History Channel's "The Bible"

 

There has been much fanfare over the series "The Bible" whose first episode aired on Sunday evening on the History Channel.

There are some inherent dangers in attempting such an ambitious project.

First, there is the audience's expectations. The scope of the Bible, its history, its characters, its stories, is really too large to try to capture in a ten hour series. (Actually with all the advertising, it is more realistically a six hour series.) If the audience expects to see everything contained in the pages of the Bible, they will be disappointed. Indeed, the entire story of Joseph and how the Israelites ended up in Egypt is not even given a mention.

 

Then there are the special effects. In today's movies, we expect the unbelievable to be depicted a most real fashion, something which is possible with the modern technology available. This series falls down in that regard. At least, so far.

 

Then there is interpretation and dramatic license. Staying true to the story is something Hollywood has never been able to do and this series is no exception. In fairness, the objective as stated by the producers, is to stay true to the spirit of the Bible. Again, this is open to interpretation. What I deem to be crucial to the fulfilment of that objective, may be deemed a trivial oversight by someone else.

For someone not familiar with the contents of the Bible, this series may be helpful, if no other reason that it may entice them to crack the pages of their own Bible.

 

I will continue to watch, but if the second episode does not do a better job of holding my attention, it will be my last. I am not used to watching TV, and I am reminded why I quit many years ago. I have zero patience for the proliferation of ads. Unfortunately, my biggest impression of episode one is that I could hardly sit through all the advertising. This does not bode well for my continued loyalty.