A contemporary David and Saul story

Kings

NBC, Sundays, 8 p.m. ET

David and minister Ephraim Samuels attend a royal gathering. Image © 2008 NBC.There are two kings in the new series that NBC launched in March, and they are based on the saga told in 1 Samuel about David and King Saul. The series was marketed as a political soap opera — the advance notices claimed that this was not a “religious” story. We could summarize it as the Bible meets Dallas meets Shakespeare. The program comes from the prolific writer Michael Green (Heroes, Everwood and Smallville, to name a few of his series). In the premiere episode the only mention of God is by King Silas Benjamin (based on Saul in the Bible), though no relationship is developed between him and the Almighty. The king repeats the story of how God anointed him by sending a flock of butterflies to land on his head and form a crown — a story his family has grown tired of hearing.

The series is set in a modern nation called Gilboa, at war with neighboring Gath. Young David Shepherd is brought back from the frontlines after destroying two enemy tanks, named “Goliaths,” so King Silas Benjamin can use him for his PR value. David also rescues the King's son, Jack, after he is taken hostage, but in this version the two seem unlikely to become as close as the David and Jonathan in the original story. Jack feels humiliated at being rescued, and he resents his father giving David a high post that he had wanted for himself. Also, we learn from a heated exchange between father and son that the latter harbors a secret that could be politically damaging were it to be revealed.

King Silas Benjamin presides at his state council in the capital city of Shiloh. Note that the king has adopted the butterfly for the nation’s flag, because a cluster of butterflies once formed a crown atop his head. Image © 2008 NBC.On the fringes of the first episode is the minister Ephraim Samuels (based on the biblical prophet Samuel), who helped bring King Silas to power, but breaks with him over the king’s renewal of the war with Gath. Another character who no doubt will become more important is the King’s wife Queen Rose Benjamin (Susanna Thompson). The royal princess Michelle (Allison Miller), who is an advocate for children’s health care, is drawn to David, and he turns out to have musical talent — only in this version it is for the piano rather than the harp. His moving playing of a piece by Liszt is one of the things that attracts Michelle to him.

There is plenty of court intrigue, with the King’s financial advisor plotting a possible coup, one that might involve Prince Jack. The best thing so far about the series is actor Ian McShane as the ruthless King Silas. In an Al Pacino-way, his is a commanding presence. It appears that there is plenty to look forward to, including the guest appearance of Macauley Culkin in four episodes. The network has picked up all 13 episodes of the series.

This could be an interesting series for churches to alert their people to, especially those interested in the Old Testament. One might argue over a number of liberties that the writer has taken with the biblical material — I was not impressed by the logic of the battle scene in which David destroys two Goliath tanks, or how King Silas was able to rebuild in so few years the metropolis of Shiloh, his capital, when it had been so devastated by war — but the series is good enough to lay these qualms aside and sit back and enjoy the emotional fireworks ignited by troubled relationships of the characters. The network is making each episode available for viewing online. All who missed the opening two-hour pilot, can still watch it.

—Ed McNulty