Hi. Welcome to my recap and reaction to The Chosen, the crowd-funded, first ever multi-season TV series about the life of Jesus and his disciples. You can find my prior posts about the show HERE.
THE QUICK AND CLEAN SUMMARY:
via wiki:
Seeing a Roman, Mary Magdalene is troubled while memorizing the scriptures. Shmuel and Yanni interrogate Jesse concerning Jesus and update the petition to the Sanhedrin. Atticus Aemilius questions Jesse and pursues Simon Z. and Jesus. Searching for Jesus, Simon Z. encounters a demon-possessed man named Caleb (Anthony Michael Irizarry). John the Baptizer visits the group and tells Jesus his dangerous mission of going to Jerusalem to call out King Herod Antipas's sin for marrying Herodias. When Simon Z. finds the disciples' camp, the demon-possessed Caleb attempts to attack the group. Jesus returns to the camp and heals Caleb, casting out the demon Belial, the spawn of Oriax and the Fifth Knight of Legion. Simon Z. surrenders himself and is called by Jesus. John the Baptizer submits to Jesus and departs to accomplish his mission. Devastated by the encounter on the exorcism earlier, Mary Magdalene flees to a local tavern. Learning Mary Magdalene has gone, Jesus instructs Simon and Matthew to look for her.
THE EXTRA DUSTY RECAP:
As Mary Magdalene gathers foods, and recites Scripture (Psalms 139:8-10), she sees Roman soldiers in the distance and becomes deeply afraid. After they leave, she continues to weep.
Atticus, the disguised Roman secret military officer, finds Jesse the paralytic and questions him. To allay Jesse's suspicions of being questioned by a Roman, Atticus manipulates him by asserting his belief that the miracle is true and noting that it must be frustrating to be forbidden from saying so. When he asks Jesse if he at least has someone to share the news with, Jesse tells him that he encountered his brother almost immediately after leaving the pool. Atticus asks him what his brother thought.
Jesse: He believes the man responsible has to be our Messiah.
Atticus smiles broadly at him and says that's remarkable.
We see Simon the Zealot praying and camping alone in the countryside when he hears a howling in the distance. It is obvious that the eerie sound is coming from a man. He tracks the sound and finds a man hobbling down the road. As he follows, the man suddenly stops and stands more upright.
"It can smell you, so I can smell you."
Simon approaches the man, with a dagger drawn, when the man speaks to him again, this time sounding more human. He tells Simon that he is possessed by a demon. He warns Simon to stay away, warning that it will hurt him. Simon replies that hurting him will not be easy, so the man asks Simon to kill him if he can. Simon asks if he is a Roman or a tax collector, to which he denies both. Simon tells the man that he will not kill him because if he is strong enough to have lucid moments, while possessed by it, it is safer in him than it might be if went somewhere else. The demoniac pleas with Simon, and shows him cuts on his arms.
Demoniac: It makes me cut myself.
Simon: Would you believe that this is not the strangest thing that has happened to me this week.
The demon begins speaking through the man, saying that Simon has a vile smell. Simon explains hugging his brother, but the demon cuts him off to ask about whether his brother is a holy person. The man speaks again to Simon, not the demon, telling Simon that the demon has a bad feeling about him.
Andrew, Simon, Philip, and Jesus walk along the Jordan, expecting to meet someone, when a wild man jumps out at them. It is John the Baptist. Andrew immediately embraces him. Jesus follows, with the Baptizer greeting him as a cousin.
John the Baptist: I heard about the scandal at the pool. I love it!
They talk and learn that John the Baptist plans to visit Jerusalem, and there condemn Herod for marrying his brother's ex-wife. Jesus seems worried about this plan and asks his disciples for a moment with John.
We see Mary Magdalene and Ramah together, as Mary teaches her to read and write. Mary gets really frustrated and agitated with herself, for not remembering a grammar rule, so Ramah suggests they take a break. Mary tells her no so forcefully that there is a pause, and after a moment, Mary apologizes. They return to the lesson, but Mary continues to be short with her.
From a distance, Matthew and Thomas watch them. Matthew notices that their lesson is not going well, and Thomas, not looking up, says he could not agree more. Thomas corrects Matthew to say that staying behind with him is the thing that is not going well. Matthew asks if it is because he was a tax collector, but Thomas tells Matthew that he believes he is arrogant.
Matthew: [laughs] I don't think you're right. I'm very humble.
Thomas: You're bragging about your humility.
After a long pause, Thomas add that yes, it is also because he was a tax collector. Thomas then asks why he is watching Ramah so closely, noting that he is collecting Torah verses for her and giving her his tablets. Thomas asks if he likes her, but Matthew refuses to answer, saying instead that Thomas is very illogical when he gets emotional. From a distance we see Simon the Zealot watching their camp.
Elsewhere, John the Baptist explains the sins of Herod to Jesus, who acknowledges that he knows the law. John the Baptist notes that he gets arrested all the time and that he is not worried about it. He further questions Jesus about why He is taking things with His own ministry so slowly. He asks why Jesus always leaves after His miracles and why He always travels to desolate places. Jesus answers that He is working on something - a sermon. John the Baptist seems to have a dawn of understanding and says aloud that Jesus is the planning time. He tells Jesus that he always just says the first thing that comes into his mind. Jesus notes fondly that He remember, from the first time His cousin started talking. John tells Jesus that he is not here to be friends with religious leaders, and he adds that based on Jesus's recent actions, He is not either. Jesus just warns him to be careful. John encourages Jesus to move more quickly.
Jesus: Look, I am going to tell stories that make sense to some people, but not to others, and that's just how it's going to be.
John notes that their lives are beginning to become really real, noting the difference between preaching and then seeing their preaching happen. Jesus tells John that He is always ready to do His Father's will, but says that does not always make it easy. John tells Jesus that his heart and life belongs to Him.
Mary Magdalene and Ramah talk. Mary apologizes and tells her that she saw a Roman earlier, and that the sight of him filled her with so much terror that she dropped her basket and ran. She admits bitterly to Ramah that she ignored the prayers she was holding in her hands. Ramah replies that what they are doing, with Jesus, is hard. Mary and Ramah continue to sit together, as Matthew and Thomas prepare food outside, when Mary seems to feel pain in her head. As Ramah asks her what is wrong, they all hear a terrible scream outside their camp.
Matthew and Thomas grab cooking utensils to use as weapons. They run to the women just as the demoniac approaches all of them.
Demoniac: It's that smell. It's on all of you, but worse!
Matthew tells the man not to come closer. Mary steps forward and tells him to stop. The Demoniac calls her Lilith.
Mary Magdalene: I don't answer to that name.
Demoniac: They told me about you.
Mary Magdalene: Did they?
Demoniac: Seven of them!
He continues to taunt her until she asks his name. He says his name is Belial, spawn of Oriax. Mary persists, asking what his real name is and what his mother called him. After a struggle, the demon reasserts control and replies calmly that it cannot say. It rushes forward to attack her, but before it gets to her, Simon the Zealot arrives, knocking him down, and drawing a dagger. Simon commands the demoniac to leave, but looking back at the others for just a moment, the demoniac attacks him, knocks away his dagger, and overpowers him. As he strangers Simon with his bare hands, Jesus arrives.
Jesus: Out! Out of him!
The demoniac seizes up and falls over. As everyone stands in a completely stunned silence, John the Baptist abruptly shouts a cheer.
Jesus turns to the exorcised man and speaks to him, telling him that it's over now. He helps him to his feet. John the Baptist notices Simon the Zealot and asks Jesus when he picked up the Zealot. All of the others begin to ask him who he is, so he introduces himself.
The Zealot asks Jesus if he healed his brother in Jerusalem. Jesus tells him that He did. Simon asks Jesus if He is who he thinks and Jesus replies that He is. Simon asks where his people are, and Jesus tells him that they are standing around him.
Jesus: Not the fearsome warriors you pictured by my side when you were in the catacombs?
Jesus asks Simon to go with him for a walk. He asks the other disciples to tend the exorcised man's wounds and for Ramah to check on Mary.
Shmuel meets with religious leaders concerning Jesus. He says the inquiry into Jesus must be updated with the details of what happened at the Bethesda Pool. Shmuel is told that the inquiry into Jesus is closed and that it never advanced beyond opening arguments. Shmuel is outraged and asks why not. He is told that the matter is confidential. .
After, Shmuel realizes that Nicodemus is responsible and he meets with Yanni to discuss their next steps. The latter notes that while Nicodemus has influence, he is not Caiaphas, or close.
Simon the Zealot asks Jesus why he healed Jesse and Jesus answers that he suffered unspeakably for thirty-eight years.
Jesus: And how else could I get your attention.
He adds that what He did with Jesse is not the last of the trouble He intends to cause. Simon the Zealot names him the Messiah and kneels before Him. He promises Jesus toe help Him execute His mission. Jesus asks to see his weapon. When Simon shows him the dagger, Jesus looks at it, and then tosses it into the water of the Jordan.
Simon the Zealot: You have no use for that?
Jesus: I have a better sword. You'll see. We have much to discuss. Just be patient.
Simon asks Jesus why He needs someone like him, without his weapon. Jesus answers that He has everything He needs already, but that He wants him. Simon points out that there are some who will oppose Him, including those from his old order. Jesus asks if he will try to stop them and Simon says he would have been more likely to do that if Jesus had not thrown his secret dagger into the Jordan. Jesus laughs.
After they leave and walk away, Atticus approaches the place at the river where Simon's dagger was thrown and retrieves it. He looks confused and stares in the direction to which they walked.
Mary Magdalene wanders by herself, crying. A Roman soldier on horseback rides up the road behind her and passes. As he does, her face hardens into a false smile. She visits a tavern - the one where Jesus once met her - and goes inside. She requests the tavern owner.
Jesus and John the Baptist walk together. Jesus confirms John's plan to visit Herod and tells him that soon He will break His own silence as well. They embrace, with Jesus telling him that He loves him. John thanks him for allowing him to see the miracle, having only heard of them previously. They part, with Jesus giving him one final caution to listen to God's voice as he aacts. John replies that he always does.
Shmuel and Yanni discuss what they should do next. Yanni suggests that they make the issue of Jesus a political one, by pitting the two political sides within the Sanhedrin against each other over Him.
Mary Magdalene finds the tavern owner.
At the disciples' camp, Simon introduces Simon the Zealot to the others. As this is happening, they notice that Mary Magdalene is missing. Simon goes to find Jesus to tell Him and he is instructed by Jesus to go look for her in the city. Matthew arrives to say he is coming as well. Simon protests but Jesus tells him to bring Matthew. Jesus instructs Matthew to keep the Scripture that Philip taught to him, in his thoughts.
REACTION:
This was an interesting episode, but very little of it is overtly Scripture-based. Did the Pharisees scheme against Jesus? Of course. Did Simon the Zealot join the disciples? Yes, though we get no details in Scripture about it. Did Jesus cast out demons? Of course, though this particular incident, within the episode, is not identifiable in a specific way, nor is the attack on the disciples found in Scripture. Is it likely that if the Romans were keeping an eye on Jesus that they would notice one of the Zealots joining him students? Yes, however, we do not find any of that in Scripture. Is it likely that the disciples (including Mary Magdalene) had struggles while following Him? Yes. However, this incident with Mary is not Scripture-based.
So what we have is an episode of plausible-but-non-textual events. That will undoubtedly bother some people. I was keeping an eye out for overt Scriptural contradiction and I did not find any. If you've ever sat through a sermon wherein a preacher speculates about what may have been happening as surrounding context for the verses, that's what this episode provides.
If the episode got anything wrong, it may have been in its presentation of the demon-possessed man. I will not pretend to be an expert on the subject. I did not notice anything that stood out as overtly wrong, excepting maybe Mary Magdalene's headache when the demoniac approached their camp. Super-human physical strength and knowledge is a relatively common trait described in possession incidents, though, as is the demon having and giving a specific name. I have not heard of an exorcised person experiencing a headache when approached by a currently-possessed person, though I admit that's the sort of thing that might be true.
Setting aside the debates about accuracy, the episode was interesting but it did not hit the heavy emotional notes that this show usually hits with me. For the most part, this episode felt like its primary job is setting up big things to come. I suspect that whatever is going on with Mary Magdalene will deliver a powerful moment when we get to it in the next episode. I suspect that things with John the Baptist and Herod will not go as well as John seems to believe here. I suspect that the scheming of Shmuel and Yanni will lead to some problems for Jesus and His disciples later. We just have a lot of set-up without the payoff.
There were a few character moments and acting moments that I really enjoyed from this episode, though.
- John the Baptist's cheer after Jesus cast out the demon was perfect. It broke the heavy tension and expressed exactly how I felt watching the scene. I don't always know how to feel about the depiction of John the Baptist, on the show (it feels as though the show robs him of the gravity he likely had to acquire such a large following), but I did enjoy this moment.
- Matthew getting called out by Thomas for arrogance was excellent. I have been searching for a while to put my finger on Matthew's character flaw and I think Thomas does it for me here. "ou are bragging about your humility" is a great line.
- Matthew and Thomas picking up kitchen utensils to protect the women was subtle but great to see. Obviously the show is setting up romantic interest by Matthew for Mary Magdalene (which is another thing that with the potential to be pretty controversial for a lot of people when we get there.)
- Atticus (portrayed by Elijah Alexander) has been an awesome character, and his look of bewilderment at finding Simon's dagger in the Jordan was just great acting.
- On the subject of great acting, Elizabeth Tabish is amazing. This was an episode where she gets to show off. She absolutely sells Mary Magdalene's fear at the sight of Roman soldiers (and tells a character backstory without speaking in the process.) Her hard and brittle confrontation with the demoniac was outstanding. She managed to convey her character's struggle and her strength to fight for her new life in their showdown. But probably the best bit of acting she does in the episode is a very brief and almost eerie change of expression after she leaves the camp. When the Roman soldier passes by on the road, her face... changes... and we start to see a shadow of the "Lilith" we met to start the series again.
Since so many of the Romans we've met in the series have been so normal, and in some cases good, this episode was an important reminder of the fear they inspired and why. It's hard to understand the world Jesus lived in without that piece of it.
Mary Magdalene's arc in this episode proved relatively controversial when the episodes were released - so much so that the show's creator (Dallas Jenkins) addressed it. I'll share his take below:
I would just add that Jenkins pretty regularly addresses concerns about the show on various platforms, including YouTube, and is pretty open regarding the writing process and how decisions are made. If you find yourself concerned about something on the show, it is likely he has addressed it at some point. You might find it worth your time to see if his explanations alleviate your concerns.
Overall, this is a good episode, but a bit of a step-back from the previous one (which is to be expected, as I thought that was the best episode of the series so far.) It felt like "Spirit" was the first half of a two-parter, in the sense that much of the action here felt like set-up for later events. Elizabeth Tabish's acting, on its own, is worth the time you might spend to watch the episode, though. It's amazing to have someone of her talent level on a crowd-funded show. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what happens next.
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