About halfway through this episode I was ready to tear it apart. Did we really need this unnecessary trial to take up the entirety of one of the final episodes of Kings? I think it would have been fine in the middle of a normal season, but as one of the last episodes, I was looking for more than a falsified treason trial.
As the episode went on, however, focus shifted from the trial back to the characters, and I was much happier. Then of course, the last ten minutes happened….
I had hoped that David’s character was beginning to see some growth with the great showdown at the end of last week’s episode. However, he was brimming over with righteous indignation through this episode and, frankly, it’s wearing a little thin on me. Specifically, the scene when David is invited into the plot against Silas and he instead flaunts how “good” he is. Really? The goody-two-shoes act was just a little too much for me.
I understand where David was coming from, not wanting to be exactly what he was being accused of, but at the same time, it was clear to him that Silas wanted nothing more than to kill David and get him out of the picture. Would David really sacrifice himself in the name of pride? Isn’t that one of the seven deadly sins? Then, he shows that he is willing to destroy the reputation of the woman that he loves in order to save himself? These things just don’t add up for me.
I was able to look past those perceived inconsistencies, however, when the end of the episode turned the show upside down. I wasn’t sure how far the show was going to go with these final episodes, but it certainly appears that things are going to come to a head, with David ending up King. The final trial scene was really great. Though I thought it was a bit forced, and a tad rushed, to have Jack completely change allegiances because he was overwhelmed by David’s “goodness”, I thought it still worked overall. I would have liked to have seen a little more development there. I know that we have seen Jack plotting against Silas and silently despising him for weeks now, but I felt the timing was odd for him to blow up at the trial. It certainly made for a great dramatic scene, though.
I really wanted to mention something about Thomasina too. I thought she had a great part in this episode, devoting herself fully to Silas and the “dark side.” It was a nice moment between her and the guard, where she was clearly feeling guilty about her actions.
I’m really curious as to where the show is going to go from here. Is a full out civil war going to break out? Will David align himself with the rebel group even though he already made it perfectly clear that he thinks he is better than them? Will we ever find out the story with Andrew?
Clacked by Bob Degon
on Jul 12, 2009 @ 14:00 EST5EDT
Bob, I gotta disagree. ;-)
With all the plot and character development this trial initiated, I’m not sure why you would deem it unnecessary. All the relationships could have remained fairly static as they have during the buildup without some sort of triggering event, and the televised trial of a national hero for high treason and espionage, capped off with the revelation of the absolute ruler’s base perfidy, seemed sufficient to me.
I don’t know where people expect David to grow from perfect, stronger, smarter and better than his fellow men and anointed by God and His Prophet. If it’s to become more like the interesting, flawed characters like Silas and Jack, I doubt that’s part of his character arc. Actually, it’s a bit refreshing to see a character that actually is that good, much to the disbelief of his peers. I don’t think it’s in any way an act, or flaunting, or requiring air quotes.
When you describe David’s motivations, you’re judging him as a person in the real world instead of an paragon in a universe where God (and other forces) actively intervene in human events at the microcosmic level. Duty and loyalty have been repeatedly shown to be the core of David’s value system, even if his liege has not been of a similar quality. I don’t think pride entered into his decision at all, especially as he’s shown scant measure of that attribute in the past. Returning to his death was more acceptable to him than true betrayal.
And if you recall, it was David that was hesitant to involve Michelle in the trial, first protesting it would paint her as a traitor as well, then sharing with her his suspicions that the King had a hand in the matter. He did not make the decision, she did:
“I will take the stand. I will defend you. And my father will be glad. If you believe in me, believe in him.”
After such, calling the princess as a witness in service to the truth was hardly a craven, self-serving ploy, especially as there was no way for him to know that she had changed her mind. Because David loved her, he acceded to her wish to come forward and support the man she loved. It was also the way a fair Gilboan trial should have functioned.
Have you been watching Jack in previous episodes? Because his flip and his worship/loathe relationship with David has been a long time coming, not something that just happened in the trial. Plus, for the moment, it seems he’s still supporting his uncle in the coup d’etat — he just has a soft spot for David.
I think Jack despises himself far more than he does his father, especially as David is always around to show the prince just how weak his character is. For Jack, despoiling David’s good name and reputation was probably much worse than simply killing him, and he was complicit in the entire attack while sorely aware that David was a better man that either his father or himself, and that the charges they leveled against him were much closer to their own level than the farmboy’s. And to see Silas triumphant in his deception, having convinced David and likely Michelle as well to abandon his defense, was so abhorrent that I felt it completely appropriate for Jack to blow up at that moment, rail against and expose his father for what he was before Court and country, and not even worry about the consequences for his own head and crown.
The tête-à-tête between Silas and Thomasina felt odd to me, as they’ve been much more in sync in the past. I suppose it’s just a sign of how unhinged Silas is becoming. Also, I thought she had already carried out an off-the-books assassination at his order before, so I didn’t see why she’d balk at the King breaking his bargain with and murdering his helpless prisoner.
I will purchase the Kings DVD set when it drops in September, but it’s such a beautiful show that I wish there would be a Blu-Ray version.
I was fully prepared to be disagreed with on this post. Every one of your points is valid. For some reason (and it could have just been my mood when I sat down to watch it), this episode just didn’t work as well for me as all the previous episodes.
It just struck me as odd that such a small thing would finally be the straw for Jack. I think it pretty much comes down to me not liking the David character. I don’t like him, so I don’t understand why Jack would give so much for him. It seems like Jack knew what he was getting into when he agreed to argue against David in the trial… I dunno. Like I said, it just didn’t work for me as well as it should have (and obviously did for you).
I think I am a far more cynical person than you.
I am looking forward to seeing how the final two episodes play out though, this is still a great show.
Also… thanks for intelligent and thoughtful response. Always appreciated.
I understand how mood can take you out of a show, especially difficult (in both senses of the word) ones like Kings or Terminator. If you’re not fully immersed in the narrative, it’s easy to mock the inherent absurdities of genre fare. Since I wasn’t well rested last night, I watched Harper’s Island instead and saved Kings for when my mind was sharp.
For all of Jack’s world-weariness and cynicism, he still retains vestiges of his sheltered upbringing, just not to Michelle’s degree. From what we’ve seen, he’s worked to build his military career by day, indulged to excess by night, and is only now starting to dip his toe into the political waters navigated by his elder relations. Wasn’t the last scheme that was solely Jack’s the tabloid photo setup of David early on? Since then, it seems that it’s been Silas, William, or Katrina concocting the nastier plots for Major Benjamin.
My point is that Jack knew intellectually what he was getting himself into by taking up the prosecution, but I don’t think he was fully prepared for dirtying his own hands each day and piling lie atop lie to drag David through the muck. Again, see here Jack’s self-loathing and his love/hate relationship with Captain Shepherd. I think it would have been easier for him just to shoot David in the head, and we saw in Gath that he couldn’t even do that.
You don’t have to like the David character, especially as in season one he’s more an irresistable force around which all the more interesting characters revolve and by which they are perturbed. I presume the writers planned to take several years to strip away his naivete and transform him into the king, but were caught short. This is also why I was unsurprised that so many fans loathed teenage John Connor. Even the Book of David was only begun last week.
I think the trial was the flashpoint, and the endgame will be amazing, with McShane spitting plenty of invective and vitriol throughout. After all, the gloves are definitely off now.
“Also… thanks for intelligent and thoughtful response. Always appreciated.”
Thanks for the compliment. Unfortunately, there will be a paucity of such contributions going forward with all my favorite, more thought-provoking shows being canceled and dross multiplying in the subsequent vacuum.
Gah. Sorry, there’s just something about the studied, deliberate language on Kings that aggrandizes my pretentious locutions.
Again, another amazingly layered episode. I’m with Ryan – Jack’s slow burn which then exploded at the end of the trial made sense to me. How much more is he willing to sacrifice?
It’s a shame that this type of show, which requires you to think is getting the pitiful ratings. But, maybe that is why it is getting low ratings – most people don’t want to participate or digest – they just want to watch someone else make a fool of themselves. Although after a long week, an episode of Wipeout is a nice distraction.
<<<< shakes fist at TV and says "Damn you NBC"
I have to say there’s absolutely nothing wrong with Wipeout, least of all Jill Wagner. It’s a show that just makes me happy, especially in HD with all that water and mud and the derisive color commentary. But there are also times when I want to think about and digest my television.