Musing on The Chosen

 

L-R: Thomas, Ramah (F), John, Simon the Zealot, Judas (sitting), Matthew (standing), Simon Peter, Jesus, Mary Magdalene (standing in rear), Andrew (sitting), James (standing), Mary Mother of Jesus (standing in rear), Eden (wife of Peter, standing), James the Lesser (standing in front of Eden), Philip (on ground), Thaddeus (sitting), Tamar the Ethiopian ((F), standing in rear), Nathaniel.
[(F) - fictional characters]

As a general rule I have an aversion for watching anything to do with history published within the last decade or so.  I know that's not fair.  I'm sure some good productions have come out during this time.  It's just so often things are infused with the Leftwing anti-Westernism it's tough to get by any fair viewing or enjoying of the content without choking on the agendas. 

That's why, despite the buzz, I didn't try to get hold of The Chosen when it was first released.  If I have an aversion to historical productions, I avoid like the plague modernist spins on anything Scriptural.  

Nonetheless, a couple years ago when my mom was still living with us, and everyone was at Mass while I was home watching her, I decided for her TV viewing of the day, I'd turn this on.  It just happened to be one of the first options, and there are only so many times I can watch Matlock.  

At first I was befuddled.  What was this dumpster heap I was watching?  Yes, I immediately recognized the actor Erick Avari as Nicodemus, who was the show's obvious ringer.  But it made no sense.  The first episode was almost over and no Jesus. It was all about Mary Magdalene, her demons, Nicodemus's and the Pharisees' inability to help her, and her downward spiral.  Until, at the end of the episode, she leaves a tavern, stumbles into a back alley, and suddenly, there is Jesus.  All he says is 'Mary.'  And that's that. End of episode. 

Which is about how the show handles things.  Now, I have come to enjoy and, more importantly, appreciate the show since that first Easter weekend when I saw it.  But before telling why, a few notes about some issues that I or others have with it and how it handles things in ways I think could be better.

First, it's a series.  Like all television series in the history of television, even with the greatest series, you will have good seasons and not so good seasons.  Good episodes, and not so good episodes.  Same here.  The first season was inspired, and the second season batted it out of the ballpark.  Some of the best religious production I've ever seen came from those.  After that?  A hit, two hits, there's a miss, another hit, a bunt, a strike, and a hit again.  Both in terms of seasons as well as episodes. Every season has had at least some shows worth their salt.  But again, a full TV series with the warts and all.

Second, its basic gimmick.  In some ways, the show approaches the Gospel like a combination of DC Comics and Tom Stoppard.  That is, Jesus, especially in the early episodes, is basically Clark Kent. He's your buddy Jesus from Nazareth.  He laughs, kids, jokes about.  He's an itinerant carpenter, building different things to make a buck.  He hurts his hand while crafting something.  He's one of the guys.  But then, when the Bible story hits, he's all Second Person of the Holy Trinity.  No suffering fools or taking gruff there.  From the beginning, it makes it clear his eyes are on his passion and he never loses sight of that, no matter how much tomfoolery in the meantime.  

Likewise, a tremendous amount of the story is pure fan fiction.  Like your 'Dracula: The True Story!' types you see today, whereby they mean completely changed around and made up, same here.  But like Stoppard's play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, that all changes when the biblical accounts walk into the room.  With Stoppard, the titular characters are modern, speak modern, act modern, and more or less carry on like a modernized sitcom.  But when the actual characters of Hamlet come into the scene, it's straight from Shakespeare quote by quote.  Same with The Chosen.  However fictionalized or made up the characters or storylines, once the biblical narrative kicks in, it's usually verbatim from the Scriptures. 

Now, this is all fine and dandy, but I think one thing it suffers from is an abundance of time.  They know they now have many seasons and episodes, and the temptation to fill the air with endless fictional accounts or this and that can be a bit much.  Some is done well, such as a fictional exposition to help the audience understand the political factions within the Jewish leadership.  But sometimes it's a bit much.  I mean, you can't make things too suspenseful because we all know what will happen.  So endless fictionalized machinations and intrigue and subplots can lose their flavor after awhile.

I do love the idea of Jesus as 'every dude' in that Clark Kent sort of way.  After all, it's refreshing to discover that the Second Person of the Holy Trinity is actually lousy at handball.  But there are times when they go a bit far with that, or with the more modernized dialogue.  Sometimes it works.  Sometimes it doesn't.  It's just one of those things.  The worst part is probably for those well versed in the biblical narratives.  Sometimes the show changes around timelines or stories to the point that those who know the biblical accounts might be genuinely confused.  Though people who have no clue will not be bothered.  And the series does begin, it should be noted, with an opening text explaining that this is a heavily fictionalized account, and recommending all viewers grab a Bible and read for themselves.  So there is that. 

Finally you have the character portrayals. The show goes out of its way to reimagine various biblical characters in new ways.  And that, as can be expected, has caused a great deal of discussion. Matthew is heavily autistic, which accounts for his obsession with details.  James the Lesser is disabled (more on that later).  Pontius Pilate is a fop, an almost effeminate popinjay who is in over his head but knows Emperor Tiberius is ever behind the scenes like a Romanized Sauron, ready to drop the hammer if he doesn't get his act together.  Simon Peter, while muscular, is one of the shortest in the cast.  Simon is often shown as a larger, dominant natural leader type.  Simon the Zealot is practically a ninja warrior Judea style.  There is reason to believe that the character of  Yussif, a major secondary character who is in the Sanhedrin, whose family are wealthy stonemasons, and is sympathetic to the Jesus mission, will turn out to be none other than Joseph of Arimathea.  And on it goes.  Like any creative decisions, these have brought praise and condemnation, with many preferring more traditional portrayals, even if they like the series as a whole. Others, naturally, find them refreshing or thought provoking.  In this case, a matter of opinion I suppose.  

Now, to paraphrase Peter O'Toole in the movie Becket, I have told you why I hate The Chosen, but I haven't told you why I love it.  Though hate is a strong word.  Simply some criticisms I believe are valid.  Next time, however, it will be the positives.  And don't worry, they far outpace the negatives, which is why I don't hesitate, despite the issues I have, giving it a rousing thumbs up. More on that next time.