King's Men was originally conceived as a fairly straight television police drama centred on a crusty, middle-aged, old-school police officer based in Sydney's Kings Cross area (and modelled in part on actual Kings Cross policeman 'Bumper' Farrell). But the studio, inspired by the success of American television program The Mod Squad, modified the concept, instead basing the program around a group of young police officers working undercover (albeit under the guidance of a crusty, middle-aged, old-school police officer), where each episode contained a standalone scenario involving the adoption of different undercover identities.
According to Don Storey, in his Classic Australian Television,
King's Men was not as good as Homicide or Bluey or any of the other police series from the Crawfords stable, but it wasn't bad either. The late change of direction to incorporate the undercover squad was a significant factor in the show's demise. If more time had been allowed for development, King's Men could have been a successful, polished product.
Instead, the program was pulled from the air in both Sydney and Melbourne after only a handful of episodes had been shown, and plans for a second series were cancelled.
Albert Moran, in his Guide to Australian TV Series, is less optimistic about the program, describing it as 'a very routine police series despite a veneer of dash and style.'
