Women would not be seen or heard, not running around in red dresses and flashing their bodies everywhere they would have been stoned to death as harlots.They had no voice in politics or anything else, and they still don't. This is so American Hollywood Rubbish. The inaccuracy is beyond believe, the characters cast unbelievable and very predictable. The hero with is funny side kick, the princess falling in love with the Hero. As always Hollywood is obsessed with pretend sex scenes which have no relationship to the story. The hero goes out to kill a lion with absolute no weapons, well you know he is going to kill it before he even gets there. I could go on and on with mistakes and predictability why bother I won't watch another episode.

I've watched the first episode and I feel that ABC has recreated the time period accurately, if not the exact historical events. The series is based on the book of Samuel, written hundreds of years ago. As a historian I accept the Bible as both a book of faith and a book of history. Written history is not always as accurate as we would like it to be. As a military historian who has studied this period of time for nearly 40 years I can say that the series recreates the historical background fairly accurately. I watched the show more to see that than anything else. The weapons, warfare, and results are accurate. Warfare in the period was a brutal, gruesome affair, pitting warrior against warrior in a one on one contest. When a warrior won, he searched for someone else to fight. When he tired, he rested, then when back to the battle. Wounds were gruesome and often fatal. In attacks on towns and cities, whole populations were often slaughtered. When we think of Bible characters we expect them to be more pure of heart. The series shows a different side, one many people didn't expect.In contrast to one review, the costumes are pretty accurate. I paint military figures as a hobby, so I know. I suggest the reviewer pick up a book on uniforms of the period from Osprey publishing as proof. The sets are accurate as well. The episode was less the biblical depiction people expect and more like the movie Braveheart (there are inaccuracies in that one as well but the historical backdrop is accurate). I thought the acting was appropriate for the story, and I don't mind the accents. If the show used historical language as Gibson's movie about Jesus did, then we would have to have subtitles. I don't think people want to watch a T.V. show with subtitles through the entire series.I think the level of violence is a little high, especially for children, but it is not on the level of the TV series Rome or Spartacus. I do not recommend this for children below high school level.

Tuesday, 8 March 2016: Actor, Ray Winstone is good as Saul and the actor, Olly Rix playing young David is also good. However my first problem that I have with this and other Biblical based movies or television mini series is that these Biblical stories are all from the Old Testament Bible, which is All about Jews in Israel and Egyptian etc... Why is that every time a movie or t.v show is made about Bible history there aren't any real life Israeli Jewish or American Jewish actors/actresses in the lead roles? King Saul was an Israelite Jew, David was an Israelite Jew and so were many of the others, so why is it that we always see English and Austrailian actors/actresses in the main protagonist roles? It is seems funny listening to King Saul with an English accent and the rest of the cast. At least the actors/actresses could have learned to do an Israeli accent to better fit the roles. A good example is talented African Black American actor, Don Cheadle in the movie "Ocean's 13". He is not from England. He grew up in Denver, but he did his best to dub an English accent. When I watched the film that I call "Exodus, false gods and Kings" starring Christian Bale and Joel Edgerton in the key leading roles, I wondered why are these roles are not being played by Jewish actors. There are lots of talented Israeli Jewish actors and American Jewish actors to play the main roles. Pretty Israeli actresses, Gal Gadot, Adi Ashkenazi, Iris Bahr, Ayelet Zurer and Natalie Portman to name a few who could have been cast in some key roles. One good thing is that at least there is a Jewish director, Jeff Nachmanoff on board.I know no one is perfect, but the Holy Spirit of God and Jesus Yeshua and lots of sins were committed back in the day, but to be true to the story, we should not show love making before marriage as we see between King Saul's oldest daughter and her soon to be husband. The exterior setting was wonderful and it looked like old Israel. Overall, I thought it was worth watching and I will see future episodes.

Right off the bat, the screen fills with gratuitous, slow-motion, detailed violence. Right off the bat the clothing is wrong, the sets are wrong, the weapons are wrong and the acting is very British. This series comes across as a lower budget Zena knock-off. Yet it pretends to be about actual history. Featuring a cast of mixed accents, mixed bloodlines and short all the way around on talent, we are watching yet another cartoon posturing as historical drama. Though I love historical drama, this one not so much. I can't imagine where the idea for this series originated. Is it meant to imitate Marvel Comics, producing a more greasy version of pre-historic super heroes? Is it hoping to be a "Game Of Thrones" companion? If so, it does not have the cast, direction, photography or writing of that great show. The principal actors, such as the laughable "King Saul" are just so out of place, it is easy to imagine everyone involved in this series was drunk on cheap wine once the filming started. I clenched my teeth and watched until the end. When it was over there was not a single scene that stayed in my memory. I predict this "new" series will not finish its first season. Why film and TV studios want o create and film fantasies and play acting and pretend they are somehow based upon real history is the mystery behind this series. The only element in the filming they craft carefully is the fighting; and that is to make it bloody, detailed and in slow motion. I would have liked to enjoy this series. I was prepared to like it but in the end there is nothing here. I found not a single actor who stood out or even seemed to know their lines very well. The most depressing aspect is the costumes; laughable at best and really just terrible if you have any eye for detail. Once again the actual, beautiful and powerful and fascinating history of the ancient world is made into a cheap comic episode, presented by the same writers and film-makers that have brought you 100 equally terrible and flawed "historical" dramas in years past.