'Time Bandits' Episode 2 Takeaway: Why Kevin's bookish knowledge about history may not always be accurate
Contains spoilers and speculation for 'Time Bandits'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Time Bandits' started streaming on Apple TV+ on July 24, 2024. The epic history-adventure show sees the protagonist Kevin (Kal-El Tuck) meet bandits who travel through time and reach different points in history.
Kevin is an 11-year-old boy who lives a different life from most people his age. Different events in history consume him and he has studied in detail about them. When he reaches the Mayans, his knowledge of history gets tested and he learns a very important lesson about hearing from a secondary source.
The Mayans welcome them and provide them with a feast. Kevin's idea about the Mayans however is very different.
Kevin's misinformed history of Mayans leads to mistrust
Amidst all the high-octane adventure of the second episode, there is a subtle message that gets delivered about the perceptions of history and how it is often written by those who survive the calamities of time.
Kevin's understanding of history comes from everything he has read on the internet and when he hears the word Mayans, he recalls their traditions of sacrifice rituals and skinning people alive.
Even though the Mayans and their leader Lady Sak K'uk (Génesis Mancheren Ab'äj) provide them with a wholesome feast and give them a treat that any guest would be envious of, Kevin's suspicions about sacrifice rituals create paranoia around the whole situation and even the experienced Penelope (Lisa Kudrow) is convinced about it.
As it turns out, this idea about the Mayans isn't accurate and they were acting in good faith throughout. This provided an important lesson for Kevin in this episode. As a history buff, he needs to create perception only after he has understood both sides of the story.
The Mayans slipped into oblivion as history progressed and the ones who succeeded them must have described them as savages and the account continued. Lady Sak says she did the same to the people she invaded.
Kevin needs to be careful in the coming adventures
Kevin's knowledge of history is bookish and while he is thorough with his accounts of the past, half-baked knowledge could cost him and the bandits dearly in the coming episodes.
In his defence though, he feels connected to the bandits and was only trying to ensure their safety. Kevin is also turning out to be the voice of good for the bandits who have stolen from the supreme leader.
His innocence provides the bandits with an alternative perspective about their actions and their act of stealing from history. He might be the one who evokes goodness in the bandits.
The bandits must also learn to treat Kevin's knowledge with caution and verify before taking any action. They tried to run away from the bandits and could have triggered their anger in the process.
Episodes 1& 2 of 'Time Bandits' are streaming on Apple TV+.