Da Vincis Demons Season 1 Episode 1 [ 2026 Edition ]

We meet his loyal companions: Zoroaster (Gregg Chillin), a cynical grave robber and smuggler, and Nico (Eros Vlahos), his wide-eyed, naive young apprentice. Florence in Focus: The Political Chessboard

The show highlights this tension, emphasizing Leonardo’s resentment toward his cold, legalistic father. Leonardo was an ambidextrous mirror-writer.

Tom Riley's portrayal is the anchor of the episode. He captures Leonardo’s manic energy and his frustration with a world that cannot keep up with his intellect. A standout scene involves Leonardo convincing Lorenzo to hire him not by begging, but by dismantling Lorenzo's ego and predicting his political needs, showcasing a mind that understands human psychology as deeply as mechanics. da vincis demons season 1 episode 1

In the series premiere of Da Vinci's Demons , titled " The Hanged Man ," creator David S. Goyer introduces a version of Leonardo da Vinci

Director David S. Goyer infuses the premiere with a distinct visual language. When Leonardo observes the world—whether watching the flight patterns of birds or calculating the trajectory of a crossbow—the screen fills with animated CGI sketches resembling Da Vinci's actual notebooks. This stylistic choice effectively visualizes the protagonist's hyper-active mind, pulling the audience directly into his thought process. We meet his loyal companions: Zoroaster (Gregg Chillin),

This is not the dour, methodical genius of The Agony and the Ecstasy . This Leonardo is 25 years old—vain, volatile, and haunted. The pilot wastes no time establishing the central conflict of the entire series: the war between the Church’s dogma and the Enlightenment’s curiosity. When Leonardo dissects a human corpse by candlelight, he whispers to his apprentice, “ Knowledge is the only thing that is truly holy. ” It is a line that functions as the show’s thesis statement.

The of the Pazzi Conspiracy hinted at in this episode Tom Riley's portrayal is the anchor of the episode

However, the episode struggles with tone. Riley’s Leonardo quips like a Marvel hero, which undercuts the genuine danger of 15th-century Italian politics. The violence is sudden and brutal (a man’s throat is slit in a confessional), but the dialogue often feels too modern, too slick. The mystical subplot—Leonardo’s obsession with the “Book of Leaves” and his dead mother—feels grafted on, a TV mystery box where historical curiosity should be.