Not quite the "feminist Western" which Netflix seemed to promote it as, but that's fine because it didn't need to be. Godless is a lush and rich Western miniseries which somehow feels fresh while still embodying many tropes of the genre. We have a tired sheriff with an overeager deputy, a band of outlaws seeking revenge and a mysterious stranger on the run. All this happens in and around a town populated almost entirely by (badass) women.
It's to the shows credit that it makes each of these clichés feel unique and interesting. The sheriff is losing his eyesight and is regarded as a coward by the women he's charged with protecting, while simultaneously struggling with feelings of resentment to his own little daughter. The evil outlaw (played superbly by Jeff Daniels) is actually a man capable of incredible compassion and acts of love alongside his brutality. And Whitey, the overeager deputy, turns out to be one of the most enjoyable and unpredictable characters in the whole thing.
But it's the girls of La Belle who do manage to steal a good portion of the show. Maggie is tough as nails and doesn't back down an inch when confronted with male posturing, as well as being engaged in a very natural relationship with Callie. Meanwhile, Alice lives her life exactly on her own terms as she raises her son along with her (awesome) Native American mother-in-law.
Godless is not an action-fest, although when things go down it's extremely satisfying. This is more of a measured story which lets things breathe. The cinematography is absolutely glorious and my jaw dropped at the staging of several scenes. I found it to the show's benefit that we spent so much time just taking things in as my attachment to the characters grew more and more. To give a specific example there's an episode in which a lot of time is spent with horses, and while it doesn't further the plot significantly, it pays off down the line and only allowed me to enjoy the experience all the more.
The cast are uniformly excellent, and it's easy to forget that three of the main characters are Brits. The writing is also of a high quality, and while this is not in the same league as the poetry and magnificence of Deadwood, it's very much going for a different vibe and doing its own thing. This feels more like an epic Western whereas the HBO show had a tighter focus on the comings and goings of the town it was set in.
That's not to say the show is perfect. I'm definitely not the first to notice, but there are a number of plot threads which are introduced but go absolutely nowhere. We meet characters like John Doe who have a mystery set up and then no more is given to us. We don't really get any huge revelations into Bill's past with his wife or situation, and what the Indian and his dog were all about. The (fantastic) German character Martha is only introduced at the very end. And we don't even get a proper explanation as to why Roy betrayed Frank in the first place. It definitely feels to me like there is plenty of room for a continuation, but this appears to be a one-off.
But I absolutely loved Godless. It manages to be incredibly satisfying despite its flaws, is one of the best looking shows you can watch right now and when it kicks off the thrills are absolutely glorious.
