Tell-Tale TV Series Premiere Panels: Of Kings and Prophets

Of Kings and Prophets takes us back to Biblical times where Saul is king, prophets hold power, and the war between the Philistines and Israelites is brewing. A shepherd name David slays a lion using only his slingshot, which will repel him into fame.

Our panelists are:

• Lissete Lanuza Saenz, associate editor for Tell-Tale TV
• Christine Laskodi, associate editor for Tell-Tale TV
• Allison Nichols, contributing writer for Tell-Tale TV

Give it to me straight. What did you think of the premiere?

Lizzie: The episode started a bit slow, but, by the end of it, I was interested. Mostly because Saul and Samuel needed to have it out for this show to find any sense of direction. And even after their confrontation in the end, I’m still not sure what I should be expecting, other than what the Bible already told me was going to happen. But the characters are interesting, and the show is a bit more than what I expected, so I’m willing to give it a few episodes to completely hook me.

Christine: Like Lizzie, I had the same problem with the slow plot. I was about 20 minutes in and ready to give up on it, but I kept going. I don’t love it right off the bat. I think it’s got a good premise, but I don’t know…something doesn’t totally work. It’s somewhere between The Bible, Game of Thrones, and like…the movie 300, which is odd for me. I’ll give it a second episode, but if I’m not totally loving it, I may have to give it a pass.

Allison: I was really bored. At one point, I paused it to figure out how much more I had to endure. This just didn’t do it for me. It was too slow for my taste, and nothing really hooked me. I really just want to know if that poor sheep is still alive. I’m really concerned about it. If it is alive, is it still tied up there? Can someone go rescue it?

What’s the show’s biggest problem?

Lizzie: That biblical shows shouldn’t cast people so pretty? No? Probably that it lacks a certain direction. I mean, the first episode was gory to the extreme, and it introduced a few interesting threads, but if you asked me right now what the point of all of it was, what the stakes are, I couldn’t tell you. I’m not even sure who I should be rooting for, to be honest. It’s all very messy.

Christine: It’s a little hard to follow, but I’d chalk that up to them laying the groundwork for the series. They’re still introducing us to the characters and the plots that we’re supposed to care about. But I’m also not entirely comfortable seeing characters that I know from Sunday school being sexualized (and let’s face it, the casting department went all out on this show).

Allison: It was all over the place. Between too many characters and the unclear direction, I felt like I was wandering around confused for most of the hour. Like Lizzie said, it’s not clear who we should be rooting for or what/who we should be concerned about. I also felt terrible for not knowing the Bible as well as I should, but that’s more of a personal problem…

What/Who do you want to see more of?

Lizzie: David, obviously. And Michal. All in all, the women of Kings and Prophets all seem like interesting characters that I want to see more of. The King’s sons, on the contrary? Meh. Boring.

Christine: David, because of course, the whole story is about David and his lineage, presumably (unless they’ve got different source material). But I also agree with Lizzie that the women are really fascinating on this show. It would be interesting to show their POV of these stories, especially because women aren’t primarily focused on in the actual Book of Samuel.

Allison: I would love to be out and about in the towns more. I found those scenes fascinating. It gives a sense of what things were like back then. Oh, and I also want to know how my sheep is doing.

What was your favorite moment/quote?

Lizzie: David slaying the lion and/or Michal’s response when he shows up at the palace after having done so. Probably because these are the two characters that most interested me.

Christine: Michal putting David in his place after slaying the lion, telling him that he didn’t do it alone because God was with him. It’s a good humbling moment for David. And surely not the last we’ll see of David’s ego.

Allison: I’m with Lizzie and Christine — Michal’s response was amazing. She’s my favorite character, hands down.

What did you think of the premiere? Will you be sticking around? Leave your thoughts in a comment below.

Of Kings and Prophets airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on ABC.