Chief of War – Season 1 Episode 2 Recap & Review

The Review Geek

3 days ago

Changing Tides
Episode 2 of Chief of War starts in the Kingdom of Maui, on Kaupo Coast. Here, we're introduced to Ka'ahumanu, a woman who's determined to break boundaries and live her life differently to everyone else. She watches the stars from the edge of the cliff, and she yearns to be taken seriously like the men.
Ka'ahumanu is curious about the world, wondering what lies beyond the shores of Hawai'i. When she returns home though, she finds her father has returned. He brings word about the massacre on O'ahu, including the unprovoked attack by Kahekili.
Ka'ahumanu is commanded to go with her father to Hawai'i's Kingdom, given war is coming. He believes that Maui will close its shores soon and when that happens, he won't be able to see her again. Ka'ahumanu is being prepped for a marriage to his Chief but she's not particularly happy about it.
Naturally, Ka'ahumanu puts her foot down and decides she won't be forced into marriage, seeing nothing but misery ahead. Interestingly, The Prophetess Taula shows before her and explains there is one path that leads to freedom but she needs to wait for a guardian to arrive first. However, Taula is fearful, believing that Gods fear her because she's going to break the world.
Over in O'ahu, Kahekili is questioned regarding the call to war by Prince Kupule, but he shrugs it off like water hitting rock. Nowhere else is this resentment felt more than with Ka'iana. He's called over to the Temple with the King, but instead he defies the King and turns his back on Maui.
The King sends his troops out to get Ka'iana back, believing the guy has set sail for Maui. Kahekili is a man possessed and doesn't care about bringing Ka'iana back alive either. He believes the mana he seeks is inside the man's bones, so he gives instructions to the group to bring the man back – dead or alive.
The race is on, and after sailing through the night, Ka'iana shows up back at Maui but finds Heke has gone deeper into the valley. Unfortunately, there are more pressing issues at hand. Ka'iana and the others are no longer alone, as the King's men show and ambush them.
Despite Ka'iana managing to kill one guy, there are a lot of soldiers, so Ka'iana has no choice but to flee, leading them all away from the main group. Ka'iana does his best to outrun them but there are too many and they eventually catch up.
The others manage to reach Heke, warning her of the danger, while a bleeding and injured Ka'iana uses a piglet as a distraction to mask the sound of his escape. Interestingly, he wanders right into the cave Ka'ahumanu is currently hiding out in.
The pair each have reasons for disliking Kahekili and bond over this commonality. Ka'ahumanu suggests that he leave with his family and find refuge in Hawai'i's kingdom with her.
Adding an extra element to proceedings, the British rock up on the shores of Maui, holding guns and far better equipment than the tribal warriors. They're also strangers in this land, although the indigenous folk know them as Paleskins, given previous (brief) run-ins with these guys. They make quite the racket and are here to fill up on supplies, but it doesn't take long for the Captain and his men to come face to face with Ka'iana and Ka'ahumanu.
Unfortunately, one of the British – Marley – gets cold feet and shoots his gun. Thankfully, it isn't aimed at Ka'iana but the sound does bring Kahekili's men on top of them. The English have certainly had enough of these natives and soon leave, while Ka'ahumanu catches up with Heke and the others, who are in the middle of a big fight of their own over whether to wait for Ka'iana or not.
Both groups do eventually set sail and leave the shores, but not without some sacrifices along the way. One of the British soldiers finds himself stranded and asks Heke, Kupuohi and the others for a ride. They're hesitant to begin with but do eventually agree.
Meanwhile, Ka'iana leads all of Kahekili's soldiers over to the edge of the cliff, where he finds himself fighting against them all himself. Outnumbered and with nowhere else to go, Ka'iana eventually takes a leap of faith and jumps off the edge into the water below.
When he awakens though, he finds himself in the bowels of the English boat, sailing away from the islands he calls home.
The Episode Review
Chief of War ends this week's double-bill with a solid follow-up episode, one that cements the deeper ties between the characters and factions, along with the prophecy that binds everything together.
There's a good deal of similarities in this to Vikings and Black Sails, although Chief of War's unique pacific island focus gives this a fresh and exciting coat of paint not seen very often in historical dramas like this.
With different groups heading off in alternate directions, Chief of War's story looks like it's going to go the route of 'fish out of water' to really drive home the cultural differences we're seeing at work here. It's a nice way of showcasing that and so far, this Apple production has felt like a very authentic slice of history.
The Hawaiian language only leans into the cultural realism further and hopefully this show gets a good amount of traction from audiences as it does appear – especially this early in the game – to be one of Apple's more promising shows on the platform.
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