Shannara coming to television

[HomeInMyShoes]

Well, I'm certainly interested. I had read all the Shannara books in published order up to and including the Genesis of Shannara trilogy. I went back and re-read the Heritage of Shannara set and Brooks' writing certainly became better as time went on. My personal favorite was the Word & Void trilogy. Dystopian fan am I some days.

Definitely interested, but without cable it will be a while before I can watch these unless they end up on Netflix pretty quick.

[AnemicOak]

Video from the Comic-Con panel in case anyone's interested...

[Katsunami]

I wonder how I'm going to like this. The book deals with 16/17-ish-year olds, while the actors here at least look a bit older. Poppy Drayton (Amberle) is 24. Let's hope she'll get to play a 24-year old Amberle instead of a 16-year old one.

I'm sure people here remember one or two of my rants of how I dislike unrealistically young children doing epic saving-the-world things. At the moment I'm reading the Axis Trilogy (by Sara Douglass), and one of the reasons why I like it so much is that the people that matter in this story are at least 18, mostly 20-25, with the main protagonist being 29. Finally a fantasy story I can 'believe' in. (You know what I mean )

To make this a success, I think the producers have to pull the Shannara characters more into their mid to late twenties and make the story quite hard and gritty (Elfstones actually is, most of the time), or this series will never catch on with most of the adults that now like Game of Thrones.

[DiapDealer]

Yes, I remember those rants. Young people should always be portrayed as the ignorant, unmotivated, inept turds that they all really are--even in fantasy. Any attempts to portray them as being heroic, smart, unselfish--or remotely capable, really--should be discouraged until they reach their fictitious nineteenth birthdays. Can't have them poisoning real young peoples' minds with insidious ideas like ... mattering in a big way, for heaven's sake. That would be horrible.

Ya old poop.

Originally Posted by Katsunami

or this series will never catch on with most of the adults that now like Game of Thrones.

I'm not sure it needs to. I think they're going to try and separate themselves from the medieval European fantasy trope altogether.

[ucfgrad93]

I'm very excited to see this come to tv! Can't wait!

[ApK]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Young people should always be portrayed as the ignorant, unmotivated, inept turds that they all really are--even in fantasy..

Like the girl in Jurassic Park!

That was another one where I saw the movie first and then read the book.
I thought surely they dumbed her character down for the screen.

Nope, she was even LESS competent in the book. It was disturbing.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Yes, I remember those rants. Young people should always be portrayed as the ignorant, unmotivated, inept turds that they all really are--even in fantasy. Any attempts to portray them as being heroic, smart, unselfish--or remotely capable, really--should be discouraged until they reach their fictitious nineteenth birthdays. Can't have them poisoning real young peoples' minds with insidious ideas like ... mattering in a big way, for heaven's sake. That would be horrible.

Ya old poop.

I think young people should be tested by how they handle a mad, rabies-infested rottweiler or pitbull before they are allowed to be in a fantasy story in which they fight ghastly monsters such as the Reaper. So there!

(I think even most adults would fail that dog test... including myself )

[Turtle91]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

(I think even most adults would fail that dog test... including myself )

Isn't the point that the characters are heroic... ie. NOT the norm for their group?

I like the idea of teaching young kids to strive/achieve/grow rather than force them into .... NOT....

Besides...how boring would a book be that talked about a kid coming home from school...mowing the lawn...turning on the PS4...eating dinner....going to bed...

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Yes, I remember those rants. Young people should always be portrayed as the ignorant, unmotivated, inept turds that they all really are--even in fantasy. Any attempts to portray them as being heroic, smart, unselfish--or remotely capable, really--should be discouraged until they reach their fictitious nineteenth birthdays. Can't have them poisoning real young peoples' minds with insidious ideas like ... mattering in a big way, for heaven's sake. That would be horrible.

Ya old poop.


I'm not sure it needs to. I think they're going to try and separate themselves from the medieval European fantasy trope altogether.

Given that I find any type of story or fantasy in which TEENS are saving the world, or, by and large, twenty-something, utterly absurd, I guess everyone adjusts the "hero age level" according to their own lights. (I don't know if it's something to do with the older I get, or the current generation, or...?, but lately, every young person I see on TV seems to be utterly self-absorbed and unrealistic, even by TV standards, to the point of just giving up on shows with that type of character-"development"-arc.)

I agree with the general gist--that the idea of heroism is someone who is unique amongst his or her peers, and not everyday. Ergo, the average 14-y.o. or 24-y.o or 40-y.o., etc., isn't going to be heroic, regardless of age. Therefore, I think that the age question is moot--isn't it? In today's market, VERY few writers/showrunners are going to create books/stories in which a 50-y.o. Frodo goes on an epic journey--are they? Not bloody likely. I was beyond relieved when Doctor Who stopped his Benjamin Button-esque march toward the next incarnation showing up in damned diapers.

Hitch

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Hitch

I agree with the general gist--that the idea of heroism is someone who is unique amongst his or her peers, and not everyday. Ergo, the average 14-y.o. or 24-y.o or 40-y.o., etc., isn't going to be heroic, regardless of age. Therefore, I think that the age question is moot--isn't it?

Bingo!
I find the idea of being able to "buy into" an older fictitious character's fictitious heroic antics easier than a younger fictitious character's fictitious heroic antics to be ... odd. Not being able to relate to younger characters in general is fine and dandy.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Bingo!
I find the idea of being able to "buy into" an older fictitious character's fictitious heroic antics easier than a younger fictitious character's fictitious heroic antics to be ... odd. Not being able to relate to younger characters in general is fine and dandy.

Well, I dunno, Diap:

I mean...if you're a teen, it probably seems utterly realistic to see Katniss whatever-her-name-is saving the world, leading a revolution, etc. (In fact, let's face it--without young men, revolutions would have no traction whatsoever). If you're older, and been through your teen and young adult years, it seems less likely. {shrug}. It's all perspective, non?

Hitch

[murg]

It's common knowledge that America would still be a British colony if it wasn't for the teenage antics of Johnny Tremain.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Hitch

{shrug}. It's all perspective, non?

Yep. I'm just saying that I'm willing to let fictional people of all ages attempt to entertain me while saving the world. If their authors do them justice ... then they do them justice. I obviously won't like them all, but I'm not going dismiss, out of hand, books with young protags performing amazing feats simply because my older brain tells me that "real" kids couldn't/wouldn't do that. Especially when my brain knows that--nine times out of ten--no "real" older people could/would do that either.

The age of characters in "fantastic" situations/settings does not directly affect my ability to suspend my disbelief of said fantastic situations/settings. Only the author's abilities can do that.

[Turtle91]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Katniss whatever-her-name-is saving the world...

...Really..... REALLY ?!?

EVERDEEN


gah!!

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Turtle91

...Really..... REALLY ?!?

EVERDEEN


gah!!

Yes, really. Sorry, I thought that the movie was pretty darned silly, so I never bothered with the books. Whoever wrote that book has never been in any mission-critical environment, and I actually kept laughing out loud at what were (apparently!) inappropriate moments, like the awkward "pet the dog" scene, in which the heroine takes the time to BURY the smaller dead girl. I mean, hello? Let's see, we're in the middle of a game, TO THE DEATH, and she's already DEAD. It's not like you're trying to nurse a live person.

You (the heroine) know that some pack of other kids are looking for you, to kill YOU, but, sure, you're gonna take the time to build some little mini-monument to this girl, cover it with flowers or whatever it was...nyah. Not my cuppa, at all. I think that anyone who ever served in the service, or worked in any environment like that, would have found it fairly silly. Not harmful; just silly.

Just my $.02. Just because I didn't like it doesn't mean that others shouldn't. Same with Twifright; both originally aimed at the same sort of age-group, YA, and apparently had wide appeal.

Hitch