In 2019, Arabic drama attempted something it had never dared on this scale — a vast historical epic shot to international standards, recounting one of the most dramatic and consequential chapters of Arab history. As this Mamalek Alnar series review will show, Kingdoms of Fire was not just another series — it was a declaration that Arabic drama is capable.
The Last Days of the Mamluks — A History Drama Had Never Done Justice
The series documents the final era of the Mamluk state and its fall at the hands of the Ottomans in the early sixteenth century, when Egypt and the Levant were absorbed into the Ottoman Empire. This period — with all its conflicts, upheavals and extraordinary figures — had remained neglected in Arabic drama for long decades despite its exceptional richness.
The series spotlights a pivotal struggle between two poles: Sultan Selim I of the Ottomans, bent on expanding his empire, and Sultan Tuman bay, the last of the Mamluk sultans, who defends a crumbling kingdom to his final breath. Between these two poles unfolds the story of a civilization's fall and a new world's birth.
Tuman bay was not defeated because he was weak — he was defeated because time was stronger than he was. And that alone is enough to make him an unforgettable hero.
What Made Kingdoms of Fire a Turning Point in Arabic Drama?
Before Kingdoms of Fire, Arabic historical drama suffered from three recurring problems: production unworthy of the historical era, characters written with crude stereotyping, and a pace that wore the viewer out before the end. Kingdoms of Fire solved all three at once.
The lavish production gave the series visual credibility. The mature writing of Mohamed Soliman Abdel Malek lent the characters genuine human depth. And the direction by Peter Webber added a cinematic rhythm unfamiliar to Arabic drama. The result was a work unlike anything before it.
Most important of all — it recovered a page of our history that had been buried in textbooks and brought it back to life in vivid form. After Kingdoms of Fire, Tuman bay was no longer just a name in a school book — he became a character the Arab audience knows and sympathizes with.
Production Facts
- Year: 2019
- Director: Peter Webber (United Kingdom)
- Writer: Mohamed Soliman Abdel Malek
- Production: Genomedia (UAE)
- Budget: $40 million
- Broadcast: MBC
Tuman bay
The last of the Mamluk sultans — a warrior who knows defeat is coming yet chooses dignity over surrender. Khaled El Nabawy embodies him in Kingdoms of Fire with a human depth that makes you love him and ache for him at the same time.
AMDB's Verdict — 8.5/10
A masterpiece of Arab historical drama — a visual epic that rewrites what Arabic drama can achieve, with Khaled El Nabawy in a role he will never be forgotten for.
