Article first published as OF KINGS AND PROPHETS Review on Seat42F.
As has become very in vogue over the last few years, ABC
trots out a new Bible-based series for their spring schedule, expanding
the offering from the miniseries and TV movies viewers have been
getting recently into a full-fledged series. OF KINGS AND PROPHETS goes
for the Old Testament, adapting the Books of Samuel (Joshua, Judges,
Samuel, and Kings), or more specifically, the later parts of that story,
when Israel was guided by the prophets. Or, around 630-540 BCE.
The
series has two main players, as near as I can tell. King Saul (Ray
Winstone, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) is the
leader of the Israelites, uniting the tribes for the first time. He’s
prone to anger, but mostly trusts in God, whose instructions are relayed
to him through the Prophet Samuel (Mohammad Bakri, Laila’s Birthday).
Saul is torn between his political aspirations, his family commitments,
and what he is told his goals are. Is he a wise enough ruler to balance
those forces?
The second key figure
is David (Olly Rix, WPC 56), a shepherd. In the first episode, David’s
father is set to punished because he has failed to protect his sheep
from a lion, so David sets out to kill the lion and restore honor to his
clan. Basically, he’s the young, confident hero of the piece.
And
really, despite everything else going on, and there’s a lot going on in
the first episode of OF KINGS AND PROPHETS, that’s all I can tell you
about the plot. The reason for this is because it’s a convoluted mess
full of underdeveloped, interchangeable, forgettable characters and
bizarre choices.
Take
the liberties OF KINGS AND PROPHETS makes from the source, for example.
To update the story for modern times, and with the hopes of appealing
to the crowd who likes a good sword-and-sandals genre program, a lot of
sex and violence are added in, as well as important roles for female
characters, especially Ahinoam (Terra Nova’s Simone Kessell, the best
part of the show). These things stretch the historical accuracy,
especially the relationship drama, which seems tailored to the soapy
tastes of present day broadcast networks.
Yet,
the strong belief in God is left intact. This would be fine, given that
the people who lived in this era likely had a much stronger faith than
most people today, except, as in most modern Biblical tellings, their
God is real and does affect the course of events, a literal deus ex
machina.
I understand that the
religion-centric conceit is left in to appeal to the parts of the
viewing audience that believe the events of The Bible really happened,
and to try to woo the Christian sect. However, that contrasts with the
blood and sex stuff I mentioned before. Yes, there’s violence and
intercourse in The Bible, but not the way it plays out on screen here.
The conflict between the two makes OF KINGS AND PROPHETS feel disjointed
and at odds with itself.
About the
only thing I can say positive about OF KINGS AND PROPHETS is that it
looks pretty cool. Filmed in South Africa, the production achieves the
epic feeling it’s going for, and the landscapes are wonderful. It does
feel set in a different time and place than just about anything else on
the Big Four networks, and sets itself apart from most of what it will
air opposite.
That’s not enough,
though, to redeem a meandering, shallow story, and unfortunately, The
Bible will have to continue to wait for good adaptations of its works,
with OF KINGS AND PROPHETS falling in line with the other poor examples
from the last few years.
OF KINGS AND PROPHETS premieres Tuesday at 10/9c on ABC.
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