse of privilege, and the plot he described for the movie that his American girlfriend was in. Sets him up to the man we know him to be today. This is a brilliant season

Interesting Concept

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 13 December 2020]

It took me a bit to get over the petulance of Elizabeth's four children. Each has his or her own problems that to most of us would seem petty. But the elevation of them makes the show. Anne is feeling unappreciated and ignored despite her good works. Edward is a whiney, self centered little weasel who enjoys inflicting pain. Andrew is totally irresponsible and enjoying every minute of it. And, Charles, is in love with someone else and continues to talk to her and engage with her whenever possible, leaving the pregnant Diana with nowhere to go. Meanwhile, Margaret Thatcher proves to be a war monger, self centered and unconcerned about the hoi poloi. Of course, the Falklands come along just at the right time.

The children

[Calicodreamin · 8/10 · 28 November 2020]

An interesting episode as the queen interrogated her children in an attempt to find her favorite. Good acting and an interesting perspective on the royal children.

Unexpectedly good episode

[AleksandrBelenko · 10/10 · 18 December 2021]

Upon reading the summary I thought it is a standard fathers - sons story, or here in particular mothers - sons. But it is so much more.

Not only the juxtaposition of Thatcher and her kids, the Queen and her kids, but the Nation and people as its children, all of it works perfectly.

Moreover, we dive into the tragedy of Royal Family. All of the heirs are broken. Some are bullied, some have marital problems. And mostly I am shocked and even disgusted by Prince Charles. Shellfish, narcissistic "put any swear word here", that doesn't care about his wife and the unborn child she is caring.

Meeting up with ex-fiancée and behaves as nothing is wrong about it. And poor Diana be in such a horrible situation at this young age.

The realisation of the Queen, that her children are lost is amazingly tragic. But you cannot do anything now, the time is lost.

Thatcher's preference of one child over another is understandable, yet disagreeable.

What I took from all of it, - don't raise more than one child.

Oh, and the final scene, showing the documentary on a departure of the navy ship to protect the Falkland islands from Argentina is the perfect end of the topic, as the Motherland sends her children to protect the overseas land.

I didn't expect this episode would touch me as it did.

Not a favourite

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 2 December 2022]

Seasons 1 and 2 were quite excellent on the whole, with even the weakest episodes still being good. Season 3 started off rather slow and finished underwhelmingly, but it did have high points with "Aberfan" for example being one of the best episodes of 'The Crown' in my view. Still liked the show well enough to watch Season 4 and coupled with having a high opinion of Gillian Anderson (after her wonderful acting in 'Bleak House') watching it was on the cards.

Season 4 did start off disappointingly, though not terribly, but did improve with the next two episodes. "Favourites" isn't as good as the very good previous episode "Fairytale", but it is on par with "The Balmoral Test" and better than "Gold Stick". Everything with Elizabeth and her children (with the viewer introduced here to Edward and Andrew) was fascinating, but for me it was less good with the Thatcher (generally have not liked her portrayal on 'The Crown') storyline.

"Favourites" has a lot of very good things. As ever the production values are superb. The production and costume design are both classy and sumptuous, but it's the photography that stands out in this regard. The music is not overbearing or low key. The scripting is thought provoking and intriguing and the character writing and dynamics with Elizabeth and her children intrigued and illuminated. Enough of the story compels.

Most of the acting is fine, Olivia Colman is more relaxed here than she was in the previous Season 4 episodes and Charles, Anne, Edward and Andrew are all strongly portrayed. Cannot rave about Josh O'Connor enough.

A lot less good sadly is Anderson. She ever properly disappears into Thatcher's character and it does come over as too much of a Thatcher caricature and Anderson trying too hard.

Her story also to me didn't come over as very interesting or investable, with the tense and nuanced character interactions in the Royal Family plot not being obvious in Thatcher's, and found some of the writing rather contrived at times. Do agree that the family scene was too cartoonish and like it was lifted from somewhere else.

Despite how that sounds, overall to me the episode was pretty good. Just not a favourite. 7/10.

Finally!

[darkdementress · 8/10 · 1 May 2021]

Finally a good episode!! I don't have kids but I've been one and i know what my parents were like with me. The overall direction and depth of this episode made it so much better, interesting and dynamic.

Favourites

[bobcobb301 · 6/10 · 23 July 2021]

Just not sure this Elizabeth/Thatcher dynamic is strong enough to carry the season. It is already a little boring.

Cringe!

[katharine247 · 5/10 · 22 December 2020]

I've loved most of The Crown 1 - 3, but season 4 has sadly taken a turn for the worse. It's superficial, lacking the depth of other seasons, and the subtle subject matters of previous seasons have been replaced with a steam rolling through some major matters in this one. This episode in particular is cringe worthy embarrassing, playing on biased lazy stereotypes that have not been resorted to before. What has gone wrong?

Mish Mash Episode or Much Ado About Nothing.

[crumpytv · 4/10 · 15 January 2021]

More of the appalling caricature characterisation of Margaret Thatcher. The family scene with her making dinner was something more worthy of a Private Eye cartoon, Viz, Beano or the Dandy. Cringeworthy! Mark Thatcher's rally adventure, which did not run concurrently with the Falkland crisis in reality, was used as a metaphor for comparing family relationships. So, we were introduced to Andrew and Edward, as part of a "what are they all doing now" concept for the episode. After the previous episode I did not want more of the Charles and Diana relationship, but the sulk by Diane behind a locked bedroom door needed something by way of explanation or context. Was Charles the bad guy by hammering on the door? I don't think so - his mother was visiting and Diana refused to be a host. Charles was frustrated, who wouldn't have been? The whole episode had no flow and had the feel of being patched together. Returning to Mrs. Thatcher, her persona during the Falklands was far and away removed from the almost manic character in this drama. As an aside, did we really go to war over some patriotic scrap metal workers on South Georgia. Why not let them have their day then send in some military personal to keep an eye on things when they had gone.

Margaret Thatcher did not have a decent bone in her body

[rikkifletch · 5/10 · 8 March 2022]

I absolutely love The Crown. I've loved learning things about history I didn't know and I've enjoyed looking at what has been portrayed as fact versus fiction BUT nobody on this planet will convince me that the heartless cow that was Margaret Thatcher stood there making tea and fretting over anyone.