“Life for all its anguish is ours, Miss Ives. It belongs to no other.” – Lyle
Prepare to travel the world in the season three premiere of Penny Dreadful as we catch up with our favourite characters, some now scattered across the globe. It is the year 1892, and it finds Ethan (Josh Hartnett) on a train on the wide plains of America’s wild west, Sir Malcom (Timothy Dalton) in Africa, and John Clare (Rory Kinnear) on a ship now trapped in ice. A despondent Vanessa (Eva Green) has remained in London, but a visitor will give her courage to move forward.
The first episode is entitled “The Day Tennyson Died” – fitting, being a show steeped deeply in literature (not only horror, but the poetry of the Romantics) and it includes all the beautiful monologues you expect from prolific creator and writer, John Logan.
The season three opener also introduces four brand new characters, each charismatic and riveting in their own right: The brilliant Wes Studi as Kaetenay, an Apache far from his homeland, Dr. Henry Jekyll (Shazad Latif) as the iconic Robert Louis Stevenson character and friend of Dr. Frankenstein, and Christian Camargo as zoologist Dr. Alexander Sweet. And while having already made an unforgettable appearance in season two as the Cut-Wife, we also meet Patti LuPone’s new character: the “unconventional” Dr. Seward.
While the official synopsis is: “Vanessa seeks the help of Dr. Seward to battle a new evil,” there is so much on offer in this first episode that it will leave you feeling an array of emotions, as the show’s beloved characters embark on new journeys in an attempt to move on from their painful pasts. There are also of course those moments that will turn your blood cold, for in the dark old monsters lurk, and whisper names that will send chills down your spine.
While the bells in the city of London toll in mourning for the loss of a great poet, there is much despair, but there is also hope – as Lyle (Simon Russell Beale) will remind Vanessa, ever so poignantly.
You can watch two scenes featuring Vanessa and two of the brand new characters from episode one of season three of Penny Dreadful. In the first, Vanessa is at her initial consultation with Dr. Seward, and in the second, she meets Dr. Sweet during a visit to the Natural History Museum.
“The Day Tennyson Died” is written by John Logan and directed by Damon Thomas.
Season three of Penny Dreadful premieres in the US on May 1, and in Australia on Foxtel on May 4.
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