'The Crown' Season 3 Royally Sails On With A New Cast

Buckingham Palace is back on Netflix, with The Crown Season 3. The royal soap opera spent the first two seasons attempting the draft the first retelling of the history of the second Elizabethan era to great acclaim. It might not be William Shakespeare's Richard III or Henry V, but it was convincing enough that those who will never bother read history could take these episodes as close enough to the true story to pass muster. Season 3 continues to sail on with this sympathetic portrayal of the monarchy, relying on the passing of memory into shadow to adjust the picture to a monarchists' view.

But, as the trailer promised, the times, they are a-changing. And with them, the cast. Golden Globe-winning star Claire Foy is out, tossed over for Oscar-winning star Olivia Colman in the titular role. Matt Smith’s Prince Philip has left via the TARDIS, and Tobias Menzies is now standing ten feet behind his wife in Smith's wake. Vanessa Kirby’s BAFTA-winner turn as Margaret will now be Helena Bonham-Carter’s BAFTA-winner-to-be turn as Margaret.

Once again, history is fungible in the hands of writer Peter Morgan. Though the rough outline is correct, the deals are usually fudged. In the first two seasons, that fudging often came with enough truth in it to pass muster, leaving the show mired in half-correct scenarios, muddled by rumored what-ifs of the time, and almost always aiming to make Elizabeth seen more sympathetic. But this year, the show starts going completely off-book when it comes to history in places.