New “Blood-And-Thunder” ‘Game of Thrones’ Replacement Defies Critics to Conquer Streaming

Power isn’t given. Power is taken. And take power is exactly what this new historical drama has done, as it fights its way up the streaming charts. The series, which has been likened to Game of Thrones thanks to its bloody battle scenes, political intrigue, and the presence of alum Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, centers on a clash that defined a country, and a continent, for a thousand years.

Transporting audiences to England in 1066, the series is King & Conqueror, and finds the former Jamie Lannister starring as William, Duke of Normandy, and doing battle with House of Guinness star and James Bond favorite, James Norton, as Harold Godwinson, the King of England. The eight-part series is now climbing the charts on Prime Video, where it currently stands at #4 on the TV Shows table and #8 on the streamer overall.

The series, which premiered on the BBC earlier this year, is now slowly conquering Prime Video, with the rest of the streamer’s Top 10 chart made up of the documentary series Allen Iv3rson, the superhero series and The Boys spin-off Gen V, hit action thriller prequel The Terminal List: Dark Wolf, the biblical series House of David, adult animated show Hazbin Hotel, Harlan Coben’s Lazarus, and Maxton Hall – The World Between Us, among others. You can check out the official synopsis for King & Conqueror below…

“William of Normandy and Harold of Wessex were two individuals destined to meet at the Battle of Hastings in 1066; they were allies but had no claim to the British monarchy until fate drove them into a conflict over the country’s crown.”

‘King & Conqueror’ Has Been Met With a Mixed Response

BBC/Prime Video

While King & Conqueror is based on some real history and figures from the Medieval Period, the series chooses to tell a fictionalized version of the events that led to the Norman Conquest of England. Though the series boasts a powerful pair of leading men in James Norton and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, as well as the kinds of muddy and bloody battle sequences and political machinations that made Game of Thrones such a big hit (until it wasn’t), the series has been met with a divisive response from both critics and audiences alike, landing scores of 55% and 36%, respectively, on Rotten Tomatoes.

Despite this, the series has quickly found popularity on Prime Video, with audiences no doubt drawn in by the promises of some Medieval action and drama. Various reactions on Rotten Tomatoes have heaped praise on the series, with Tilly Pearce of iNews.co.uk rating King & Conqueror a near-perfect 4/5 and applauding the efforts of James Norton and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, saying it’s with them that “the drama’s success truly lies, and with them leading the charge, it’s clear the BBC is heading towards a true victory.” Echoing these sentiments, Christopher Stevens of the Daily Mail also rated the series 4/5, concluding, “For all the blood-and-thunder melodrama, the high points of the first hour are dominated by Eddie Marsan as Edward the Confessor and Juliet Stevenson as his scheming mother, Lady Emma.”

You can view the original article HERE.