The story unfolds as a king, Silas (played by the deliciously devilish Ian McShane of Deadwood fame) rules the country of Gilboa, which is at war with rival country Gath. He's got corrupt politicians to the left of him and corrupt corporate purse holders to the right, and a wife who rivals Lady MacBeth for her sheer manipulative abilities. While little underdog David Shepherd (Chris Egan), yes... yet another Shepherd on TV leading people, is just a poor kid who finds himself on the frontlines of this war. He disobeys orders in order to rescue some captured troops, and instead of being court marshaled, he's being lauded by Silas because one of those prisoners of war was Silas's son. It's good to have the king owe you one. David is brought to the capital city of Shiloh and used as a poster boy for bravery and peace in these troubled times, but not everyone likes him... including the king's son, who is more than a little bitter about the new golden boy. It's occasionally a little heavy-handed in its imagery, and it really took me most of the first two hour block (which is what is airing tonight at 8 on NBC) to really enjoy it, but the acting is great and the show only gets better as it goes along (at least from what I've seen).

Find out what Ian McShane had to say about the show. If you don't want to watch that, check out our week in preview for other options.