HOLLYWOOD —Joss Stone returned to “The Tudors” on Sunday night as King Henry’s divorced fourth wife Anne of Cleaves. Stone sent shock waves throughout the industry last season with a portrayal of the heartbroken ex-wife of Henry the VIII. The actress is absolutely beautiful and superbly talented as an actress. Her scenes with Jonathan Rhys Meyers crackled with anticipation and excitement, as the demented older king is about to embark on a possible affair with the woman he once said, “Looks like a horse!” and proclaimed most famously in history books, “I like her not!” The German born wife of Henry Tudor in history remained close to the king, the court, and his daughters Princess Mary and Princess Elizabeth.

When Katherine Howard, the king’s fifth wife took one look at the woman who preceded her in marriage, she was stunned to see such a poised and classy lady since she’d heard from Henry and his entourage about how ugly and unattractive she was. Henry had to even take a second look at what he threw away and Stone’s Anne won over the entire court during the Christmas and New Years celebrations at the palace.

Henry Cavill as the king’s long suffering best friend Charles Brandon was also incredible on the Sunday night episode. The season is taking off even by the second episode and Brandon and the other lords watched in horror as an ailing and older Henry showed up to call them all liars and threatened them. Fans are unsure if Henry’s latest delusional rants are because of his infected leg, which will not heal, or his mental state which is slipping and deteriorating by every hour virtually. In truth Henry was probably a paranoid schizophrenic who was capable of violence and his threats had to be taken very seriously. During the reign of Henry the VIII, his British subjects didn’t know when they woke up in the morning if their head would be on a chopping block or not.

Torrance Coombs as the ill-fated Thomas Culpeper nursed Henry’s wound in one scene and quickly prowled around the palace like a tom cat looking for Henry’s wife Katherine, whom he seduced on Sunday night. The young man who plays the once trusted courier of his majesty’s is an incredible actor who has shown that he can come into an established series and blend right in. That’s a hard thing to do, but it seemed effortless in the second episode. His treachery and betrayal will surely be dealt with as the season progresses.

The star of the night, however, was actress Sarah Bolger who portrays Princess Mary. When her ruthless and immature stepmother attacked her verbally by calling her an old maid, the tears were genuine and well devised by Bolger, who is absolutely beautiful and without her talent as a trained British thespian, one could not believe Mary is an old maid. Certainly in reality the former princess and later queen of England was far less attractive than her on-screen doppelganger. Bolger’s performance left nothing to the imagination. She is so incredible as the high-handed and snobbish monarch, and yet in real life, she’s such a beautiful and charming young lady.

Watch “The Tudors” on Sunday nights on Showtime. It’s a series that continues to astound many critics and last weekend’s episode left more blood on the palace floors than usually seen at the Tower of London, where men and women are being held at the king’s pleasure and we pray that Showtime gives the series a pardon and continue another season, as Henry would never have pardoned any of the souls in the tower.

The Tudors seaon four trailer is at YouTube – The Tudors Season Four Trailer

Photograph Courtesy: Showtime Productions
DISCLAIMER: This article was a contribution made by an outside agency or person. The content has not been verified by Canyon News. Please exercise your due diligence prior to relying on this article for factual information. Canyon News is not responsible for the views, words, and opinions of contributors.