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[Christophe]

So. Kings, the new NBC show that dramatically re-interprets the biblical story of King David in contemporary settings. Problem is, I'm not sure if I actually like it. Sure, I enjoy watching it, but some design choices--oh, the obvious hokey renaming of things (Goliath "tanks" for one), no matter how necessary it is, seems really weird to me (anyone remember Baz Lurhmann's awful version of Romeo and Juliet? Yeah, kind of like that except less repulsive).

Well, what's yr take on it?

[Chesire Cat]

I actually enjoyed Romeo + Juliet, not to the exclusion of the original works, but it was a fun re-imagining that was enjoyable to watch.

[KvP]

Ian McShane is so, so good. Always.

The 13 episodes have all been filmed but from the looks of the Nielsen ratings Kings isn't long for this Earth.

[scarred]

I actually enjoyed Romeo + Juliet, not to the exclusion of the original works, but it was a fun re-imagining that was enjoyable to watch.

Mercutio alone was worth that movie being made.

Also, Kings is one of those shows that I've wanted to try but never had the courage. After all, it's on a real TV channel. I feel guilty enough watching Dollhouse. But with BSG gone, I might have to give it a try. Especially if no one's watching it... that must mean it's good.

Unless it's like Jericho.

[yellowfoliage]

Romeo and Juliet is Shakespeare's weakest play. I honestly think that Baz Lhurmann's movie is an improvement. Not that the play is bad, it's just dull, and the movie is anything but.

[Joseph]

Romeo + Juliet was a really enjoyable, well shot and constructed film.  Tons of style, occasionally a bit over the top, but really good.

I just read a New Yorker article on Kings.  It sounded interesting, and I'm going to look in to streaming an episode online sometime over the next few days.  The article was positive, but not overly so.  How's the acting?

[Reed]

Like KvP said, Ian McShane is fantastic. He is better than the rest of the cast, but I think they do a pretty good job too. I like the show, it's definitely worth checking out on hulu.

[benji]

I'm really enjoying Kings. I wouldn't call it the best thing ever. I will again Echo Ian McShane as the stand out actor.

I can definitely see how this is like a Shakespeare "re-imagining." And like many of those, it rests squarely on the director and actors shoulders to sell this as a legitimate reality. I'm hoping that we'll see less Goliath tanks and things like that from now on. Given that this was going to be a network TV audience, I'm hoping they just wanted to beat people over the head with this being the story of King David, and now that that's established they'll just tell the story without quite so much "look at this, aren't we clever the way we renamed this!" moments. Unlike Romeo + Juliet, they aren't tied down to a specific script, just plot points, so hopefully they won't have to give everything weird names. (If David ends up having an affair with a woman named Beth Sheba, I'm out.)

[Christophe]

I actually used to love Romeo + Juliet a lot when I was younger. Recently I rewatched it (or tried to) and it stuck out like a sore thumb how cartoonish and dumb everything seemed to look. Sure it wasn't supposed to be the most "serious" imagining of it but it just looked really, really stupid to me.

[MrBridge]

I missed the first two episodes and saw a lot of Game of Thrones in the plot and writing, especially about court stuff.  Guess I'll have to go back an watch the first two, but I rather enjoyed my reality.