Caroline Framke Chief TV CriticThe barest bones of “The Essex Serpent” make up a familiar enough story, whether taking place today or, as this new limited series does, in the late nineteenth century.
An ambitious and attractive woman, seeking answers about what she should do next with her life, leaves the big city for a small town, where she meets an equally attractive man and finds that everything is more complicated than it seems.
It’s a narrative with huge potential to bore, but Anna Symon’s adaptation of the Sarah Perry novel (premiering May 13 on Apple TV+) carefully layers it with more probing questions about love, loss, and faith.
In its most distinctive moments, “The Essex Serpent” is far richer than skimming along its briny surface might otherwise suggest.
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