Tom Jones (2023)

Breezy and likable.

Gwyneth Hughes' brisk four-part adaptation nestles snugly in the Masterpiece costume-drama comfort zone. [8 - 21 May 2023, p.6]

It takes things at a relatively leisurely pace. Generally faithful to the material and made without stylistic overreach, it’s enjoyable in an earnest, laid-back sort of way and offers a less familiar period of period drama.

This is a low-commitment and easy watch that should satiate period piece lovers with its subtle comedy, outlandish recurring characters and gorgeous handmade costumes. But make no mistake: While “Tom Jones” contains themes of identity, class and what it means to be a woman of the time, at its core this is just another situational romcom in britches.

A far more gentle-bordering-on-bloodless treatment of the 1749 Henry Fielding novel. ... Ms. Wilde and Mr. McLeod are an attractive pair, ever sympathetic and beset by the characters around them, who are all very busy thwarting their romance—and providing what juice there is in this "Tom Jones." ... Hannah Waddingham, who as the physically epic and epically randy Lady Bellaston steals the entire series.

While McLeod’s Tom proves less than worthy of both Sophia and his ability to lead, the rest of the series is a hoot, bouncing from one British great to the next in a comedy of errors different from those usually seen in period dramas.

While ITV’s Tom Jones seems to aim for the spry comic cadence of something like The Great, it doesn’t quite get there. That said, it has charm.

Yes, there are some “reimaginings” here in Gwyneth Hughes’s bucking, frisky Tom Jones script. But she has distilled a funny, sprawling novel into four shortish episodes while keeping its essence rather well. If you don’t mind it bobbing along at a surface, jolly, sometimes vanilla canter.

For the most part this is period drama 101, meaning fans of the genre are likely to find much to enjoy here, but may not be bowled over or shook of their expectations.

Waddingham is a real presence, shifting from sexy to funny to bitterly tragic with ease. But even she can’t make Lady Bellaston’s scenes with Tom sizzle, because he merely lets her happen to him: like this version of his story, he wanders politely without much purpose.