weekend on the SciFi channel. It was a well done remake of the late
1980s creation by Mormon Glen Larsen who had originally envisioned it
as a movied called Adam's Ark. The new series (2003-2009) won a
Peabody Award for excellence, several Emmy awards for visual effects,
and Emmy nominations for Writing and Directing. Time Magazine named
it one of the 100 best TV shows of all time.
What makes it more intriguing for Mormon viewers is that it is based
on the Book of Mormon and other LDS themes. In particular, it is the
story of Lehi and his family fleeing Jerusalem finding the promised
land.
In the series, the twelve planets (tribes) are attacked and destroyed
(as Jerusalem was destroyed at the time of Lehi). President Roslin
(Sariah?), Captain Adamah (Lehi), and his son Lee (Nephi) lead a
fleet of ships trying to find the promised land - earth, but their
journey rife with conflict with cylons (Lamanites). The Sacred Scroll
(plates of Brass?) tell of a woman leading a tribe to the promised
land much earlier (Mulekites or Jaradites) and prophesies of the
twelve tribes being reunited with this lost thirteenth tribe.
On their journey to the promised land, they return to the planet Kobol
(from "Kolob"), the birth place of humanity with a city called
"Eden." Humans lived on Kobol with their gods ("The Lords of
Kobol"). A conflict between the gods and "one jealous god" cause a
"fall" to occur causing the humans to flee Kobol/Eden. A return to
Eden can only be accomplished by a blood sacrifice. Now, Adamah
(Lehi) sends a contingent that retrieves a Liahona-like device from
Kobol in a bloody encounter which points the way to the promised
land/earth, where they finally arrive in the series finale.
The series has prophets, competing religious ideas, resurrection,
healing, agency, sealings, miracles, temples, theological race issues,
a council of the twelve, faith, ritual, visions, angels, etc... It is
a gritty, excellent drama -- worth checking out on DVD IMO.
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