"The Decameron" is a celebrated collection of 14th-century Italian stories penned by Giovanni Boccaccio about a group of young people who take up residence in a remote villa to escape plague-stricken Florence.
Inspired by this tragic, erotic and comedic collection, Kathleen Jordan has dreamt up an eight-episode Netflix adaptation. It's a series that kind of plays out like a mixture of "Blackadder," "Horrible Histories," "Sex Education" and "Love Island"... and I'm already convinced that it's one you absolutely shouldn't miss.
I'll caveat that recommendation ever so slightly with the fact that this is a Netflix show distinctly catered to my taste; just a few weeks back I was busy calling Prime Video's historical comedy "My Lady Jane" the one show you needed to binge ASAP.
I've been looking forward to this since I first saw the trailer just a few weeks back, and, thanks to the show's sharp, funny writing and talented ensemble of comic actors, I'm pleased to say that I'd just as happily recommend "The Decameron" as I did "My Lady Jane." On the surface, it is styled as this outrageous, bawdy romp, but as the balance of power within the villa continues to shift and secrets continue to be spilled, it really starts to suck you in.
What is 'The Decameron' about?
"The Decameron" takes us to the Italian countryside in 1348 for a raucous romp which sees a group of nobles shacking up together on a lavish holiday to escape the plague sweeping across the landscape.
Stuck together in this household, emotions run high and our residents begin developing desires and start rubbing one another up the wrong way. Once they're all settled in, the series quickly becomes a heady mixture of social satire, black comedy and saucy drama that you'll definitely want to binge.
Netflix's synopsis for the series reads: "You are cordially invited to a wine-soaked sex romp set in the Italian countryside. The Decameron is a soapy dark comedy that examines the all-too-timely theme of class struggles in the season of a pandemic. In the year 1348, the Black Death strikes hard in the city of Florence, and a handful of nobles retreat with their servants to a grand villa to wait out the plague with a lavish holiday. But as social rules wear thin, a scramble for survival ensues, brought to life by a cast of characters both cunning and outrageous."
Should you stream 'The Decameron'?
Absolutely. If you're looking for a bawdy, brand-new watch, then "The Decameron" is the show for you. It's a high-spirited, silly, and saucy comedy, one which I'm happy to recommend. And thankfully, I'm not the only person who thinks that way, either.
And thankfully, I'm not alone. Critically, the show seems to be faring well. At the time of writing, it does not yet have a rating on Rotten Tomatoes, though there are a number of reviews already online, and "The Decameron" is faring reasonably well among critics so far.
inews gave it a perfect 5/5 score and proclaimed it a solid gold comedy banger' and Collider writer Carly Lane proclaimed it 'one of the best dark comedies of the year thus far' and as a 'seemingly raunchy house party comedy [with] so much more beneath the surface'.
The Guardian rated the series 3/5 and claimed it was 'good enough to mark out a place for itself even in the middle of the current glut of similar offerings', while The New York Times' James Poniewozik wrote, "if its story is a little shaggy, "The Decameron" makes for a soapily slapstick summer diversion", adding, "as a 14th-century physician might say, its humors are well in balance".
Unconvinced "The Decameron" is right for you, but still looking for something new to watch? Check out our guide to the very best Netflix shows you should be streaming right now.
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