There are very many intriguing and intelligent narrative nuances brought out in Elizabeth's I pre coronation years.. and yet.. the pacing is a muddle. I'm more than half way through and Edward is still alive and still half-king. We have yet to get through Lady Jane's, and Bloody Mary's reigns. Where is this series going? As for Elizabeth—out of the more than dozen characterizations I've viewed in films, I've never seen her written as so dull, so witless, and so stupid a girl. All the characters surrounding her—particularly her lover and pseudo step-father, Thomas Seymour—proclaim to behold the spark in front of them, which will one day ignite a bold and canny 45 year reign of The Virgin Queen. But I don't see it in Alicia von Rittberg, though the fault may be with the writers and director. The love triangle between Elizabeth, Seymour, and King Henry's widow, Catherine Parr is interesting and the impulse is correct (in my view). However to hang an entire season grinding it into dust is less interesting, particularly as Elizabeth comes out of it seemingly more vain, self-absorbed, and unenlightened from the tortured romance. Bella Ramsey's Lady Jane is equally tedious. The real surprise standout of the series is Romola Garai. Aside from her stellar acting, Garai's Mary grows more intelligent and sharp with every episode and seems to grok each new event to evolve into higher nobility and rank. We watch in awe as her stature gains momentum.. and considering the usually grotesque portrayals of Bloody Mary past, it's really a beautiful surprise to see Mary from this angle. Clearly, it seems, the producers wish to see the seasons grow with Elizabeth surviving each of her siblings (+ short-lived cousin's) reign. But the series would be far greater if Becoming Elizabeth would just get on with it.