A Review The Queen's Gambit Doesn’t Deserve but Gets Anyway

I must say one thing before I start: not only did I watch the show, I read the book as well. Stop it. Stop it. I know what you’re thinking. What can I say, I’m just an intelligent specimen who enjoys snuggling up with a good book. It’s just who I am.

So, The Queen's Gambit. What an absolutely riveting show (and book) that made chess nerds seem like they could beat the shit out of me with their high IQs. I mean, the way this show made it seem, I’d rather go through Theon’s arc in Game of Thrones before I lose a game of chess. Seriously, a game that the general population looks down upon as the go-to loser nerd game was portrayed in such a tense and dramatic way that I would’ve been kept on the edge of my seat if it was checkers. Some might say that’s just because of the drugs, and I would respond by saying you are absolutely right.

Anyway, I said I read the book and I haven’t mentioned any comparisons yet, so let me bless you with some of my knowledge. The series is largely a loyal adaptation, but there are some differences. As you’d expect, the book does a better job of capturing Beth Harmon, the main character chess prodigy, and her internal thoughts and anxieties, but the show still thrives in terms of Beth’s characterization and even adds a little depth to other characters. One example of this, for better or worse, is through the backstory of Beth’s parents. In the series, Beth is abandoned by her father. Beth’s mom, desperate from failed attempts to raise a child on her own, commits suicide by crashing her car, with Beth tucked safely under the back seat (how thoughtful). In the book, all we hear of Beth’s parents is their untimely deaths. So, while this choice is effective for the series in the way it expands upon the mom’s connection to Beth and shows the maternal struggles she has to go through, some of the pieces don’t feel like they fall into place, as it's hard to imagine Beth holding onto some of these memories that she had as a very young kid, even with her strong memory.

Moving on, I am going to use the rest of my newfound intelligence to bash on the series—which I must reiterate, I liked a lot—for what I believe is one way it didn’t need to differ from the book. This has to do with the approach the series takes with Beth’s spiral into rock bottom. In both the book and the series, after going through rigorous training with Benny, a fellow US chess champion, in New York, Beth heads out to Paris to compete in the world championships and attempt to redeem herself against Borgov, the unbeatable Russian world champion. Beth and Borgov fly through their competition, all building up to the highly anticipated heavyweight final on the last day of playing. In the book, Beth loses due to the fact that she simply wasn’t skilled enough to beat Borgov yet. He remains one step ahead and the feeling of the loss—that all the hours she spent meant nothing because she could never beat Borgov in a fair match—is absolutely crushing to Beth.

In the series, however, the root of Beth’s loss lies heavily in her addiction, and in turn, there is a logical side of the narrative that goes out the window. After months of sobriety, Beth relapses the night before she plays Borgov after a slight guilt trip from Cleo, a former acquaintance from Paris. This in itself is irritating, but perhaps acceptable. We have all stared down the barrel of peer pressure at least once. I, myself, was once forced at gunpoint to have a sip of wine. The inexcusable part is how much of a villain Cleo is. Not only did she choose to get Beth wasted during her chess tournament, but did so the night before THE MOST IMPORTANT DAY OF HER LIFE. For a second, I was convinced she was in on some plot with Borgov to screw Beth over, but no, she just enjoys being a villain. I guess I can’t complain too much though; every bride and groom gets sloshed the day before the most important day of their life, too. I know this because I watched The Hangover.

All that said, I could go into more detail about the ripple effects this had on Beth’s fall to depression and alcoholism between the book and series and why the book is a bit better in that aspect, but they both do a great job once they reach that point. So, while my rant might make it seem the opposite, I found both the series and book wildly compelling and a great exploration into the concepts of talent, addiction, and loneliness. Sometimes they feed into the other, and throughout both mediums, there is a very moving arc for Beth in becoming more than just her talent, finding people around her she feels supported by, and overcoming her addiction. Great show, great book, I’m about to log onto Chess.com because I’m literally Beth Harmon (my rating is below 200).