The Queen's Gambit

The series "The Queen's Move" begins with the fact that its main character, 20-year-old Beth Harmon, is late for a chess game in Paris. It appears to be an important party in her life as both reporters and viewers cover it. She arrived disheveled, pumped up and half asleep. Why? The story flashes back to when Beth was 5 years old. In a tragic accident, Beth loses her mother and soon finds herself in a community of orphans. Feeling separate and isolated, Beth befriends Jolene, her only friend all along. Days of fatigue and boredom dragged on, when one day Beth accidentally stumbled upon a chessboard in the basement. Her curiosity is heightened when the janitor, Mr. Scheibel, who owns the board, tells her, "Girls don't play chess." Beth, suffering from heightened emotions and anger, is determined to learn how to do it. At night, she begins to dream of a chess game in the air, a side effect of the tranquilizers given to every child in the orphanage. When Beth dictates to Mr. Scheibel the next day to share his knowledge of chess, he is delighted and surprised that he has finally found a friend in this boring, monotonous orphanage who shares his interest in the game. Time passes, and 9-year-old Beth begins to mentally play this game every night, addicted to both drugs and the game.