Shannara coming to television

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Men always have perfect 6-pack abs, that lovely V created by large manly shoulders and a trimmed waist with a tight butt; and chicks always have perfect makeup and boobs, butt, etc., and if their hair is "messy," it's in that "come get me" (cleaned up for the family site) messiness.

My wife makes the same comment. For some reason, she seems to be OK with the first part, but not the second.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by Hitch

But that's ALWAYS the way it is on the dreaded idiot box. Women are always dressed to the nines.

After skipping through the episodes again, I see that even the males are overly pretty and perfect. The characters have 'that' look which you'll get if you do too much skin smoothing in Photoshop; the plastic or "Barbie and Ken"-look.

It's this singular thing that may kill the show for me, eventually, along with Wil Ohmsford being an epic idiot.

Sometimes I think the characters talk too 'teeny / teenagery'; it was not what I execpted, but it is counterbalanced by the nice touch of the demons having their own sinister language.

At this time, I'm on the fence, rating the show 5 out of 10; it has some very, very bad points, but it also has some very good ones. I love the

Spoiler:

...scene in which Allanon hacks that fury apart. Gory.

There is a potential for the show to become very good, but it has just as much potential to go down burning.

For some people, it already burns... but those are often the ones who read the books 30 years ago, and now complain that 30 years ago, everything was better. These are the same people who complain that Fantasy contains Elves, Dwarves, Humans, some sort of quest, and some sort of evil, all the time. If you feel like that, then just stop read Tolkienesque fantasy, mkay?

I for one don't really mind most of the changes in the story. "Based on the book", for me, has come to mean that you take the main characters, main plot points, main locations, and then rewrite the essence of the story around those. Therefore I can often enjoy both the book and the movies, where others who read the book will hate the movies.

(The one movie/show I keep coming back to with regard to adaptation is Shogun. It is almost perfect, leaving out only some of the smaller side-plots. Lord of the Rings was very good also, IMHO, and while I enjoyed The Hobbit as a movie series, it was a very poor adaptation of the book.)

[Katsunami]

Oh, and I sure hope that they ...

Spoiler:

... make the rebirth of the Ellcrys the heart-wrenching scene it was in the book. If Amberle does NOT transform into the Ellcrys just to have her available for Season 2, they deprive the season of one of the most bittersweet endings I ever read in a fantasy novel.

I expected many endings, mainly the Ellcrys being instantly healed, or sprouting anew and growing within seconds or something, but I did completely miss the possibility of Amberle's sacrifice; probably because I'm used to the many happily ever after endings.

===

In the Bloodfire Quest, book two of the Dark Legacy of Shannara, which is set hundreds of years after Elfstones, another girl has to go looking for the Bloodfire. Now, however, this girl and her sister know she will have to sacrifice herself to renew the Ellcrys, and while the bloodfire quest will be undertaken, they will also be looking to avoid this sacrifice. I wonder how it plays out this time... if the girl sacrifices herself, it won't be much of a shock, because everybody will know what's coming.

[Dulin's Books]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Even when in the middle of a huge forest, travelling for several days, everyone, and especially the women, just stay pretty and perfect.

Spoiler:

At the end of the episode, it looks like the shapeshifter is not dead. Do I have that correct, or is it a different demon?

It should be that way with Elves though , right? Elves are preternaturally beautiful to humans. They are pretty and perfect looking and would never be made dirty simply from taking a stroll in the woods. The rovers however...

Spoiler:

if im remembering the book correctly, Brooks allows the reader to believe there is just one demon and it has been vanquished when the shifter is killed. but a little while later in the book it's revealed there is a second one. scary moment. I think it was hiding as the dog which is hinted at with the changing of the dogs eyes. you're meant to think it's the same shifter but it's not

[Conan46]

Watched episodes 3-4. Continue to be impressed with the series, I think it is getting better. Certainly Austin Butler (Wil Ohmsford) his acting is getting better, Amberele is sort of hit-and-miss with her acting, and Etrea is the strongest of the three young actors.
Still lots of action and a fast-moving pace to the story. Allanon-Manu Bennett is a driving force, definitely making the series feel a cut above what it might be otherwise. Still struggling to see "Gimli" as an elf king But John Rhys-Davies is a great actor in any part. Daniel McPherson is really making me hate him, a sort of yin-yang thing between his nicer elven brother Ander (Aaron Jakubenko). Enjoyable series.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by Conan46

Still struggling to see "Gimli" as an elf king But John Rhys-Davies is a great actor in any part.

I will forever remember him as Vasco Rodriguez from Shogun... a role he played 35 years ago. It was the first movie/series I saw him in. I didn't even know he played Gimli in Lord of the Rings; I just thought it was funny when I discovered it

Then again, I'm bad with actor's names. I often see an actor, and think: "I saw him as <character> in <series>...", but I never take the trouble to look them up.

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

I will forever remember him as Vasco Rodriguez from Shogun... a role he played 35 years ago. It was the first movie/series I saw him in. I didn't even know he played Gimli in Lord of the Rings; I just thought it was funny when I discovered it

Then again, I'm bad with actor's names. I often see an actor, and think: "I saw him as <character> in <series>...", but I never take the trouble to look them up.

Gimli in Fellowship of the Ring: "Never trust an elf!"
I guess, unless you are the elf king?

[Katsunami]

He actually said something like that in a Shannara-related interview.

"From a dwarf to an elven king! Take that, Aragorn!" (Or something along those lines.)

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

He actually said something like that in a Shannara-related interview.

"From a dwarf to an elven king! Take that, Aragorn!" (Or something along those lines.)

They ought to have an elf walk on role for Legolas (Orlando Bloom), that would be too funny.

[Dazrin]

Originally Posted by Conan46

They ought to have an elf a dwarf walk on role for Legolas (Orlando Bloom), that would be too funny.

FTFY.

Personally I remember John Rhys-Davies mostly as Indiana Jones' sidekick from Raiders of the Lost Ark. He just wasn't recognizable enough in LOTR for me to go "hey that's JRD!"

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by Dazrin

FTFY.

Personally I remember John Rhys-Davies mostly as Indiana Jones' sidekick from Raiders of the Lost Ark. He just wasn't recognizable enough in LOTR for me to go "hey that's JRD!"

He has been on a lot of things. I remember him being on Sliders.
Legolas as a dwarf would be good In any event, Orlando Bloom would have to grow some facial hair, those Shannara elves are grubby

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by Conan46

They ought to have an elf walk on role for Legolas (Orlando Bloom), that would be too funny.

Mwehehe...

He could be a Dwarf coming in support of the Elves while they are attacked by demons, and fight beside Eventine. Then they should repeat the lines from LotR:

"I never thought I would die beside an Elf..."
- "What about dying beside a friend?"
"Hm... I can live with that."

If something like that would happen, I'd really crack me up.

(In the Shannara world, Elves and Dwarves do support each other, but they are not really friends; more like allies.)

[vsalvaggio]

I've enjoyed the TV shows so far but I've also worked hard at not overthinking/overcomparing TV show vs Books too much... especially since Elfstones is my favorite Shannara book! Just enjoying the ride so far.

My 2 cents: I do remember that when reading Sword and "getting" that this was our world in the future.

[Tarana]

So far, I'm liking the series and will continue watching it. I appreciate that they have veered the story rather than following the original book early on. Helps so that you can enjoy the visual series without expecting things to be the same as the book.

[ottdmk]

Finally saw the third episode last night.

Spoiler:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the seer is a brand new character, right? Not in the source material at all?