You Need To Watch "Frontier" Today

Netflix and Discovery Canada's new show Frontier is riveting and a definite binge-worthy show that's already been renewed for a season two! Light spoilers abound in this article where I attempt to convince you to bump Frontier to the top of your list and watch it today.

The Cast is Exceptional

Via farfarawaysite.com

I'm not gonna lie, I started watching Frontier because I saw that Jason Momoa was in it and I love that man. So I bumped it to the top of my Netflix list and finished all six episodes in two days. Yep, that's right. There's only six episodes, so why haven't you watched it yet?

Declan Harp

Declan Harp was the son of an Irishman and a Cree woman. He formerly worked for the Brits, before going rogue for a very good reason. (Spoiler Alert: his wife and son her murdered, cue tragic backstory). He's the ruthless and rugged leader of the Black Wolf Company This is picture right here is what initially sold me on the show. This, right here. Vengeful trader, clothed in leather, and the potential of seeing an angsty Jason Momoa covered in blood (that happens too). Seriously, the entire world needs some escapism right now and Frontier got me through two dark days.

Captain Chesterfield

I've never once claimed to make good decisions, especially when it comes to the characters I fall in love with, who I'm probably not supposed to be in love with. But alas, Captain Chesterfield caught ahold of my heart pretty damn quickly and I'm no longer ashamed of it. (Not to mention my bad choices comes in to play later in this post) He's a very complicated character. He works for Lord Benton who is the "villain" so to speak, seeing as he's responsible for the previously mentioned murder and the subject of Declan's revenge. Captain Chesterfield has lofty plans of becoming the Governor one day and not-so-reluctantly starts working with Grace Emberly to achieve this goal by subtly working against Benton.

Captain Chesterfield also has really terrible anger and rage issues, he seems to always be ready for a fight, but somehow Grace manages to calm him down every time. *sighs dreamily*

I'll get to that messy situation later.

Sokanon

Sokanon is pretty evenly tied for my favorite female character in this series. If you look up "badass" in the dictionary, there's actually a picture of her. No lie. Anyways, Sokanon works beside Declan in the Black Wolf Company (she's also his dead wife's sister). I would say it's safe to assume that without Sokanon at his side, he'd already be dead. Their relationship faces serious strain during the season, as it becomes quite evident as Declan's goal comes into frame, that his desire for vengeance comes before everything else in his life.

One unexpected relationship, so to speak, that happens for Sokanon is her reluctant friendship with Michael Smyth, who I'll get to next. I really look forward to seeing what comes next for the unlikely pair.

Michael Smyth

This poor guy. Michael Smyth begins the series as a thief with his (really lame, in my opinion) girlfriend Clenna and her brother. Quickly that life he led falls apart and he finds himself as a stowaway on a ship en route to the New World. He ends up making a deal with Lord Benton to infiltrate the Black Wolf Company (because he's Irish, like Declan) in return for sparring his life and releasing Clenna from prison in London and bringing her to the New World.

Michael is the definition of sweet summer child. But throughout the six episodes of the season he mans up, learns a few new tricks, and kills for the first time. Things do get messy when Clenna is brought to the New World and she believes that Benton is a good man and that Michael's lost his mind now that he's part of Declan's company. I really, really, disliked Clenna and I preferred his interactions with Sokanon. I mean, I understand why Michael's situation is too much for Clenna and she did go through hell because of him, but... I feel like Michael grew out of the life they could have led together and his place is with the Black Wolf Company, at Sokanon's side.

I mean look at these two!

Grace Emberly

It's honestly difficult to choose between Grace and Sokanon for which badass lady I loved most. Grace has carved at a solid place for herself within a very male world. She is a fierce Scottish woman and a true force to be reckoned with. She earns allies because of her unwillingness to back down in the face of adversity. And? She runs her own business in Fort James, an ale house where all the drama goes down. She's also incredibly clever and cunning (she's a total Slytherin) and she knows how to play men to her advantage. One such men she plays is Captain Chesterfield. She finds his weakness, which is a desire to make a name for himself in the New World (namely, as Governor) and she plays upon that desire to get him to do what she wants.

It hurts my shipper heart a lot, because I don't think she ever really cared about Captain Chesterfield, at least not as anything more than a pawn for her to play. There's also some sort of unrequited set of emotions she holds for Declan and I think he is where her heart truly lies, even if he doesn't return the feelings.

Grace and Captain Chesterfield

I will never regret getting as deeply invested in these two as I did. There's a few really good scenes between them that checked so many of my shipper needs. One where he is jealous and two when he discusses the future. I'm not going to spoil everything. You're gonna have to watch it for yourself.

Badass Ladies

Mary (the blonde) works at Grace's alehouse and she knows exactly how to put on the charm to get what she wants out of the men that come to the alehouse. There's one particular time where she pretends to be a sweet, virginal, God-fearing woman to seduce a Captain Johnson. It's pretty entertaining.

Now, let me be clear - the alehouse is not that sort of establishment, either. Grace makes that clear on numerous occasions. It is not a whorehouse, like the place that Imogen (the brunette) came from.

Imogen arrived on Lord Benton's ship, having been picked up from a whorehouse in London. He's very cruel to her, which inspires no loyalty. He hires Imogen out to work for Grace at the alehouse so he can spy on her. Let's just say that Grace's fiery personality and the fact that she boldly stands up to Lord Benton convinces Imogen fairly quickly who to give loyalty to.

These three women are incredible and their ability to navigate the world of men that they live in is definitely worth watching for.

Elizabeth Carruthers

In my week long quest to get everyone I know to watch Frontier I feel like every time I've mentioned that Katie McGrath shows up in the series everyone suddenly gets really interested. So I'm going to leave you with this. Katie McGrath is in Frontier and if that's what takes to get you to watch it then do so. She's pretty fantastic. Everyone is fantastic.

Frontier is an incredible show. It takes the best parts of shows like Vikings, Black Sails, and Game of Thrones and breaths new life into a time period of history that is typically glossed over. Not only are all of the aforementioned characters worth watching for, but the secondary characters also bring so much to the table. They have actual First Nations and Native American actors.

There is actually very little romance in the series (aside from Michael and Clenna) and the focus is more on the politics, the tribe relations, and how incredibly shitty the British are to the Cree, how brutal the fur trade was. It's all very complex and very well done. My only complaint is that sometimes their accents are a little wonky, but you get used to them once you get sucked into the characters and their stories.

TL;dr Watch Frontier on Netflix ASAP