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Irrespective of the era, historical dramas are becoming commonplace in the television industry today. While video game movies appear to be the next genre taking over the world of cinema, it would seem that TV audiences instead want to head back in time to something a little more concrete. Naturally, TV has always portrayed historical dramas better than almost any medium, but it is in their modernization that a fascinating conversation is happening.
For history buffs, the American Revolutionary War is still an area of great interest and one that decided the fate of a nation. There have been numerous portrayals of that period and the decisions made on the front lines of the conflict. However, AMC's Turn: Washington's Spies takes an alternative approach to this narrative. It is one that has not been seen before and demonstrates the high stakes of this major moment and the unsung figures at the heart of those events.
Turn: Washington's Spies Is A Considered Drama
From 2014 to 2017, AMC ran Turn: Washington's Spies, a considered and delicate drama about the American Revolutionary War. Whether it was its pacing, its performances or its intelligent scripts, the series found early success, backed by favorable reviews.
Unfortunately, it didn't capture headlines, enter mainstream conversation, or have the international appeal it was capable of. It has nonetheless remained a constant source of discourse among fans of the genre and continues to be discovered by new audiences alike. The series follows the Culper Ring, a group of friends in British-controlled territory who begin to gather intelligence for George Washington.
Led by Abraham Woodhull, a humble farmer, the unit makes a genuine difference in the war, feeding Washington's team the intel they need at the most desperate times. There's naturally a tension to the series, as comes with the spy game, but it's the pacing of the show and the vitality of its characters and their ordinary lives that allows it to maintain its momentum and importance.
Set between 1776 and 1781, the series doesn't back down from also portraying the reality of living within enemy territory, with every decision potentially leading to grave consequences. With great historical accuracy and just enough narrative twisting to deliver compelling television, Turn: Washington Spies balances genre expectations and the necessities of the industry rather superbly.
The result is something that has been praised for its willingness to adapt difficult arcs. A moment of thought also has to be given to its cast. Turn: Washington Spies has a tremendous ensemble led across its 40 episodes by the likes of Fantastic Four'sJamie Bell, Boardwalk Empire's Heather Lind, Salem's Samuel Roukin, and Once Upon A Time's Meegan Warner.
While there is an abundance of chemistry here, it is the individual excellence and the way pressure is played on every face that ensure the show continues to push the drama of the subject matter and the lives at risk if all were to go wrong in a single moment.
The American Revolution Series Is Ahead Of Its Time
Of course, Turn: Washington's Spies is putting the cart ahead of the horse, so to speak, because the show was able to set the stage for what was to come in the genre. Indeed, it's hard to deny that the series inspired the wider industry, picking up a range of major award nominations.
Storytellers were taking notice, but it is also worth pointing out that, despite its quality, it wasn't able to earn those wins. It seemed as if, despite the nature and style of this narrative, the industry wasn't prepared to go all-in quite yet on perfect historical dramas. It's a great shame, as evidently Turn: Washington's Spies was ahead of the industry by about 10 years.
The musical Hamilton made new waves in this space, drawing a global audience and creating intrigue around the American Revolutionary War and the start of the United States as a nation. Significantly, it didn't arrive on Broadway until a year after Turn: Washington's Spies' debut. The Disney+ iteration would arrive some years after that, when the premise really captured international hearts and minds.
If Turn: Washington's Spies had been released just a few years later, it would have ridden a new wave of momentum and increased both its ratings and its potential in awards season. Nonetheless, it was ahead of its time and not just because of the Hamilton connection. Turn: Washington's Spies was also a lot more introspective.
While the mid-2010s saw classic television formulas continue to work, the show very much took a limited series approach to its material, as is more conventional today. What that means is that while Turn leaves plenty of room for the additional details that help form a world and narrative tapestry, it does not have the pointless sub-plots and unnecessary extensions that so many other historical shows do.
Instead, this is about untold stories and rich historical detail, driven by characters that are entirely flawed, conflicted and dealing with a no-win scenario at every turn. That kind of honesty is so far removed from prior historical shows, because entertainment used to be the only factor of judgment.
Historical Dramas Are Making New Waves
It's important to analyze where Turn: Washington's Spies succeeded because of the new wave of historical dramas sweeping their way through the industry. While this was by no means the start of that cycle, it's also easy to concede that it is an important chapter, especially within AMC's own journey with the genre, which has flirted with this space over the years but never fully committed.
Perhaps it is because Turn: Washington's Spies was not able to go to that next level that the network has largely moved away from the genre even while other platforms find great success in the field. But what Turn: Washington's Spies did, which it won't get enough credit for, is prove that the spy subject matter and the essence of a thriller could work within a period drama.
By focusing on those aspects of the genre, the historical epic became something else entirely. It's so easy, especially when discussing the American Revolutionary War, to fall into certain tropes. There are, of course, specific expectations that one might have about a depiction such as this.
One would assume that large-scale battles, political discussions and complex diplomacy would form the basis of any series set around this premise. But instead, Turn: Washington's Spies highlights the need to slow things down and tonally shift the conversation around the American Revolutionary War.
Its bravery in being different and meshing genres helped pave the way for what was to come. Blending this with compelling family drama and creating shadowy figures with complex perspectives only added to this heightened approach. History buffs need to watch the seriesbecause it is a solid and historically accurate portrayal of stories that have not been told before.
However, Turn: Washington's Spies alsooffers a fundamental statement on the historical genre at the time of its release, paving the way for the revolution that was to come. These days, there's no shortage of historical epics, with the Little House on the Prairie reboot and The Gray Housereturning to the American Revolutionary War.
Turn: Washington's Spies does not take the cheap route, instead creating multi-layered fiction in a brilliantly paced story that will keep both history buffs and fans of well-scripted television captivated.
