The Chosen Season 4 Episodes 4–6 Review
Just incase you skimmed the title, this is a mid-season review, so if you haven’t seen the fourth season premiere, this is your warning: this review will pertain spoilers for the major events from first three episodes. I get it, the Bible is an old book and the majority of us know where this is all going. But here’s a friendly reminder that The Chosen is a show with a primary focus on entertainment. So while you may know your Bible quite well (and I hope that you do) the spoilers I’m referring to are in regard to the show’s own fictional development. Proceed with your own discernment.
The Chosen (by showrunner Dallas Jenkins) has always started slow, but once it gets going, boy, does it not let up until the eventual banger of a conclusion. I’m not sure how this season will top the prior’s finale (with the feeding of the five thousand and walking on water), but season four is as good as it’s ever been, so it has my full confidence.
Episode four starts off exactly where episode three ends, with the consequences of that episode’s finale moments setting in immediately for both Rome’s judgement on the way in which the situation was handled, and the disciple’s grief of it. Let’s go ahead and rip off the bandaid (last chance for spoilers): Ramah (Yasmine Al-Bustami) is dead. I actually wasn’t too crazy about this development when I first watched episode three’s conclusion, something I commented on in that review. But now that I’ve had time to settle in what the show was saying, and getting to see how they are handling the event, I gotta say my hat is off to Jenkins.
I’ve previously emphasized how awesome it is to see scripture come to life in some of the show’s best moments. But now it’s time to emphasize something arguably a lot harder: how The Chosen handles the messages of scripture through it’s extra-biblical story. While many will write off the show for trying to do anything outside the confines of the Bible, I believe at the very least, the attempt to continue to use the messages and themes presented in the Bible throughout it’s dramatic retelling is admirable to say the least. Like a pastor interjecting himself into scripture during a sermon, we get to see a would-be potential between the lines of the page and what that may have been like for real humans that were physically present for all of it. While unlikely a carbon copy of how it all went down, it is ultimately the themes and meaning behind them that truly matter. The Bible itself is often not interested in entertaining the western cultural obsession of proper chronological recognition of events, but is always putting the heart of what it’s saying first.
And so, we have in episode four (and largely present throughout the remainder of the next two episodes) Ramah’s death and specifically Thomas (Joey Vahedi) who is dealing with the lose of his fiancé. Bravo to both the writing and especially Vahedi’s preformance. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a more realistic and accurate portrayal of grief. There is something heartbreaking and yet oddly comforting to see such raw and honoring portrayals of the real emotions we all face. Even as someone who isn’t much of a crier, I could do nothing to stop my tears when Thomas walks directly into the arms of Jesus in the midst of his grief.
Now let’s get into Jonathan Roumie’s preformance of Jesus. If you’ve read any of my previous reviews of his work, you know I’m not stranger to praising Roumie. But my goodness, can I not help myself again. Each outing it feels as if he’s outdone the prior and episode four is no exception. Roumie’s role as Jesus is unmatched in cinema. No secular actor could pull of the proper understanding and gravitas that comes with playing someone as important as Jesus. Not that any of us can ever fully do that — but Roumie has me as convinced as I can be. There hasn’t been a more honoring portrayal of Jesus, and Roumie’s performance is downright incredible, equal if not greater to the best example’s within television.
Episode four, which is arguably the very “middle of the middle” for The Chosen’s planned out seven-season story, marks an important closing of a chapter: Capernaum has largely been the setting for the first three seasons, but now Jesus and his disciples are set on the path toward Jerusalem. With that, we get some satisfying moments with Gaius (Kirk B. R. Roller), which many fans have been waiting for since the show’s first season.
The fifth episode, while the weakest of the three, was still very enjoyable. The religious politics in Jerusalem are as interesting as they’ve ever been, bringing together each of our known pharisees along with finally introducing us to some of the other religious factions and their various different beliefs and their seeming priorities that come along with them. It’s refreshing to finally be rooting for some of these guys, while also seeing the late John the Baptist’s “brood of vipers” comment being lived out in real time.
There is also a strong focus on Judas (Luke Dimyan), whose introduction in season two and presence in season three was as promising as any other disciple, making his now inability to “get it” all the more tragic. Knowing his fate, its heart breaking to watch Judas who wants so hard to understand things and to get them right, knowing that we’ll never see his character develop in the right direction. Instead we are forced to watch as his decline inevitably only worsens.
Then we have episode six, which is based around Jesus and disciple’s celebration of Hanukkah. This episode provides some great moments, all of which are mostly centered around a shared table. The disciples get lots of opportunities to share laughs, heart-felt moments, and shed tears (bring us along with them). This episode is largely a culmination of everything brought to the surface in prior episodes: Thomas’s grief, Judas’s descent, and Jesus’s frustration. By the time the credit’s were rolling at almost four hours, I was ready to commit for another two and see this season to its end.
The Message: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10, which Roumie delivers is episode six, feels like the central through-line through each of the themes of each of the three episode’s threads. There is stealing, and killing and destroying. Each of the main characters are actively in that, in each their own way. But Jesus’s mission was for all of us not just to have life, but to have abundant life. What does it look like to have that abundant life? Most of the disciples get to find out. One does not. He never gets it, despite “it” being all around him. I hope and pray that if you are reading this, that you get it. I hope you want it. Heck, Judas (as he’s portrayed) even wants it. As Jesus says in Matthew 16:25, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” This isn’t a command by Jesus, it’s simply a reality. The question is, do you have ears to hear it?
Conclusion: The Chosen Season 4’s middle episodes pick up right where the prior episodes leave us and don’t let up. Not only does the show continue to weave each of it’s emotional and story threads satisfyingly throughout the season, but it will have you begging for more. The shows finale couldn’t come any sooner. You won’t just be walking out of these episodes having shed a few tears, but hopefully also with some profound truth’s from the greatest story ever told.
Episode Four — 9/10
Episode Five — 7.5/10
Episode Six — 8/10
