I have to be honest and say that it was my wife’s idea to watch Anne with an E, but despite my less than enthusiastic attitude, I ended up quite attached to the show. This is a Canadian-made show that was picked up by Netflix and ran for three seasons. There are under 30 episodes in total, so the show does not demand a great deal of your time.
How to Stream or Download Anne with an E (TV series)
You can stream or download the series from Netflix, using the Netflix app. Click on the Download button at the end of the review.
The Movie Review
The reason my wife wanted to watch the show is that it is based (kind of loosely) on a classic book, Anne of Green Gables. Well, I am ignorant so had never heard of this, so I went into the show completely blind. I would describe Anne with an E as a coming-of-age type of show.
It takes place in Canada during the late 1880s. By the way, I love the setting of this show. They do a fantastic job of making Canada look like such a hard and harsh place for people to live during this time. We have Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert who live on their family farm called, Green Gables which is located on the outskirts of Avonlea.
The Cuthberts decide to adopt a child that can help them work around the farm as things are really tough. Matthew heads to the train station and this is where he meets the teenage orphan, Anne. He takes a liking to her and decides to bring her back to the farm, Marilla is not exactly thrilled with Matthew’s choice here!
Anne has a really hard time settling in with the Cuthbert’s especially Marilla who has a real distrust and dislike for her. I have to say that I really did not like Marilla and even as the show went on I never warmed up to her. To be honest, I am not sure this was the intent as they do make up and Anne becomes a member of the family.
I found myself pretty invested in Anne’s life pretty early on. The further two series of Anne with An E show Anne trying to live her life on the farm and also fit in at a new school. There is a real class system at play here with many people, not just kids, having no time for Anne as she is an orphan.
The show does a great job making Anne a very well-rounded character who is smart, able, and willing to help people. I think it is pretty much impossible not to want Anne to have a good life. As we see her go through school and have dreams to make something of her life, we warm to her even more.
Anne with an E was a show I went into knowing very little about, but by the time the third season wrapped up I was so glad I watched it. I like most other people who like the show, are mad about the cancellation after three seasons. However, the three seasons that are here are truly fantastic stuff.
