Medici: The Magnificent Season 3 finale recap: The Fate of the City

The season (and presumably series) finale of Netflix series Medici: The Magnificent kicks off with Clarice (Synnøve Karlsen), who recently died from tuberculosis. Lorenzo de Medici (Daniel Sharman) is also ill (although Medici: The Magnificent doesn’t specify much about his illness, the real Lorenzo apparently died from gangrene).

Facing the death of his wife and his own imminent demise, Lorenzo is increasingly hostile to the Catholic holy man Savonarola (Francesco Montanari), who told his congregants to stay away from Clarice’s funeral. In a somewhat mocking tone, he also assures his flock that Lorenzo is also dying, implying an end to Medici’s corruption and degradation.

To complicate matters, Savonarola doesn’t seem entirely wrong in all of his pronouncements, which is part of how he’s had so much success in Florence. For example, he says people want an end to the Council, which, although it did have some methods of constraining power, nevertheless represented rule by oligarchy. Savonarola also publicly charges Lorenzo with the murder of Tommaso Peruzzi (Toby Regbo). However, we see Savonarola is quite puritanical, telling Sandro Botticelli (Sebastian de Souza) that Leonardo da Vinci (Stephen Hagan) will burn in hell for his views.

Medici: The Magnificent and mixed legacies

Bruno Bernardi (Johnny Harris), Lorenzo’s right-hand man (and one of the series’ composite characters) sums up much of Lorenzo’s mixed legacy when he tells Lorenzo: “Sometimes a man has to do bad to do good.” With that level of inspiration, Lorenzo finds it easier to tell Bianca de’ Medici (Aurora Ruffino) and Piero (Louis Partridge) that Savonarola must be killed before his next sermon. Not caring about their growing disdain for him and his plan, Lorenzo visits Guiscardi (Marco Palvetti) a “man with no honor” to set up the assassination. Piero refuses to assist in Lorenzo’s treachery, and Bianca (who is Lorenzo’s sister) visits Bastiano Soderini (Jacopo Olmo Antinori), who has a less-than-perfect history with the Medici family.

The assassination attempt is botched, and Lorenzo immediately suspects Piero had given the warning. It turns out he is correct, so he slaps Piero, declaring “You’re no son of mine,” prompting Piero to quip: “If only that were true.” Not one to give up, Lorenzo still wants to assassinate Savonarola at the Loggia. However, Carlo de’ Medici (Callum Blake) tells Lorenzo that Clarice would have never forgiven him for such a deed.

A change of heart

Medici: The Magnificent has, at times, presented Lorenzo as sort of a hero, but this has all been complicated by Lorenzo’s corrupt quest to attain and preserve power. Basically, the series shows us the unique consequences and issues that come with living during his time and age and coming from a family in such a unique position as his. While we may judge and deride people in such positions of power, it would be wise to remember that, no matter how things look, ordinary people still grant others special powers, privileges, and rights, no matter how badly conceived or poorly carried out.

On that note, it’s perhaps refreshing for the series that Lorenzo physically stops the assassination he plotted. Interestingly, we see that Niccolò Machiavelli (Vincenzo Crea) is a witness to the decision. It seems almost like an atonement for the character of Lorenzo, who tells Piero “You’ve never failed me.” As one of the final, awkward moments, Lorenzo has last prayers with Savanarola, symbolizing a complicated death bed truce.

The end(?)

Although the end to Medici: The Magnificent almost seems clunky and sudden, it almost mirrors what happened after Lorenzo’s death in reality. Here Savanarola says he will remove all remnants of the Medici, Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, and so many others, from the land of Florence. This almost absurd cultural purge came to be known as the “bonfire of the vanities,” which itself became so unpopular that, as the end credits tell us, Savanarola was hanged and burned in the town square 6 years after Lorenzo’s death (there were fewer vocal opponents of the death penalty back then, obviously, especially when they themselves might have been punished for their views).

We also learn that Piero became ruler but was forced into exile by King Charles VIII. Also, Giovanni de Medici (William Franklin Miller) and Giulio de’ Medici (Jacob Dudman) both served as Popes. Although this appears to be the series finale, who knows? One supposes the series could be extended, based on these few closing factoids alone, and that the series was reasonably popular. After all, Cardinal Giulio de Medici (who later became Pope Clement VII) lived an interesting life, and there are surely other angles that could be explored (such as Giulio’s son, Alessandro de Medici).

What are your thoughts on Medici: The Magnificent? Let us know in the comments!