Jimmy-128

Beautifully written, beautifully shot, beautifully performed, Hal King is a magnificent film. An adaptation of William Shakespeare's Henry IV and V plays, Hal King blends R&B, jazz, hip hop, gospel, and even a bit of Classical opera recitative to tell the story of a young man who only finds his purpose upon the death of the father he spent his adult life rejecting.

Tyrik Ballard gives a breathtaking performance as Hal, matched by fellow newcomer Sharae Moultrie as Kat French, the daughter of Hal's father's enemy. Their love story plays against a compelling backdrop of racial politics (with an alderman's race standing in for the Hundred Years' War). In support are powerful performances by Ryan Shaw, Tony McLendon, Dion Davis, Eric Roberson, Sophia Nicole Stevens, and Darien Dean.

This comes with the caveat that I'm only halfway through season 2, but I don't anticipate this getting any better. It's a perfect example of the performers being better than their material, because while the performances in this show are uniformly good, the scripts and songs they are given are not.

Let's start with Rebecca. I have never, ever seen a main character meant to be sympathetic that was more unlikable. Rebecca is fundamentally dishonest, mind-bogglingly selfish, and has an amazing talent for blaming everyone but herself. Her lousy home life growing up only goes so far to explain her behavior; she has no qualms about manipulating Paula, Greg, Josh, and whoever else she needs to get what she wants.

Which brings us to what she wants. I cannot understand why she is so hung up on the overgrown man-child that is Josh Chan, unless it's because he has an amazing penis. She can't think that he's going to be a good provider for her and the children, because she makes at least twice as much money as he does, she doesn't strike me as the kind to give that up to become Suzy Homemaker, and Josh hasn't shown as much ambition as a reasonably driven eggplant. She can't think that they have a deep spiritual connection, because she herself says that she's not a deeply spiritual person. And nothing on earth will convince me that she thinks Josh challenges her mind. So that only leaves Josh Chan: Human Tripod.

The supporting characters are much the same; none of them are people I'd want to be around if I didn't have to be. Heather in particular annoys me; there is a fine line between offering a fresh perspective unbiased by previous history and speaking out of ignorance. Heather not only crosses that line, she does an Olympic-class broad-jump over it. Paula spends the entire first season egging Rebecca on, and then suddenly decides that it's all Rebecca's fault that she did so. Greg is one of those people who doesn't want to be happy; when he finally does get what he wants, he deliberately sabotages it.

The songs are meh. They're competently written, but they're more about showing off the writers' cleverness than any genuine feeling on the part of the characters (or the writers, for that matter). I get that this is a comedy, but even comedies get real once in a while, and I never get the sense that CEGF does. Whether they're homaging classic movie musicals or trying to ape modern pop, the result is more about "look at us aren't we funny" than "this is something I want to express".

I know from reading the trivia sections that Rebecca will experience some growth in Season 3; I hope that makes the show a little more watchable, but right now, it's just painful.