Pilot Review: Knightfall

Knightfall (History)
Premiered December 6 at 10pm

I don’t watch much on History, though I do consider myself a fan of historical dramas. I opted to give this one a chance since I’m really trying to watch everything, but I could tell from the very beginning that this wasn’t a show I was going to like. The Crusades isn’t a particularly appealing time for any sort of optimistic programming, and this one felt far too forced and fabricated to be compelling. I feel like I’ve seen at least a dozen other series where it hasn’t been clear who the main characters are but so many people die in the first episode that it doesn’t seem possible to track it anyway. There was such excessive violence present in this hour that I couldn’t imagine it would be worthwhile to get attached to anyone, and it has been a while since I’ve seen someone stabbed through the face – always a pleasant sight. There was a lot of talk about the grail, but I was much more entertained by each minute of “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” The suggestion to take money from the Jews rather than have it lent was initially dismissed by a king who wanted to be loved by the people, but things quickly became about framing the Jews for the murder of Christians and then expelling them first for their own safety and then to be killed on the way out. The effects and production design here are poor, but I’m not sure they’re any worse than the writing, which shows that telling a story about an interesting period of time might not be any more worthwhile than merely reading a history book.

How will it work as a series? I still couldn’t pick any of the main characters on this show out of a lineup, and I’d say that’s a flaw of this show to fail to create storylines and personality dynamics that are recognizable or memorable. More violence, persecution of the Jews, and general debauchery is sure to follow in the coming nine episodes.
How long will it last? Reviews aren’t great for this show (though some more positive than mine), but it appears that the ratings are considerably more tremendous. I guess this is what History viewers want to be watching, as it scored the third-highest cable debut of the year. I’d expect that, if this is something History wants to continue producing, it will be back for at least another season given the strong viewership numbers.

Pilot grade: F