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Amazon’s Carnival Row just might be the most luxe show on streaming. The murder-filled steampunk fairytale is a visual feast, a cornucopia of fantastical character and set design topped off with more horns, wigs, and bowlers than a fully stocked Party City. Your eyes will never tire of looking at this show, which blends creature effects and detailed costuming that pulls from multiple cultures and time periods to create something familiar yet unexpected.
But if you’re like me, a fellow menswear enthusiast with an undying appreciation, admiration, and adoration for Jared Harris, then all of your attention will be focused squarely on Chancellor Absalom Breakspear. Somehow Harris, a man known for turning dashing and dignified looks on Mad Men, The Crown, and The Terror, is more regal than ever while playing the man in charge of The Burgue. Cloaks! Ascots! Waistcoats! So! Many! Rings! Whereas the rest of the men of Carnival Row, from Orlando Bloom’s rough and tumble lead to the uniformed politicians and police officers, are understated, Breakspear adds opulence to ostentatiousness and I live for each and every look.
That’s why I had to rank them and celebrate them all at once, because a man this flashy deserves all the attention. Below you’ll find every variation of Breakspear’s costuming ranked and rated in three categories: pomp (how ceremonious and regal it is), vanity (how much particular, fussy care Absalom put into the look), and rakishness (how handsome the overall vibe is). Agree? Disagree? Please, this is one instance where I invite a discourse, because we are all right when we are fawning over Absalom Breakspear’s wardrobe.
Also, SPOILERS ahead.
That no coat vibe!
Pomp: 3
Vanity: 1
Rakishness: 7
TOTAL: 11
Absalom Breakspear is not afraid to get his hands dirty, and the coat comes off when he does (along with almost all of the pomp and vanity). But you cannot deny the rakish charm of a man in a waistcoat that’s ready to get down to business. And I’ll ignore that the business in the above shot involves, uh, his pet bear get slaughtered in service of a spell.
Seen in Episode 2, “Aisling”
That hunting lewk!
Pomp: 1
Vanity: 4
Rakishness: 7
TOTAL: 12
Absalom put this whole look together for a hunting trip, one we don’t even get to see! A look not meant to be seen is the opposite of pomp, but you still gotta love the look, fur collar and all. And you can only tell in certain lights, but that green safari style coat has a windowpane pattern that escalates the rakishness.
Seen in Episode 8, “The Gloaming”
That hunting lewk with hat!
Pomp: 1
Vanity: 5
Rakishness: 8
TOTAL: 14
Abasalom never bought into that “look in the mirror and take two things off” nonsense, and his looks only get better the more accessories he adds. That A+ hunting lewk just gets better when it’s topped off with a sturdy, dark brown hunting hat.
Seen in Episode 7, “The World to Come”
That opulent pajama set!
Pomp: 4
Vanity: 7
Rakishness: 5
TOTAL: 16
It’s hard to have a lot of pomp or rakishness when you’re on your literal deathbed. But if you think the chancellor is gonna go out without turning it out, think again. Even this man’s pajamas are extra! I do not know why the Carnival Row Amazon store doesn’t also have this silk shirt with mandarin collar and crimson embellishments, because I would buy it.
Seen in Episode 8, “The Gloaming”
That suit with the gold waistcoat!
Pomp: 6
Vanity: 6
Rakishness: 5
TOTAL: 17
This is what Mr. Breakspear wears to the office: a suit with gold waistcoat and maroon ascot (held in its proper place with a pin) topped off with a dignified coat. This is the man’s baseline.
Seen in Episode 4, “The Joining of Unlike Things”
That hunting lewk with cloak!
Pomp: 1
Vanity: 8
Rakishness: 10
TOTAL: 18
Know what’s an even better accessory than a hat? A cloak! A billowing cloak on a hunting trip tosses all practicality to the wind. Because of that, you know it’s Breakspear’s personal mission to rock a cloak whenever he can–and I say mission accomplished.
Seen in Episode 8, “The Gloaming”
That suit with the purple waistcoat!
Pomp: 6
Vanity: 5
Rakishness: 8
TOTAL: 19
We get another look at Absalom’s 9 to 5 getup and it is a good one–if only because he trades up for what looks like a corduroy waistcoat in a deep, deep purple.
Seen in Episode 2, “Aisling”
That chancellor getup with the gold waistcoat!
Pomp: 10
Vanity: 3
Rakishness: 7
TOTAL: 20
This is the big time, people. When Absalom Breakspear goes to work, he goes to werk! The pomp of this look is off the charts. This is a man who commands a city, commands attention, and commands a velvet robe like no other. This opulence isn’t born of his vanity, either. It’s literally Absalom’s job to look this good.
Seen in Episode 1, “Some Dark God Wakes”
That hunting lewk with cloak AND hat!
Pomp: 1
Vanity: 10
Rakishness: 10
TOTAL: 21
Yaaaaass work that hat and cloak, Abby!
Seen in Episode 8, “The Gloaming”
That chancellor getup with the red waistcoat!
Pomp: 10
Vanity: 5
Rakishness: 7
TOTAL: 22
Remember when I said this opulence wasn’t born of Absalom’s vanity? Okay, switching out that gold waistcoat for a striking red one is total vanity. He knows that color’s gonna pop against all that black! This is Absalom putting the pageant in pageantry.
Seen in Episode 5, “Grieve No More”
That gold robe and gold waistcoat!
Pomp: 5
Vanity: 10
Rakishness: 8
TOTAL: 23
The robe powerful enough to slay a darkasher! Y’all, this is what the man wears at home, when he’s reading a paper over a bowl of steampunk cereal. He takes off that suit coat and slides on the most elegant robe you’ve ever seen–and he takes off exactly zero rings. Hell, he might put more rings on! Even when he’s resting, the swagger is not.
Seen in Episode 4, “The Joining of Unlike Things”
That gold robe and red waistcoat!
Pomp: 5
Vanity: 9
Rakishness: 10
TOTAL: 24
Oh, you thought the gold waistcoat and gold robe was a stunner? Peep this red and gold combo, a stunning display of topnotch, casual elegance that catches the eyes of all who see it–and since Absalom wears this at home, he’s mainly dressing to impress himself. I salute you, Chancellor, and I salute Jared Harris who somehow makes holding a newspaper in his ring-covered hands while wearing a literal closet full of silk and satin seem like a totally natural and effortlessly mundane thing to do. Give the man an Emmy, and give me all of Absalom Breakspear’s clothes.
Seen in Episode 5, “Grieve No More”
