‘A.D. The Bible Continues’ Review: Mark Burnett & Roma Downey Epic Is Very ‘House Of Cards’ + ‘Game Of Thrones’

Debuting appropriately on Easter Sunday on NBC, the latest Bible-based epic from Mark Burnett and Roma Downey will face a very busy April 5 with the return of Mad Men on AMC, the debut of Wolf Hall on PBS and the premiere of its own lead-out American Odyssey, and of course ABC’s annual broadcast of The Ten Commandments among others. But, as my video review above says, the 12-part A.D. The Bible Continues is a sophisticated and layered series that can more than hold its own.

Depicting the aftermath of the crucifixion and the early years of what would become Christianity, A.D. picks up where the duo’s massively successful The Bible left off when it ended on History in 2013. But this sequel of sorts shows just how deft executive producers Burnett and Downey have gotten with their scripted endeavors. That’s in part because the two have upped the writing, acting, production value and overall quality of A.D. from The Bible. It’s also because they have focused on the drama of the story — the personal and the political arena of the at-first-struggling Apostles and the swords and centurions of the unforgiving Roman Empire — as well as the faith. The result is somewhat House Of Cards meets Game Of Thrones – which as source material goes, isn’t bad at all.

Take a look at my review and tell us what you think. Are you going to watch at 9 PM on Sunday?

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