You Should Be Watching: Kingdom
There are currently two different shows on Netflix right now with the title ‘Kingdom’. One of them stars Frank Grillo and Nick Jonas and is about a mixed martial arts gym. The other is one of the best shows I have seen in years. I’m speaking, of course, of the Korean historical zombie show that you absolutely should be watching.
Kingdom isn’t just my new favorite zombie show. It may have cracked the top 3 of my favorite shows of all time. I suppose I should have prefaced this article by mentioning my appreciation for East Asian action, historical ass-whoopings, and the idea of a zombie outbreak happening anywhere other than present day. Taking all of those into account, you can imagine why I loved Kingdom so much, but the whole story isn’t told by just saying that “It’s a cool zombie show with kick-ass action!” While true, that doesn’t even scratch the surface. Allow me to elaborate…
Writers for shit magazines who spend most of their time talking about Disney paint-by-numbers trash will tell you that “Kingdom is a very political show that captures the tumultuous times that we live in today in America”. Don’t piss on my head and tell me it’s raining! I didn’t watch Kingdom and instantly go to my computer to donate money to Nancy Pelosi. She’s worth $120 million and doesn’t need my $10! The political message that I got from Kingdom has far less to do with any 2020 response to a pandemic and far more about the corrupting nature of power and how it can be used for both good and evil.
It’s certainly a theme throughout Kingdom that the zombie infection that is threatening the entire kingdom is made worse by the poor decisions coming from the leaders. Part of the reason there aren’t better decisions coming from the King is because he was the first to contract the infection and his zombie ass is the one who ends up spreading it. It is the folks surrounding him, the ones who wield his powerful name (under the guise that he is just ill), and the ones who stand to lose everything if he is discovered to be dead by the other leaders that are truly hurting the people. Namely, his chief councilor and young, pregnant wife have the most to lose from his death and it is those two who make many of the decisions that cause the greatest amount of havoc. Don’t worry, you’ll learn to hate them as much as I did.
Okay, so power corrupts and all that but who about His Royal Highness? He was the illegitimate son of the King and stood to take over the throne upon his death. Doesn’t he have the same desire for power? The easy answer is ‘yes, but also no’. He was born as the heir to the King and raised as an elite member of Korean society. He’s also been learning and studying under some of the most scholarly dudes around and while he understands his role in the system, he isn’t afraid to evolve as a leader. Especially after a few episodes of the show and the seriousness of the situation makes itself known to him. Played by Ji-Hoon Ju, the Crown Prince Lee Chang is one of the few characters who continually fights for the lives of both the rich and the poor. His story in a real roller coaster ride but his actions at the top and bottom are the same; he needs to help.
Don’t forget about all the zombies eating people! Kingdom isn’t just Korean House of Cards, you know. There are an insane amount of fight scenes, crazy last man standing situations, and zombie decapitations for any fan to get his lust of killing satiated. You won’t have to wander around the countryside with these characters for three seasons like The Walking Dead, either. These zombies are quick, hungry, and determined to eat their way all over the damned place.
So I could go on and on for 8 more paragraphs on why you should watch the show but I don’t think anyone wants to read that much. The show produces epic tension and delivers serious action all the while being a Korean production so you just never know who is going to die. If you’re the type of person who can’t read subtitles then I wouldn’t waste my time but if you dig historical action and/or zombies, Kingdom will grab you by the balls and not let go until you scream your safe-word in Korean.
