7 Decadent Period Shows To Watch After My Lady Jane

Through a fantastical, supernatural-infused alternate history narrative, "My Lady Jane" reimagines the political and romantic realities of Lady Jane Grey, the woman history would remember as the "Nine Days' Queen" after she ascended to and held the throne for a little more than a week in July 1553. In the historical fantasy reality of "My Lady Jane," that world is one inhabited by animorphs who transform from human to animal form, loads of anachronistic dialogue, and gorgeous costumes and settings everywhere you turn. Like all good historical dramas, the series offers a chance to safely peer into a world where drama, decadence, and dreamy digs rule the day.

For viewers who love their historical escapism with or without the fantasy elements, the end of the canceled-too-soon series could leave them feeling disappointed. Fortunately, the streaming world has plenty of decadent historical dramas like "Medici" and "The Serpent Queen" to fill the void if you know where to look.

The fact that "Medici" is co-produced by Frank Spotniz and Nicholas Meyer, two writer-producers best known for their work in science fiction on "The X-Files" and a pair of "Star Trek" films, respectively, might serve as a signifier that the series focuses more on historical escapism than accuracy. But in terms of all-around excitement and eye candy, "Medici" is a splendid and engaging show to watch.

Set in the nascent Italian Renaissance, "Medici" follows three generations of the notorious House of Medici, the family of Florentine bankers whose rise to political power and patronage of the arts would dovetail to transform Florence, Italy, into the art capital of 15th-century Europe. Gorgeous backdrops like the 15th-century Italian Castello Orsini-Odescalchi, a soaring score, lavish costumes, and a second-season appearance by Sean Bean add to the texture of this compelling tale. All three seasons of the historical drama can be binged on Netflix.

While the Medicis were busy carving out their place in history through art and political acumen, the contemporary House of Borgia was writing its name in the history books in blood. Developed by Oscar and BAFTA-winning Irish playwright Neil Jordan and starring Jeremy Irons as Pope Alexander VI, the historical drama "The Borgias" imagines the unimaginably corrupt Borgia family's crime-riddled ascent to the Vatican.

The series was nominated for 16 Emmys, taking home three wins for Outstanding Costumes for a Series (2011 and 2013) and Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music (2011). Although this slick drama is marked by a steady stream of absurd anachronisms, gratuitous sex and violence, and over-the-top storytelling, the show's borderline campiness is a feature and not a bug for fans of decadent historical escapism.

"The White Queen" is adapted from the novel of the same name by Philippa Gregory, a historical novelist known for writing about major events in British monarchial history from the perspective of women caught up in the maelstrom. The narrative centers around the ascension of commoner Elizabeth Woodville (Rebecca Ferguson) to queen as the wife of King Edward IV amid the Wars of the Roses, the 15th-century civil wars over succession between the houses of Lancaster and York.

Between the compelling danger of a scandalous monarchial love match in such uncertain times and the sumptuous costumes, "The White Queen" is a genuinely gorgeous watch. Filmed in locations across Belgium, there's a dreamy medieval look to this series set in a period when the Renaissance had not yet reached England.

Another story adapted from Philippa Gregory's The Cousins' War series of novels, "The White Princess" is told from the perspective of Elizabeth Woodville's daughter, Elizabeth of York (Jodie Comer), known as Lizzie to her family. Like her mother, the younger Elizabeth lived in the fraught world of the Wars of the Roses that both elevated and ultimately unseated her parents. As a York, her arranged marriage to the Lancastrian King Henry VII would ultimately end the fighting while elevating the House of Tudor to the British monarchy. Jodie Comer's performance as Lizzie paints a painful image of the strength and resilience the women of this world had to embody to survive the whims and machinations of the dangerous men in their orbit.

The story of Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's first wife until he split from the Catholic Church in order to abandon her due to his infatuation with his eventual second wife, the ill-fated Anne Boleyn, is most often told through the lens of her marital deterioration and ensuing annulment. Penned from Philippa Gregory's novels "The Constant Princess" and "The King's Curse," "The Spanish Princess" centers Catherine (Charlotte Hope) as the heroine of her own story, elevating Henry's first wife from a one-dimensional rejected queen to a complex, intelligent, and deeply faithful woman.

The series is a gripping tale emphasizing how tenuous — and thus dangerous — a royal woman's position truly was. It's also a visual feast for fans of stunning Renaissance attire. As Spanish women, the costumes of Catherine and her Morisco lady-in-waiting Lina (Stephanie Levi-John) bring a vibrant international flair to the British court's sea of subdued hues with sumptuous brocades and jewel-toned sari fabric.

Starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers as an improbably handsome Henry VIII, "The Tudors" details the messy, scandalous, and often deadly love life of the Tudor king, whose daughter would grow up to become one of England's greatest rulers. Beginning with Henry's younger days as an athletic, joust-loving youth and following his life through to its end with his politically astute sixth wife Catherine Parr by his side, "The Tudors" examines the volatility of life in Henry Tudor's orbit in frightening — and sexy — detail. The cast alone is reason enough to watch this Showtime series, which features Sam Neill, Henry Cavill, Natalie Dormer, Maria Doyle Kennedy, James Frain, and singer Joss Stone, just to name a few of the show's incredible actors.

Starring BAFTA and Golden Globe winner Samantha Morton as Catherine de' Medici, the infamously scheming 16th-century queen consort and later regent of France after her husband Henry II's death, "The Serpent Queen" makes a strong case that the queen's reputed ruthlessness was a reasonable response to the equally ruthless reality she lived in. Told in two timelines, the series follows Catherine's recollections of her early years in the French court, which serve as a roadmap to the person she would end up becoming down the line. The series, which is as gorgeous as it is riveting, has been praised by scholars for its complex portrayal of Catherine de' Medici.