Parents' Guide to Gentleman Jack

Jaunty and blessed with a magnetically charismatic lead in Jones, this period drama about an anachronistically bold gay woman is hampered by two problems. One: The stakes in Gentleman Jack are curiously low. Despite the potential peril of being a lesbian in 19th century England, no one in Lister's inner circle seems to mind a whit. Her family asks politely after her special friends, clearly aware that they're more than just friends; her servants shrug at Lister's habits; even gossipy neighbors seem delighted by a woman who's clearly letting her freak flag fly. And two: The pacing is odd. Anyone who reads a two-sentence bio of Anne Lister will realize how unexpectedly quickly her soulmate-to-be shows up in the proceedings, making such obvious cow's eyes at Lister that the lead tells the camera confidently she's sure the woman is already "thoroughly in love with her."

Given that Lister was a woman of many and tumultuous passions, all faithfully recorded (the most scandalous parts in a code of her own invention) in her voluminous journals, it seems strange that this story would pick up just as she settles down. The show introduces Lister in mid-life, when she's longing for a slippers-by-the-fire type of settled relationship. As nice as such relationships are to be in, most would agree they're not as interesting to watch play out on a TV series. Even so, there are pleasures to be found in the slow unrolling of Lister's world of business deals and tenants and horses and servants, which is likely to remind more than one viewer of Downton Abbey. If carriages and top hats and neighborly calls are your thrill, it's worth spending a few hours in vintage Shibden with Gentleman Jack, admiring Lister's modern dash and confidence in a bygone world that couldn't possibly appreciate it.