MovieChat Forums > Robin of Sherwood (1984) Discussion > Nasir: a great but watered-down characte...

Nasir: a great but watered-down character?

posted 13 years ago by jh66
5 replies | jump to latest

I love this great series in every way, and rue Kip's recent sad demise, both for him as a man/scriptwriter and as the death of the show's likely reprise. But Nasir's character was surely way too Anglicised and one-dimensional to be accurate?

As a practising muslim, and I'm assuming he still was one as there's no real story behind the guy's religion, originally in the service of a pagan English noble (Anthony Valentine), he'd have been praying five times a day and in all probability, possibly been darker skinned, too?

Granted, he wasn't shown to be drinking ale with the others in "The King's Fool" when they all got drunk, but in other episodes I'm sure he might have refused non-Halal meat and not have taken part in the 'Herne' mystic or Christian ceremonies and rites?

Maybe this is all designed to play to us English TV viewers when, in 1980's UK, islam wasn't really on the 'agenda'?

[–] auroracat-1 13 years ago

If you watch the commentarties on the DVDs - you find out that the character of Nasir was only supposed to be a presence in the first two episodes. Kip was going to kill him off.

The cast and crew liked Mark Ryan so much that they begged Kip not to kill him and to keep him on the show. Thus the Saracen character into the Robin Hood legend was born.

I think the way he was written in and the fact that the show was mainly about Robin Hood and his "original" band of men is why the character is not more fleshed out and it has nothing to do with anything else. Kip researched many Robin Hood legends prior to even starting to write Robin of Sherwood so he already had the other characters fleshed out. Nasir was a last minute addition to the regular crew. I really think that's all there is behind it.

[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]

[–] blackswan50 13 years ago

nasir rocks

[–] auroracat-1 13 years ago

The Saracen character is Costner's RH was based on Nasi - Kip and company even had to explain to the producers of PoT that Nasir was "copyrighted" to RoS and was Kip's invention and so PoT had to change their character's name.

This is also all explained in the DVD commentaries.

[–] Sid-Blitzen 13 years ago

"he might have refused non-Halal meat.."

In one of the Connery episodes, the others are enjoying roast pig, which Nasir good-naturedly declines.