It’s a tale as old as time: a young woman grows up in a patriarchal society. She is determined to buck social convention by avoiding marriage and pursuing an illustrious career as a writer. The patron saint of such a trope is Little Women‘s Jo March, a heroine for independent young readers for over 150 years and a thinly veiled portrait of her author, Louisa May Alcott. But the great beauty of storytelling is how experiences can be shared and felt across time and continents, and what makes Jo March independent is what makes Sybylla Melvyn, heroine of My Brilliant Career, a worthy successor.
My Brilliant Career (2026), Netflix’s latest addition to its catalogue of anachronistic yet delightful period dramas, is loosely based on Miles Franklin’s 1901 classic, itself inspired by Franklin’s own independent, writerly adolescence. The story, in both the series and the novel, follows Sybylla (Philippa Northeast), the eldest daughter ofippa Northeast), the eldest daughter in a poor family living in rural Australia.
Unlike her dreamy, romance-obsessed sister Gertie (Ella Oliphant), Sybylla’s determined to buck tradition and never get married. “I want to create, not procreate,” Sybylla moans, desperate to start a brilliant career as a renowned writer.
Sybylla sees the world through the eyes of a writer. Everything is a potential story.
Sybylla’s never been anywhere or done anything with her life, and opportunity arrives in the form of something she would not choose. Her estranged grandmother (Anna Chancellor) invites her for a prolonged visit, with the intent of marrying Sybylla off to a wealthy suitor. Sybylla initially rejects the idea, annoyed that her future can be chosen by someone other than herself. She ultimately accepts the invitation in hopes that a change of scenery will sharpen her writing skills and give her something worth writing about.
At her grandmother’s estate, Sybylla resists attempts to make her a polished young lady of society, despite the efforts of her docile aunt Helen (a sweet, subdued Genevieve O’Reilly). Sybylla meets Frank (Jake Dunn), a proper, buttoned-up Englishman who serves as the estate’s foreman, and Harry (Christopher Chung), a handsome landowner. Sparks fly between Sybylla and both men despite her efforts to not fall in love.
Sybylla is a refreshing heroine, vividly realized by Northeast, in that she has an element of fearlessness that surpasses even Jo March, or other notably wild, spunky heroines of literature, like Anne of Green Gables‘ eponymous heroine. Sybylla reads provocative poetry aloud to group of partygoers, explores her sexuality both alone and partnered, and advocates for women’s suffrage to her traditional, uptight relatives.
My Brilliant Career finds freedom with Sybylla but struggles to buck standard Netflix trends.
There’s a wildness to how she operates, dancing without composure, speaking without thinking. Every interaction in My Brilliant Career is fodder for Sybylla’s writing, as though the act of writing it down is far more pleasurable than experiencing life itself.
That same inventiveness feels less striking in the rest of My Brilliant Career‘s evolution. What might have been refreshing creative choices now feel like hallmarks of the genre when it comes to period dramas adapted in the 2020s. The use of anachronistic music, from re-orchestrated pop songs to rock covers, was popularized by Peaky Blinders and Bridgerton, and later utilized in Young Sherlock and Australia’s own The Artful Dodger.
Here, popular music is reimagined as both a soundtrack to My Brilliant Career and in-universe music. An early episode uses a cover of Rod Stewart’s “Young Turks.” It’s a recent enough trope that it no longer feels like an edgy choice for a period drama to demonstrate its modernity.
The latest adaptation digs deeper into Australia’s political history.
Where My Brilliant Career‘s efforts to expand the world of its source material is its incorporation of Australian history and politics. Harry, initially brought to life by Sam Neill in the lovely 1979 adaptation of the novel, is reimagined as a Chinese-Australian landowner, whose wealth has been built by his family’s colonialist efforts yet his biracial heritage makes him the target of racist remarks by men in his tax bracket.
Nell (Sherry-Lee Watson) and Betty (Miah Madden) are First Nations sisters who work on Sybylla’s grandmother’s estate. Nell wishes to become the estate’s first female foreman, and Betty is in love with a white policeman despite her sister’s concerns about whether either of their families will accept the romance. The inclusion of a world beyond Sybylla’s limited scope provides insight into Australia’s history and politics, could have afforded to dive deeper.
Sybylla’s love triangle with Frank and Harry, and her reluctance to pursue a relationship with either of them despite her feelings, takes up so much time that My Brilliant Career lets further depth into its worldbuilding fall by the wayside. It suffers from too many characters and a desire to let each of them have a fully-developed arc, from Sybylla’s uncle Julius (Alexander England) to Harry’s feminist aunt Augusta (Kate Mulvany) to Sybylla’s family trying to climb out of debt back home. Had there been more episodes, or less characters, there might be a greater cohesiveness to My Brilliant Career.
My Brilliant Career needs a tighter script but remains worthwhile due to the central heroine.
But there’s a great deal of care in the world that has been crafted in My Brilliant Career, and it shows. Showrunner Liz Doran‘s commitment to keeping Sybylla a consistent heroine, so focused on the “brilliant career” she’s determined to have, demonstrates a clear understanding of the protagonist she’s plucked from the pages of Franklin’s classic.
Costume designer Mariot Kerr‘s outfits are marvelously designed, and cinematographer Kieran Fowler’s cinematography captures the scenery with a lush sense of color that has been lacking in recent washed-out, colorless period dramas. It’s beautiful to look at.
As a whole, My Brilliant Career doesn’t feel as fresh or revolutionary as its heroine, but it’s a worthy watch for fans of historical dramas and romances alike. Brilliance is a high bar to set, and an unfair one to uphold, especially when period dramas are experiencing a resurgence of interest. Though posited as a six-episode series, there’s a promising chapter ahead should Netflix choose to order more of Sybylla’s story. She’s got more than enough life experience to write about now, and if there are more installments ahead, there’s sure to be some brilliance along the way.
My Brilliant Career (2026) is streaming now, exclusively on Netflix.
My Brilliant Career
7/10
TL;DR
As a whole, My Brilliant Career doesn’t feel as fresh or revolutionary as its heroine, but it’s a worthy watch for fans of historical dramas and romances alike.