All 5 Real-Life Historical People In Time Bandits Season 1, Explained

Warning! This article includes SPOILERS for Time Bandits season 1, episodes 1 & 2

The Apple TV+ fantasy adventure series Time Bandits includes multiple historical figures as the characters travel through time, meeting them on their trips. The Time Bandits cast features an ensemble led by Lisa Kudrow and newcomer Kal-El Tuck. The show mainly focuses on Tuck’s character Kevin and the time bandits he travels through time with, but numerous guest actors have cameos as important historical people. The series is an adaptation of the original 1981 Time Bandits movie, though there are many differences between the two projects.

Some of the most notable differences come in the time periods Kevin and the time bandits visit and the famous historical figures they meet. Though the premise is the same, the Time Bandits series makes it a point to not copy the original movie in this way. This is another positive of the movie being made into a TV show, as Time Bandits season 1 has 10 episodes to give viewers brief history lessons with funny twists. With the potential Time Bandits season 2, even more historical periods and people could be explored.

5 Madame Chung

A Famous Chinese Pirate In The Early 1800s

In Time Bandits season 1, episode 1, Kevin and the time bandits end up in Macau in 1810 when the thieves accidentally go through a transtemporal portal located in Kevin’s room. To escape Supreme Being, they go back through the portal and unexpectedly find themselves on a Chinese pirate ship during a battle against the British Navy. It turns out that Kevin is a huge fan of their leader, whom he calls Madame Chung, having read about her in the fictional Pirates, Swashbucklers, and Filthy Scoundrels.

In real life, Madame Chung was named Zheng Yi Sao, also known as Ching Shih. She was born in 1775 in Guangdong, and in 1801, married Zheng Yi, a famous local pirate. Her husband initially fought in his cousin’s fleet, but when he was captured and executed, Zheng Yi took control of the family fleet and fled to China. In 1805, he united the local pirates into the Guangdong Pirate Confederation, which Zheng Yi Sao helped greatly with. When he fell overboard and died in 1807, she took over.

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At the time she appeared in Time Bandits, she had the largest pirate fleet in history, with 70,000 pirates in her crew. When they met, Kevin advised her to hide up the Canton Rivers to defeat the English. This helped her win the battle, somewhat changing history. In 1810, Zheng Yi Sao officially surrendered to the Qing authorities, which allowed her to retain a substantial fleet and avoid prosecution. Madame Chung wanted Kevin to stay with her as a soothsayer in Time Bandits, but Penelope claimed him instead.

4 Ajax The Lesser, Odysseus & Diomedes

Greek Heroes & Key Figures In The Trojan War

Later in Time Bandits episode 1, the bandits took Kevin to Troy, as they wanted to steal the Trojan Horse. However, the time bandits have limited knowledge of history. Not only were they unaware of just how large the Trojan Horse was, but they didn’t know there were Greek soldiers inside. The story of the Trojan Horse was first told in the Odyssey by Homer, an epic Greek mythology poem written in the 8th century BC. In Time Bandits episode 1, Greek legend Ajax the Lesser allowed the bandits into the Trojan Horse and bragged about their brilliant plan.

As he was known for his arrogance, Ajax the Lesser was portrayed as an overconfident fool in Time Bandits. The hero of the Odyssey was Odysseus, a king of Ithaca known for his courage and wisdom who was credited with creating the Trojan Horse plan. When things went awry in Time Bandits episode 1, Odysseus took the blame, even though it was Ajax the Lesser’s fault. He even apologized to another Greek hero inside, Diomedes. It was a brief scene, but it featured multiple Greek legends.

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3 Xanthus & Ophelestes

Trojan Soldiers Who Were Killed In The Trojan War

Kevin and the time bandits boarded the Trojan Horse because it was the only way they could sneak into Troy undetected and reach the portal inside. Unfortunately, their plan backfired when two Trojan soldiers came to accept the supposed gift from the Greeks and found it “suspicious.” The soldiers were Xanthus and Ophelestes, who were both killed by the Greeks during the Trojan War, according to Homer’s Iliad. Xanthus was killed by Diomedes, and Ophelestes was killed by an arrow from Teûktros, a leader of the Salaminian troops.

Their appearance in Time Bandits episode 1 is also brief and purely comedic. They admired the horse, but immediately realized it was too good to be true and set fire to it. Ajax the Lesser, Diomedes, Odysseus, the other Greek soldiers, Kevin, and the time bandits were only saved when one of their superiors stopped them from burning such a beautiful gift. Xanthus and Ophelestes are minor figures in Greek mythology, but they were a funny inclusion in Time Bandits.

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2 Cassandra

A Trojan Prophetess

The most impactful historical figure during the bandits and Kevin’s visit to Troy in Time Bandits season 1, episode 1 was Cassandra, another Greek mythological character in Homer’s Iliad. She wasn’t born a prophetess, but the god Apollo promised her the power of prophecy if she complied with his desires. When she accepted the power but refused to do the favors, Apollo cursed her, making it so that her prophecies, while accurate, would never be believed.

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In Time Bandits season 1, episode 1, as in Greek mythology, she predicted the fall of Troy, but nobody believed her. This was another comedic bit, particularly when she predicted a guard would fall off a wall, and he didn’t take her seriously. This proved to Kevin that she wasn’t just a myth but a real prophetess, and it also potentially led to the guard’s death. Together, they bonded over not being believed, as the time bandits often dismissed Kevin and his knowledge.

Cassandra comforted Kevin, as he confessed he’d spent his entire life wishing he could go back in time, but now that he has, he wasn’t sure if he belonged. Though Kevin doubted it, Cassandra told him that he was important, as she saw his future. Based on what she saw, Cassandra also advised Kevin to “stick with [the] stupid thieves because [he was] going to save the universe.” Inadvertently, she also gave Kevin advice about a time portal he jumped through in Time Bandits season 1, episode 2, as she told him he’d jump off a cliff and survive.

1 Lady Sak K’uk’ & K’inich Janaab’ Pakal

A 6th Century Maya Queen & Future King

There are only two major historical figures in Time Bandits season 1, episode 2, “Mayans,” as Kevin and the bandits spent almost the entire episode in a Maya city. The city was ruled by a queen known as Lady Sak K’uk’. Her birthdate is unknown, but she was the second recorded female ruler of the city of Palenque. To legitimize her rule, she declared herself a creation goddess, though that wasn’t included in the Time Bandits episode.

In Time Bandits season 1, episode 2, Lady Sak K’uk’ was portrayed as a generous, welcoming queen, although Kevin was skeptical of her throughout. He had read the Maya took part in human sacrifice, and they were going to be their next victims and wanted to find a way out while the other bandits enjoyed their hospitality and looked for things to steal. Kevin’s information, which he got from Wikipedia, was proven wrong, and Lady Sak K’uk’ warned him against listening to invaders’ accounts of history.

This was an important moment, as it was one of the first times Kevin realized he didn’t know everything in Time Bandits. Kevin isn’t wrong often, as that role is usually reserved for the bandits, but it’s a reminder that he’s just an 11-year-old boy who loves history, not a historian. Time Bandits season 1, episode 2 also featured the son of Lady Sak K’uk’, K’inich Janaab’ Pakal, who would become known as one of the greatest Mayan kings when she abdicated three years into her reign to allow him to rule.

Source: World History Encyclopedia, Brittanica, Brittanica, Brittanica, Brittanica, History of Royal Women

Time Bandits (2024)

Eleven-year-old Kevin joins a group of time-traveling thieves on a comedic and perilous adventure. As they navigate through various historical periods, they embark on a mission to save Kevin’s parents and ultimately the world, blending humor with high-stakes drama in this adaptation of Terry Gilliam’s cult classic​.

Cast

Kal-El Tuck , Sarah Darkin , Lisa Kudrow , Tadhg Murphy , Rune Temte , Roger Jean Nsengiyumva , Kiera Thompson , Nikita Chronis

Release Date

July 24, 2024

Seasons

1