At first glance, 1670 seems to be a historical drama, with the actors dressed in fairly historically accurate attire, and the show being set in the titular year, just around after the late Middle Ages. However, the first few scenes disabuse us of the notion, as the eccentric Jan Paweł routinely breaks the fourth wall in order to introduce us to the family. While the sets and the costumes are of its time, the approach and events are not, as 1670 plays out like a reality TV show, with candid shots and interviews introducing the weird and fame-obsessed village inhabitants, satirically depicting modern day scenarios with a historical flair. While some of the jokes seem Polish-specific and they rely on breaking the fourth wall a bit too often, 1670 is a funny reminder of how good things currently are, and how silly we remain, through resituating modern petty grievances in medieval times.

1670 depends a bit too much on the fourth wall, but there’s no denying that everyone on the production is dedicated to the bit. While it’s all meant to mock Polish nobility, the show did not skimp on the sets and production design, from the embroidered opening curtains to actually filming in the Folk Museum Kolbuszowa for period accurate sets. And it’s clear that the cast had fun in this playground, delivering the modern jokes with so much flair. It all heightens the ridiculousness of each situation, even if the jokes speed by with the same pace Jan Paweł shifts between his whimsies.