by The Collected Mutineer

Having recently rewatched Marvel’s short-lived but much-beloved Agent Carter, I found myself wishing for more of Hayley Atwell’s sharp wit and generally badass self. Luckily for all of us, she recently lent her talents to the cast of Howards End, which premiered on Starz earlier this month.

I haven’t watched the 4-part miniseries yet, but I’ve been looking forward to it for a few months now. For those unfamiliar with the story, Howards End is an adaptation of E.M. Forster’s most famous novel. The story revolves around three very different families at the turn of the century in England, when Europe was struggling to find its way out of the restrictive social boundaries that had been part of life for centuries. The system in England was particularly harsh, and it was nearly impossible to break out of the class into which you had been born—hence the plots of countless classic novels, from authors like Dickens to Austen. Hayley plays the role of Margaret Schlegel, a young girl of German extraction. Margaret and her sister Helen are intelligent women of the new age and in their idealistic forwardness, attempt to help bridge the gap between a lower-class family and a higher-class family. Though romance and drama are interwoven throughout, the plot focuses on socioeconomic prejudices.

Interested in the foundational questions of modern society? Social morality? Or just a good old-fashioned period piece? Also starring Matthew Macfadyen, Philippa Coulthard, Tracey Ullman, and Julia Ormond, Howards End concludes on April 30, 2018.