This My Lady Jane episode 2 recap contains spoilers for the Prime Video series. The course of true love never did run smooth, but it's fair to say Jane and Guildford find themselves on a bumpier ride than most. There are all kinds of revelations in the second episode and also a few sparks, as the pair get to know each other better. Elsewhere, King Edward finds himself backed into a corner by his eldest sister...
After faking "the affliction" in a desperate bid to escape marriage to Lord Guildford Dudley, Jane is finally forced to tie the knot. “You will find this empowering,” says her mother at the wedding breakfast. “You outrank Dudley, your grandfather was King of England.” We think she might be right because they have much in common. It’s clear neither of them wanted to get married and were pushed into the union by their parents, yet their shared wit and good-looks means that despite their best efforts to squabble and not get along, the chemistry pulses between them.
However after Dudley kiss-teases her mercilessly, things get far worse for Jane when she's forced to listen to her mother’s sex tips ahead of the bedding ceremony. Consummating a marriage is the be-all-and-end-all in Tudor society, although whether the crowd stayed in the room after the couple were abed is a matter of some conjecture.
Meanwhile, Jane’s mother and Dudley’s brother are getting on like a house on fire. They could well be trying to play each other, although one of them seems to be better equipped for the game than the other and it’s not long before Stan Dudley accidentally reveals that his family are completely broke. Oops.
Meanwhile, at King Edward’s place, he and his Ethian lapdog Petunia hatch a plan to find his poisoner, while the slippery Lord Seymour continues to conspire with Lady Mary. They’re irresistible comedy villains, but we’ve no doubt they’ll wreak some carnage before this tale is through.
'A horse by day, man by night, thing...'
After a crash course in "marital purposes" from her new maid (yes, that’s Kimberley Nixon from Fresh Meat guys), Jane heads down to the stable where her new husband keeps a bed for "easy access to town". After watching him shower, she soon discovers her husband is an Ethian and spends the day time galloping around fields, eating sugar cubes and neighing enthusiastically. His father is well aware and when Jane confronts him, he has the air of a dodgy used car salesman refusing to admit the motor he sold you yesterday has no engine.
It seems that unlike other Ethians, Guildford is unable to control his powers and turns into an animal as soon as the sun rises. It’s far less practical, but also an interesting reflection of Jane’s situation. Both can only watch as their lives are shaped by powers beyond their control, while their talents go unrecognised and their potential unappreciated by all around them.
Initially, Jane is furious, although she soon realises Lord Dudley has her over a metaphorical barrel because the punishment for Verity / Ethian intermarriage is death for everyone involved. It’s one of the “bigger truths” that Jane seems quite unaware of and her constant evocation of her friend the King is another one. It’s quickly dawning upon her that while Edward might wear a crown and sit upon the throne, in reality power resides in other parts of the court.
However, maybe King Edward has more power than he thought and heads out into the world disguised as a normal chap with his new friend. Someone tells him to ‘piss off’, which is quite an education in itself, before his resourceful Ethian pal Petunia finds the herbalist who’s been dishing out the poison "Tofana" to a creepy guy with a ring that looks like an eyeball (Seymour). Edward’s first thought is to find Jane, while his mate is desperate to get him to her granny. We’re desperate to meet her as well tbqh.
'You married me for my brain?'
Jane is still desperate to escape her honeymoon, despite fancying the saddle off her husband, so is delighted to hear from Edward. Although when she finds him it’s clear he didn’t arrange a meeting to help her escape Dudley, but to pick her brain for herbal knowledge. She inadvertently tells him about his imminent death and they argue, frustrations about their respective entrapments spilling out upon each other.
Their exchange leaves Edward in a combative mood and he doesn’t seem that sickly when he breaks the news of his poisoning to the court, threatening to boil everyone alive, before flipping the double bird in their direction. It’s stimulating news for Seymour and Dudley Snr, who see danger and opportunity in this revelation. However it seems that Seymour is losing the power battle with his lover, Mary (inevitable given the fact that she’s heir to the throne), while Dudley orders Stan to fetch the will. “The entire future is at stake!” he tells the feckless pretty boy.
Unfortunately Edward’s will has been stolen and later on, Seymour and Mary instigate a shabby attempt to frame Dudley, yet the king is wise to their game. Although that knowledge doesn’t help him when he falls to his death from the tower while trying to escape from them that night.
Elsewhere, after surviving a highwayman armed with a stick, Jane learns that she and her husband share a love of literature, which turns her horniness up to 11. Turns out the books are all about curing Ethianism and Guildford is hoping that his new wife can help him in that endeavour. “So you married me for my brain?!” she says in disgust during a lovely moment of knowing satire. “You find me my cure and this marriage is over,” he promises, although we’d say the chances of these two getting a divorce are miniscule. That first kiss is going to be something else.
All eight episodes are available now on Prime Video. You can sign up for Amazon Prime for $14.99 / £8.99 per month or $139 / £95 per year and that'll let you stream Prime Video with commercials. An extra $3.99 / £2.99 per month will let you stream ad-free and here's how to remove commercials from your Prime Video account.
If you've never signed up for Amazon Prime before, you can test it out without paying for a month because Amazon offers a 30-day free trial that'll let you stream Prime Video amongst the various other perks.
