Before F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote his magnum opus-turned major motion picture, The Great Gatsby, he needed to be inspired by a character like Daisy, and he found that in his wife; Zelda. She was wild and beautiful and the relationship between her and Fitzgerald was intense and so very doomed. Z: The Beginning of Everything is the story of Zelda Fitzgerald.
Zelda is portrayed by Christina Ricci in this Amazon original series. I think it was wonderful casting for Ricci to play the part of the original 1920s Flapper Girl, her large dark eyes and short hair fit her into the era well. Btw: This series is definitely NSFW, Ricci makes a brief appearance in full-frontal nudity, because Zelda gives no f*’s.
The series begins right before our two lovers meet, in Montgomery, Alabama as Fitzgerald is getting ready to go to WW1. It establishes Zelda’s unique, strong character right away and it’s clear that Fitzgerald falls completely enamored with her from the moment they meet. He promises her he’s going to make it as a writer and become a huge success and she insists he proves it. When he publishes his first book, his trial period is over, she moves up to New York and the fireworks begin.
Their trendsetting, magnetic personalities and lavish lifestyles gain them many friends and much fame as the “it” couple of the 1920s, but it becomes unsustainable and they find themselves broke and at each other’s necks. Add into money problems: infidelity, alcoholism, Zelda’s boredom when Scott is working, and Scott’s increasing use of Zelda’s writing in his published work, and you have got a gorgeous train wreck that is hard to look away from.
I’ve been a long time fan of WW1 writers like Fitzgerald and Hemingway, and I know a lot of what’s coming in later seasons of Z, and things are just getting started by the end of Season 1. Zelda and Fitzgerald’s relationship has inspired many works already; several movies, books, and plays have been written about their roller-coaster marriage since the 50’s. This series is a wonderful, in-depth addition to that long list.
A couple other places you see the Zelda showing up today in popular culture:
1 she was the inspiration for the 1972 Eagle’s hit, Witchy Woman, and
2 yes, Princess Zelda of The Legend of Zelda series is named after her according to creator Shigeru Miyamoto,
3 no, this series is not a Legend of Zelda prequel.
TL;DR: “It” couple of the 1920s attempt to drive each other crazy, with Great success.