The Gilded Age Vs. 1883: Which 1800s Period Drama Is Better?
At the end of the 19th century in America, anyone could set about making a new life for themselves -- they just needed to decide where and how. 1883 follows settler families moving through the American West to achieve new opportunities on the frontier, while The Gilded Age depicts a time on the East Coast when every man could be the next Andrew Carnegie, and challenge the Old Guard with great capitalist successes in the wake of the Civil War.
Both 1883 and The Gilded Age --set within a year of one another (1883 and 1882, respectively)-- are period dramas that boast stunning attention to detail, with beautiful costumes, talented casts, and unique stories. But which 1800s period drama is better?
10 The Gilded Age: Shows A Side Of History Seldom Seen
While there are countless series set in the 1800s that feature the upper echelons of the aristocracy, they seldom feature a diverse high society, and though there are a few British period dramas featuring actors of color, many are revisionist series like Bridgerton. By taking place in America, The Gilded Age points out that writers don't always need to revise history; they can simply include the people in it who actually existed.
The HBO series features the Scotts, Black New Yorkers from an elite class of fortunes and refinement, made possible by the stories of the real Americans who informed the basis for their portrayal. Author Carla Peterson's book Black Gotham points to a flourishing upper-class Black community in Brooklyn during the latter half of the 19th century rarely distinguished on screen, giving The Gilded Age a lot of material to work with.
9 1883: The Intrepid Spirit Of The Frontier Immigrant
The vast majority of the cast making their way to greener pastures portray immigrants from several different countries, and the wagon boss's desire to homogenize them is just one of the reasons why their stories are important to tell. Self-professed "mountain people" find a host of new challenges to face while they try to navigate the gargantuan swaths of the Great Plains and ford several dangerous rivers.
The immigrants and settlers tackle pestilence, starvation, rattlesnake bites, dehydration, and internal conflicts on a route that doesn't guarantee a better life, merely a chance for something better than where they came from. Freedom to live their lives their way becomes more important than anything else and showcases these 1883 characters' bravery.
8 The Gilded Age: Beautiful Period Costumes
1800s period dramas that focus on high society contain some of the most exquisite costumes and The Gilded Age is no exception, with men and women cutting dashing silhouettes in beaver pelt coats and bustled dresses. Status and wealth are communicated in every beaded bodice and silk purse, with outfits to rival the most historically accurate costumes in period pieces.
The Gilded Age focuses on the sort of socioeconomic stratification that divided The Haves from The Have Nots in America at the time, and one of the ways it accomplishes this is through its extensively detailed costuming.
7 1883: First Nation Inclusivity
Stories told about the American Frontier can't discount First Nation perspectives, and 1883 incorporates their contributions to the trailblazing narrative in a way that doesn't minimize --nor romanticize-- their presence in shaping what fans have come to view as the "Wild West."
Far from being villains, but without being forced to adopt problematic tropes, the First Nation characters --including Elsa's love interest Sam-- are all well rounded and believable, with their cultures and customs honored and depicted authentically.
6 The Gilded Age: Lots Of Powerful Female Characters
The end of the 19th century was a time of great upheaval in social reform, and the female characters in The Gilded Age reflect that. As social norms changed women found themselves with more opportunities, such as the possibility of being employed as a writer instead of forced into a prudent match as a wife to secure their financial security.
From feisty dowagers to capitalists and authors, there are a variety of strong women, each very attached to their perspective. Formidable social giants like Aunt Agnes and newcomer Bertha Russell engage in a social war that both breaks and defines the hierarchical rules of New York on a whim.
5 1883: Gorgeous Cinematography
Many period pieces set in the 1800s take place in stunning castles and manors with glimpses of rolling hills or crowded urban thoroughfares. 1883 showcases the expansive beauty of the American West with stunning shots of the frontier at different times of the day, in wild and temperate environments, that make the land itself feel like a character.
Much of the country was still undeveloped, with species of flora and animals that were much more plentiful then than they are in the present. While it's fun to see old saloons, brothels, and buildings, it's far more interesting to see the American West as it looked to daring settlers uninterested in metropolitan living.
4 The Gilded Age: Snappy Romance
Relationships in the 1800s appear neither stuffy nor tepid in The Gilded Age but full of passion and verve. There are several different types of romantic liaisons throughout the series, from the new blossoming courtship of Marian and Mr. Rakes, to the steadfast devotion between Bertha and George Russell.
Fans of watching the nervousness from butterflies in new relationships will cherish the shy glances across a ballroom, while others will love the way the Russells stick by each other despite all social obstacles.
3 1883: Poetic Dialogue
Elsa Dutton's moving narration provides some of the most poetic overtures of any period drama, perfectly combining the romanticism of the era with the brutal truths of its reality. But hers is not the only majestic language in 1883 -- there are plenty of other characters that contain a sort of plain-speaking wisdom perfectly in keeping with the unfettered nature of their environment.
British period dramas like Downton Abbey don't have the market cornered for beautiful dialogue, and 1883 reminds viewers that the epic sprawl of the wagon trail could be described just as mellifluously as a bustling metropolis like London.
2 The Gilded Age: Socio-Economic Infrastructure
Beneath the glittery affluence of the real "Gilded Age" was rampant political corruption and poverty that titans of industry were only too happy to exploit to achieve titanic dreams of capitalism. Some period dramas don't focus much on the machinations behind aristocracy (such as the Gilded Age downstairs staff), but at this time entrepreneurs and businessmen had as much sway as families whose descendants were part of legacy wealth.
By revealing the socio-economic distinctions when robber barons were king, viewers can see just how much astronomical opulence was acquired on the back-breaking work of laborers. The Gilded Age isn't all champagne, caviar, and parlor room intrigue, but a peek into the seedy methodology behind America's biggest economic and technological metamorphosis.
1 1883: Sweeping Drama
It's right there in the description of the genre; "Period Drama", implying that the highs and lows of human emotion will be captured in a historical tableau, on a scale often grander and more sensationalized as seen through a modern lens. In that regard 1883 doesn't disregard, especially given the events it chronicles.
The stakes are unbelievably high for the Duttons and the immigrant families they travel with on the onerous journey, struggling daily out of necessity to preserve their livelihoods and all the while death following close like a lost dog trotting between the wagon wheels.