'The Decameron' review: Medieval merriment falls flat

WHAT IT'S ABOUT "The Decameron," an eight-episode adaptation of the 14th century Italian collection of short stories, arrives on Netflix as one of the strangest productions to come along in awhile.

As the Black Death ravages Italy, nobles gather at a Tuscan villa. Characters include Pampinea (Zosia Mamet), who expects to marry the mysterious, absent owner of the estate, and Sirisco (Tony Hale), its steward.

Those also present range from the spoiled Tindaro (Douggie McMeekin), to the repressed couple Neifile (Lou Gala) and Panfilo (Karan Gill), and Dioneo, Tindaro's doctor (Amar Chadha-Patel), who loves traipsing around shirtless and showing off his muscles.

The creator is Kathleen Jordan ("Teenage Bounty Hunters").

MY SAY It's a little hard to imagine the pitch meeting for "The Decameron." 

"Hey, have we got an idea for you: You know 'The Decameron,' right? Giovanni Boccaccio's so hot right now. All the kids are reading him. So let's  adapt it loosely and we'll make it funny. Who doesn't love a little Black Death humor in 2024? That's eight episodes of streaming gold!"

It doesn't make a lot of sense, but sometimes the most unexpected ideas pay the most dividends.

At its best, the series evokes some compelling parallels between the world of the plague circa 1348 and the COVID-19 experience we've all lived with since 2020. The fear of infection, the paranoia involved, the ways in which the ubiquitous disease exacerbates class differences: it all rings familiar.

All eight episodes are available on Netflix now and it's certainly possible that the series solidifies its footing past the second episode, by doubling down on this satirical perspective and finding a meaningful way to keep the 14th century shenanigans current. But after sitting through just under two hours over the course of those two episodes, there's not a lot of reason for optimism.

Most of the attention goes toward a strained Monty Python-meets-"Bridgerton" approach that never quite lands. It's a very hard tone to strike, to be humorous and satirical while also staying at least somewhat true to the time period. You're simply not going to get a bunch of guffaws at lines like "I'm a shriveled up 28-year-old maid," or repetitive shots of characters making eyes at the doctor, or, again, endless jokes about "the pestilence."

The actors are at the mercy of the material, as always, and Mamet responds by essentially redoing her "Girls" performance in medieval garb. If you've wondered what Shoshanna might have been like in the 14th century, well, here you go. No one else makes much of an impact; Hale, a tremendously gifted comic performer, is relegated to playing things semi-straight.

That leaves a lot of dead air, long and drawn-out scenes crafted with just a twinge of desperation. Few experiences are more disheartening than sitting stone-faced as a series contorts itself every which way to wring out a few laughs.

BOTTOM LINE The weirdness is welcome, the concept has merit, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.