Kings

So Mrs. X and I watched the pilot episode of Kings last night. It actually aired on Sunday but we recorded it and watched it last night. It wasn’t bad. It wasn’t great either. It’s a bit slow, but I think that’s because of set up and character establishment and I have hopes that it will pick up in later episodes. It also is not subtle in the least. In addition to using all the standard TV clichés, the writers go over the top in trying to make sure the ordinary person gets their references.

For those of you who haven’t seen it or even the previews for it, Kings is a modern retelling of the second half of the book of 1 Samuel, telling the story of David’s rise from a humble shepherd to king of Israel. Of course, the show doesn’t go so far in calling it Israel, but they do everything but. Below is a list of the various references that I caught in my watching:

King Saul – The king in the show is called Silas Benjamin. Silas is not the same as Saul, but it looks similar. However, Saul was of the tribe of Benjamin, hence the use of the last name Benjamin.

Shiloh – At the beginning of the episode, Silas is shown dedicating the new capital of Shiloh, which had been built up from a ruined city during the previous wars. Shiloh was actually the town where the Ark of the Covenant was kept prior to David’s successful capture of Jerusalem. Saul actually kept court at his home in Gibeah with Mizpah and Gilgal being the sites of great assembly for the Israelites.

Gilboa – This is the name of the Israelite country in the show. In actuality, it was a mountain in northern Israel, overlooking the Jezreel Valley, where Israel was defeated in battle by the Philistines. During the battle, three of Saul’s sons were killed and Saul himself was severely wounded. Saul was overtaken by the Philistines and fell on his sword rather than be killed in battle.

Gath – In the show, Gath is the neighboring country that Gilboa is fighting. Gath was one of the five Philistine city-states that fought Israel in alliance. It was also the hometown of Goliath.

Goliath – Goliath was the giant whom David kills with a single stone from his slingshot. In the show, it is a class of tank that looks a lot like the Abrams variety in the US Army. This is actually one part of the show that disappointed me. First, it downgraded David’s triumph as Goliath was a singular champion for the Philistines in the Bible. Turning him into just one of many tanks takes away any specialness of the victory. Second, it seems rather absurd that a country as seemingly advanced as Gilboa is shown to be would not have any armor of their own and would be facing a tank battalion with only infantry. Any country that has an army of any consequence has some armor to put into the field, outclassed as it may be.

David – In the show, David is given the name of David Shepherd and is shown to live on a farm with an aptitude for fixing things. David’s father was Jesse, but in the show, they switched this around a bit by having David’s father be killed in a previous war and making his mother’s name Jessie. He is shown being an adept piano player rather than a harp player as in the Bible. At the beginning of the show, David is shown fixing the car of the Reverend Samuels, who then anoints David in a very subtle way.

Samuel – Samuel was the priest who led Israel prior to Saul becoming king. He anointed Saul and later David as kings of Israel. Saul’s great undoing was to summon Samuel’s spirit from the dead by using the power of the witch of Endor. Samuel then proclaimed that Saul would die in the upcoming battle. In the show, Samuel is shown as a late-forties black man, growing increasingly opposed to the king’s choices. He eventually rejects Silas as king, though he has yet shown that David will succeed Silas as king.

Michal – Michal was the second daughter of Saul. She was given to David in marriage as a reward for slaying Goliath and later helps him escape Saul’s plan to kill David. In the show, her name is given as Michelle and she is shown as the only daughter of Silas. She is not given as a reward per say, though David is rewarded by being allowed to dance with her during the banquet held in his honor. David and Michelle are shown to develop something of a romance later in the episode.

Abner – Abner is shown as the head military commander and (it seems) head of the secret service (including assassinations). In the Bible, Abner was Saul’s principle commander and supported his one surviving son (Ish-Bosheth) against David for king until Ish-Bosheth insulted Abner. Abner defected to David but was murdered by David’s commander Joab.

Probably the two biggest deviations in the show from the Bible are Silas’ son Jack and the elevation of the Queen and her family. Saul had four sons and his eldest, Jonathan, was David’s closest friend, even thwarting his father to protect David’s life. In the show, Silas is only given one (legitimate) son and he is shown to be a drunken playboy, despised by his father because of his homosexual tendencies.

The use of the Queen and her brother are the other interesting twist. In the Bible, Saul is anointed by God and that is enough. In the show, Silas divorced his wife and married the sister of the wealthiest man in the country. This family of bankers provides the gold necessary to keep economic stability which allows Silas to sieze the monarchy. Essentially, they give a twist on the conspiracy theory of the cabal of global bankers who manipulate the global economy to ensure that modern leaders do as they please. The pilot episode ended with the brother-in-law withdrawing gold from the treasury and then offering the kingdom to Silas’ son Jack (his nephew).

I look forward to seeing how they do things in the remaining episodes. NBC went out on a limb and seems to have committed to a full 13-episode season. Initial ratings were low enough that I expect that the show will not be renewed for a second season. I suspect that they will burn through the rest of Silas’ kingship and the show will end with David being proclaimed king while Jack is proclaimed king-in-exile and civil war looming between the two sides. If a second season were to ever emerge, it would probably cover the civil war and David’s conquests to stabilize the region. I would be curious to see how they would treat the conquest of Jerusalem or if that would be a part left on the cutting room floor. Given that there probably won’t be a second season, that’s a moot point anyway.