| “ | King Reed: You said her other walk would be a complete disaster. That it would undermine Athenia. Astral cannot succeed, there's too much at stake. Versitude: Many battles are lost before the war is won. King Reed: You sure Oberon and Titania don't know? Versitude: Yes, your greatness. They have no idea. In time, all will be yours. (King Reed snickers) |
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| ~ King Reed and Versitude at the end of "Get a Job". |
King Reed of Spartania is the overarching antagonist of the short-lived Nickelodeon fantasy sitcom, The Other Kingdom. He's the king of Athenia's rival kingdom Spartania, who enjoys throwing his weight around and mocking the Athenia for their peaceful ways. He's secretly working with Versitude to overthrow Athenia. He's also the father of Prince Cliff and Tristan Andersen, the latter of which went to the human world unaware of his true heritage.
He was portrayed by Tyler Murree.
His Evil Ranking[]
His Villainous Deeds[]
Implied[]
- His condescending nature is implied to be the reason why the Spartanians are so smug, arrogant and vain.
- It's implied that Reed does something terrible to any Spartanian residents who disrespect him. According to his son Cliff, it's never happened, but this likely means that either 1) the residents are super condescending on Reed's level to the point where they blindly follow him and serve him without question, or 2) Reed scared everyone into submission to the point were no one dares disrespect him, knowing the consequences.
- He's all but stated to be a warmonger, considering Oberon tells him "[he] of all fairies should realize war is not always the answer", only for Reed to respond by telling Oberon he had grown soft since their realms last did battle. This implies that Oberon used to be more hostile towards other kingdoms, only to for him to realize the error of his ways and become a mostly peaceful ruler, whereas Reed refused to change his ways or see the light.
Confirmed[]
- As the ruler of Spartania -- Athenia's rival kingdom -- he loves throwing his weight around and mocking Athenia for their peaceful ways, implying that his kingdom of Spartania is hostile and possibly corrupt.
- He's secretly conspiring alongside Versitude behind King Oberon and Queen Titania's backs to prevent their daughter Astral, the princess, from ever returning to Athenia, so he could have a chance to possibly overthrow Athenia.
- While he's implied to be a doting father towards his son Cliff, this doesn't count as a redeeming quality as he still isn't necessarily a good father, and his poor parenting skills turned him into an entitled jerk who looks down on the "common folk".
- For Cliff's other walk, Reed sent him to Switzerland, where the two of them had pomme frites with truffle oil and shaved parmagiano reggiano. This in turn would lead to Cliff becoming a picky eater, who prefers to eat fancy, exotic food, rather than food from the "common folk".
- The first time Astral saved Athenia from being destroyed for a research center, Reed privately spoke with Versitude about how Astral's other walk was supposed to be a complete disaster that would would undermine Athenia, and how Astral couldn't succeed, due to how much was at stake. Though Versitude would assure him that setbacks are inevitable, and he'd be able to take over soon enough.
- When Athenia's in danger of being bulldozed and destroyed the second time, the Athenian monarchs were forced to make a negotiation with King Reed so they and the rest of the kingdom can evacuate to Spartania before the destruction. However, being the petty jerk he is, Reed agreed to let to Athenians evacuate to Spartanians only under certain conditions:
- Princess Astral had to make a good impression on his son Cliff. This forces Astral to put up with Cliff's snobbiness and narcissism for a couple days.
- Reed states that Oberon and Titania would retain their titles ceremonially for events such as ribbon cuttings and parades, but he wouldn't extend citizenship to Athenians. Yet, Reed would still require them to take up arms and fight for his causes.
- In addition, Princess Astral would have to agree to marry his son Prince Cliff, in spite of both of them being only teenagers at the time. Thankfully, Oberon and Titania called the deal off upon realizing this, and sent Reed and Cliff back to Spartania so Astral wouldn't have to go through with the marriage.
- During Reed's negotiation with Oberon and Titania, he tells them they should have taken up arms against humanity or as the fairies call them, "the others".
- Upon being informed by Versitude about Tristan being the lost fairy prince of Spartania, the two of them (alongside Oberon and Titania) would show up the fall dance and confront Astral and Tristan. Reed would inform Tristan he'd be king one day, and forcibly takes him away to Spartania to train him and have him conquer Athenia in the near future, despite Tristan clearly not wanting to do such a thing.
- Overall, while The Other Kingdom is typically a light-hearted series, King Reed and his actions are always taken dead seriously, and his presence darkens the tone.
Why Doesn't He Stand Out?[]
- Due to King Reed barely getting any screentime prior to the show's cancellation, while he does pass the general baseline, he commits a lot of his atrocities that are too reliant on Fridge Horror, causing him to fail the in-series heinous standards.
- While it's implied that Reed rules Spartania with an iron fist, we never actually see Spartania in person, leaving it unclear just what Reed's reign over the kingdom's like or just how many residents are placed in danger or suffer due to his rule.
- He was implied to be a warmonger who had started several battles and wars between kingdoms, and actually enjoys it. However, it's never made clear how harmful some of his battles and wars were, or how many lives were lost due to these fights (for his side, or the opposing side), and we never see the aftermaths of any of them.
- The Season 1 finale, "Hidden in Plain Sight" ends with Reed taking Tristan away to Spartania to train him to be a future conqueror, but we never see what any of his techniques are like.
Trivia[]
- King Reed's a unique kind of Villainous Benchmark, as him being a warmonger who has attacked kingdoms in the past, wants to wage war against the human race, and forcibly brought Tristan to Spartania in order to raise to become the next ruler, and possibly conquer Athenia would DEFINITELY make him pass the Heinous Standard if his plan and atrocities had been given more focus and context.
- It was stated in some interviews that the series was meant to run for 4 seasons, and have a graphic novel prequel series. Had the series not been cancelled and the other 3 seasons been released, King Reed likely would have been Pure Evil or Near Pure Evil due to further materials proving more context for King Reed's plan for "the others" and Athenia, and more context being given for just how much damage Reed's previous wars had caused for other kingdoms.
External Links[]
- King Reed on the Villains Wiki