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The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance |OT| HmMMMMMmmmm
- Thread starter Deleted member 16516
- Start date
WOw what a show. Best NEtflix show ever for me (well tied with house on hill).
They better greenlight season 2
They better greenlight season 2
I watched the movie after binge watching the series, i had vague memories of the movie from my childhood.
The series is so much better than the movie, it's not even comparable.
The series is so much better than the movie, it's not even comparable.
When folks ask about my favorite shows/movies, most of what I mention is sci-fi, but fantasy owns my heart. It's just that there's such a dearth of top-notch fantasy in film or television.
AoR may very well be the finest work of fantasy on screen that I've ever seen. I've been racking my brain trying to thing of anything that even comes close, and all I've got is LotR, which...yeah, I'd legitimately say I liked this better. This series would really, truly, utterly have to shit the bed in any subsequent seasons to tarnish my enthusiasm at this point.
I'm riding high on a wave of obsessive fangirling and loving it. So many Dark Crystal Wiki tabs open right now. So many books I suddenly NEED to own. So much exquisitely detailed art to adore. So may rich socio-political parallels in which to simmer my SJW sensibilities.
Might have to switch to an Aughra avatar. Sorry Laura.
AoR may very well be the finest work of fantasy on screen that I've ever seen. I've been racking my brain trying to thing of anything that even comes close, and all I've got is LotR, which...yeah, I'd legitimately say I liked this better. This series would really, truly, utterly have to shit the bed in any subsequent seasons to tarnish my enthusiasm at this point.
I'm riding high on a wave of obsessive fangirling and loving it. So many Dark Crystal Wiki tabs open right now. So many books I suddenly NEED to own. So much exquisitely detailed art to adore. So may rich socio-political parallels in which to simmer my SJW sensibilities.
Might have to switch to an Aughra avatar. Sorry Laura.
Alternatively:
You know how sometimes after a wild night the streams sort of split when you pee?
I watched the first episode last night. I'm not sure what to think of it so far. The production is gorgeous for the most part and the Skeksis are great, but the Gelflings? Those dead eyes and expressionless faces are just too damn creepy. The constant grunting noises to make up for it doesn't particularly help. I also can't tell what age group this is aiming for. The puppeteering makes me think it's made for really young people, yet it's almost a little too dark to show a young child.
I just finished the series last night.
I'd suggest sticking with it. I still haven't gotten over the puppets (the gelfling puppets only though; the rest are fine since they're less humanoid) and it's really weird and distracting whenever they're talking since it's just their lower jaws going up and down and has no correlation with the words. The action scenes are particularly cringey IMO.
But despite all that, it's one of the best shows ever.
Just watched the last episode.
Overall I loved it. But they probably could have trimmed some fat on this. There were about a dozen scenes in the crystal lab involving essence, scenes of drinking essence in the main hall, scenes of Augra trotting into the skeskis castle and condemning their behaviour. So much happens in the first few episodes, then it feels a little padded.
Last episode was good, but anti climactic in my opinion.
Anyone else think the design of the Hunter was inspired by Mergo's Wetnurse?
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Also, I was disappointed that it became apparent that they're dragging the conclusion into another season. I thought this was just a cool one shot thing so I expected more closure.
Overall I loved it. But they probably could have trimmed some fat on this. There were about a dozen scenes in the crystal lab involving essence, scenes of drinking essence in the main hall, scenes of Augra trotting into the skeskis castle and condemning their behaviour. So much happens in the first few episodes, then it feels a little padded.
Last episode was good, but anti climactic in my opinion.
That final battle was somewhat unfortunate and lacking. They had been building up to it for some time, and in the end it was just the few main characters hopping around before the old cliche of everyone showing up at once and the bad guys tailing it. There wasn't so much fighting as much as muppety flopping about and wailing.
Needs more Gelfing body count. The Skeskis didn't really get an opportunity to be threatening. They should have had a small band ofGelfling show up earlier and join the battle at the beginning, show the Skeksis and Gelfling clashing, a couple Gelfling being cut down, then Rian has his showdown.
Also would have liked to see more of the Hunter. It seemed as though they were going to Frankenstein him into an undead suit of armor or something, but instead he just hopped back up and did his thing.
One more thing, I would have liked it more if instead of the Archer leaping from the Cliff to end the Hunter, he aimed to the sky and fired off a single arrow, which would have made it's way to the Hunter. This weakens the Hunter for a moment, and Rian gives the final blow with the glave, 'This is for my father!' or some thing like that.
Needs more Gelfing body count. The Skeskis didn't really get an opportunity to be threatening. They should have had a small band ofGelfling show up earlier and join the battle at the beginning, show the Skeksis and Gelfling clashing, a couple Gelfling being cut down, then Rian has his showdown.
Also would have liked to see more of the Hunter. It seemed as though they were going to Frankenstein him into an undead suit of armor or something, but instead he just hopped back up and did his thing.
One more thing, I would have liked it more if instead of the Archer leaping from the Cliff to end the Hunter, he aimed to the sky and fired off a single arrow, which would have made it's way to the Hunter. This weakens the Hunter for a moment, and Rian gives the final blow with the glave, 'This is for my father!' or some thing like that.
Anyone else think the design of the Hunter was inspired by Mergo's Wetnurse?
edit:
Also, I was disappointed that it became apparent that they're dragging the conclusion into another season. I thought this was just a cool one shot thing so I expected more closure.
I disagree with you about Aughra. There should've been even more Aughra scenes, not fewer.Just watched the last episode.
Overall I loved it. But they probably could have trimmed some fat on this. There were about a dozen scenes in the crystal lab involving essence, scenes of drinking essence in the main hall, scenes of Augra trotting into the skeskis castle and condemning their behaviour. So much happens in the first few episodes, then it feels a little padded.
Last episode was good, but anti climactic in my opinion.
That final battle was somewhat unfortunate and lacking. They had been building up to it for some time, and in the end it was just the few main characters hopping around before the old cliche of everyone showing up at once and the bad guys tailing it. There wasn't so much fighting as much as muppety flopping about and wailing.
Needs more Gelfing body count. The Skeskis didn't really get an opportunity to be threatening. They should have had a small band ofGelfling show up earlier and join the battle at the beginning, show the Skeksis and Gelfling clashing, a couple Gelfling being cut down, then Rian has his showdown.
Also would have liked to see more of the Hunter. It seemed as though they were going to Frankenstein him into an undead suit of armor or something, but instead he just hopped back up and did his thing.
One more thing, I would have liked it more if instead of the Archer leaping from the Cliff to end the Hunter, he aimed to the sky and fired off a single arrow, which would have made it's way to the Hunter. This weakens the Hunter for a moment, and Rian gives the final blow with the glave, 'This is for my father!' or some thing like that.
Anyone else think the design of the Hunter was inspired by Mergo's Wetnurse?
edit:
Also, I was disappointed that it became apparent that they're dragging the conclusion into another season. I thought this was just a cool one shot thing so I expected more closure.
It's not that I disliked Aughra scenes, I'm commenting on how often they have her walking into the Skeksis hall and shaking her head. I feel like it could have been consolidated, felt like a repeated beat.
If I don't remember a thing about The Dark Crystal aside from its aesthetics can I still enjoy this show?
OP
OP
Certainly. Much of the backstory is explained in the opening prologue. You don't need knowledge of the film or books/comics to enioy the show.
Absolutely. I'm not sure I ever watched the movie in full prior to the series and the series was amazing.
Haven't seen the last episode yet but I only remember this happening twice throughout the first 9 eps.
Finished it last night. Probably could have been an episode or two shorter, but it's far better than the film and I really liked it overall. Being a prequel kinda requires the series to end on a massive downer note if it continues, though, and I wonder how they'll write around that.
Unironically one of the best fantasy series in a decade. The "making of" is such a great homage to the craftsmen and pupeteers - cannot believe they gave CGI the coldhand - props to the Netflix brass who took the decision.
Im torn, I kinda dont want to watch the making-of behind the scenes because I want to preserve the magic, but at the same time, man I want to see how these artists pulled this amazing showcase of imagination and takent off.
OP
OP
If anything, watching the making-of made me appreciate the magic of the show even more. You really see the passion of everyone involved shining through.
it actually makes the end result more magical in my opinion. Truly an awesome feat of everyone involved, more than just the sum of its parts.
OP
OP
I think Celadon earned that in the end by redeeming herself after her heel turn.
The Gelflings were a peaceful race, and killing just wouldn't factor into the equation for him at that stage even after all the evil the Skeksis carried out.
Letting the Skeksis go at that stage was a bit perplexing, but they probably thought in their misguided innocence that that was the end of the matter and that the Skeksis would go back to their stronghold and leave the Gelflings alone.
The Gelflings were a peaceful race, and killing just wouldn't factor into the equation for him at that stage even after all the evil the Skeksis carried out.
Letting the Skeksis go at that stage was a bit perplexing, but they probably thought in their misguided innocence that that was the end of the matter and that the Skeksis would go back to their stronghold and leave the Gelflings alone.
always heard about the movie/world but never watched. I know the series is a prequel, should I watch the movie first? or can I start with the series
Nah. Watch the series.
The movie has aged... poorly, honestly. The show gives you more than enough to go on, so you can just jump in and watch the movie at the end.
Can't say I agree with people who say the movie aged poorly. I watched it with my six-year old daughter a few weeks ago and she loved every minute of it. Now, she's the kind of kid who gets bored after thirty minutes or so when watching regular children's movies like Disney or Dreamworks stuff, but she was completely enthralled by this wonderful, mysterious world with all of its weird, funny and creepy inhabitants.
It's a compact film that takes the viewer on an adventurous journey and raises just enough of the curtain to give a glimpse of its fascinating lore.The fact that it doesn't feature any human actors, real world locations, eighties fashion/technology or pop culture references also prevents it from becoming a time capsule of sorts.
I think both the movie and the series have their merits and should be essential viewing for fans of adventure, fantasy and puppetry.
It's a compact film that takes the viewer on an adventurous journey and raises just enough of the curtain to give a glimpse of its fascinating lore.The fact that it doesn't feature any human actors, real world locations, eighties fashion/technology or pop culture references also prevents it from becoming a time capsule of sorts.
I think both the movie and the series have their merits and should be essential viewing for fans of adventure, fantasy and puppetry.
Criticism about the movie aging has almost nothing to do with the aesthetic. It still looks fucking rad. Not only is it amazing what they accomplished then, it's even crazier how much the show's creators directly captured that original spirit, with the original artist and even some of the puppeteers being part of that creative continuity.
The problem is that the movie is paced and plotted real sluggishly. The movie does very little with its main characters, with its appeal entirely based on its looks. Jen goes through most of it with no concept of what it is he's doing or why. His defining character trait is "I don't know what's going on." There's not really a thematic throughline that has anything to do with the primary characters. I've said before, it's like being introduced to Lord of the Rings with Frodo already at Mount Doom, with no understanding of why he's there beyond "Well, guess I should drop this ring a volcano for some reason."
It's not that there isn't something to appreciate, but it's largely based around a fascination of where the show came from, rather than calling the movie particularly entertaining. Unless you're way into Skeksis screeching as they whack at a block, or interstitial shots of the Mystics hiking slowly.
The art, costuming, and puppetry are great. The story is sluggish and paced/explained like crap compared to the show. As Khanimus just said the main characters don't do a lot and barely have a concept of what they're doing. I pretty much agree with his assessment.
The sound overall is pretty poor, too, but that's a smaller thing.
I mean, Jen is pretty much Frodo as far as character and motivation goes. Those type of adventure movies don't really leave room for a ton of character development (look at Indiana Jones for instance). It's less a character driven film and more about the story/adventure focus instead.
The show on the other hand with it's naturally longer run time has ample room to devote to character building and fleshing all those aspects out.
The show on the other hand with it's naturally longer run time has ample room to devote to character building and fleshing all those aspects out.
It's not like 90 minute movies are incapable of telling stories about characters, or giving them compelling motivations to make them worth rooting for. The movie just likes spending a lot of time on slow, lumbering walking, and doesn't give its central characters anything interesting to do or say.
There's very little to the movie's story outside of vague allusions to a world that was, even without comparisons to a 10 episode series.
And Frodo atleast has a perspective, and a thought process.
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The characters in the movie not knowing what they were doing was a big part of the plot and worldbuilding though. They didn't know anything because they were the last of their people, didn't have parents to explain anything. The leader of the Mystics waited far too long before telling Jen about his task, so he didn't have time to say much, and Aughra wasn't all that helpful. So their quest was to figure out what to do as much as the actual doing of it, and in this big post-apocalyptic world largely empty of characters without a wizard or ranger guide, it was an exploration movie as much as anything.
I think the problem with comparing against the new show is, the new show is basically an action movie with tons of characters interacting, and the original movie was about exploring and lore building. So of course in comparison the new show is faster-paced, that doesn't mean the movie was *too* slow paced. I re-watched the movie about a month before the series, and I didn't find it too slow paced at all.
Also, I prefer the movie's music, though the series is still pretty good there.
I think the problem with comparing against the new show is, the new show is basically an action movie with tons of characters interacting, and the original movie was about exploring and lore building. So of course in comparison the new show is faster-paced, that doesn't mean the movie was *too* slow paced. I re-watched the movie about a month before the series, and I didn't find it too slow paced at all.
Also, I prefer the movie's music, though the series is still pretty good there.
Put me in the series > film circle. I find the film handles its narrative for such a potentially rich world really poorly, even for a fantasy film of the time. On the other hand, the craft is so overwhelmingly ambitious that it's one of those cases where expecting too much more is not the most healthy perspective.
The series, on the other hand, captures the characters, theme of unity and overall world exceptionally well. It has more runtime, yes, but I also could have seen it being done at least on par with the film or worse in the narrative department. It does hold onto certain adventure tropes in terms of convenience and deaths, but the interactions and progression are consistently engaging while keeping true to what I imagine was the original concept of The Dark Crystal to begin with.
I haven't read any of the books, but after the film's less interesting execution, I'm very impressed with Age of Resistance. I still would say everyone should see both for context and to see how some of the world's building blocks came to be.
The series, on the other hand, captures the characters, theme of unity and overall world exceptionally well. It has more runtime, yes, but I also could have seen it being done at least on par with the film or worse in the narrative department. It does hold onto certain adventure tropes in terms of convenience and deaths, but the interactions and progression are consistently engaging while keeping true to what I imagine was the original concept of The Dark Crystal to begin with.
I haven't read any of the books, but after the film's less interesting execution, I'm very impressed with Age of Resistance. I still would say everyone should see both for context and to see how some of the world's building blocks came to be.
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I'm not saying they are incapable, just that adventure movies by their nature focus more on the journey/adventure rather then backstories and things like that.
Jen has a perspective, we know that he is supposedly the last of his kind and he goes on his journey in order to save the only people he knows and cares about, while finding out the truth and meeting Kira as their bond becomes stronger over the course of the movie. It's not like nothing ever changes with him or her or anything, there is some development in regards to that aspect of him.
This is hurting my enjoyment of the show a little. I thought the first episode was really good but knowing how everything ends up is such a bummer. Like you say, maybe they'll find some way to retcon it or something.
Just finished this show, fantastic. I was kinda hesitant to watch it since I first watched the movie and while it had a few good ideas and was visually great it didn't really leave too much of an impression on me. The show however really brings out all that potential.
we get to see what kind of sneaky fuck Chamberlain is. I like that he's unabashedly evil, but heavily considers the long term and try to avoid conflict because he knew it would be impossible to put the genie back in the bottle. Only one who kinda shares that is scientist. The others think too short term and only care about satisfying their cravings.
Hunter was also cool, and showed what Skeksis might have been capable of physically if they gave a damn, though even frail and bloated they turned out to be freaks of nature when they took down the castle Rebellion.
Hunter was also cool, and showed what Skeksis might have been capable of physically if they gave a damn, though even frail and bloated they turned out to be freaks of nature when they took down the castle Rebellion.
Half way through and absolutely loving everything about this, though the look of the Gelfling puppets took some getting used to. I've never seen the movie, but intend to watch it when I'm done with the series.
This is great. A really inclusive family move. I've yet to watch the documentary but that's next. Pleading the entertainment gods for season 2 or a least a few feature length movies.
I know it's standard production but I can't help but notice they're "101" and "102" not "1 and 2".
Like a 201 is expected.