The Dark Crystal

[Ashleg]

To see is one step closer to do.

[The Skarzs]

SO.

There is a reason I dug this topic out from six feet under, and that is because of the Netflix series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.

I flipping love it.


The Dark Crystal movie I wasn't a huge fan of, but I'm finding the series to be incredibly intriguing and capturing my attention. I'm only four episodes in (each episode is like 45 minutes long), but in my opinion, there is so much to love in it, for many reasons.

The world it's set in is a bit bizarre, but well thought-out. Flora and fauna are creative and strange, but oddly mystifying and wonderful with the way they move, act, eat, grow, etc. There is society, hierarchy,  government, and all that comes with it, good and bad. There is distrust between cultures, and that is realistic and makes it feel like a world one could live in (within reason).

The characters all have their own traits and personalities that make them endearing, without going over the top with cliche tropes or unrealistically exaggerated personalities. The way each person speaks, the way they move, act, make decisions, and their motivations are all "human" and  very natural traits. No one is so blank or overlarge that they feel out of place or that their part is forced. It's these little things that I love with characters when I am reading, as well as in my writing. I also love some of the dialogue some characters have between each other.

The plot is also good. Sometimes in shows there is filler or parts that feel forced just to move the story forward. In this case, the story is taking place on multiple fronts, and one can feel them all converging. There is all kinds of tension, of different kinds, that make the viewer want to know where things will be going. Betrayal, distrust, belief, risks, death, doom. . . The list goes on. The villains are in a position where it is difficult to act against them without great risk, and it makes one want people to go along with the protagonists, and can be frustrating when they don't. I found myself making fists, willing that an event would take place before they were interrupted and foiled again.

The way it is filmed is so unique and awesome. It's got next to no animation, being made with Muppets and suits, and the settings are physical sets with trees and plants that look semi-real because they're actual objects. I'm not sure how they do some of the filming, and some of the movements (especially the faces) seem a bit plastic, but it's very good nonetheless. We need more stuff like this.

I think part of why I like this so much is because of how different it is from the media we have been getting mostly in animation series, gritty live-action serries, and Japanese anime. No cookie-cut characters, little "cheese" or exaggerated comedy, a medium of filming that doesn't use cheap backgrounds with paper doll characters, a plot that I am genuinely interested in, good writing. . . So much entertainment we have that is even slightly similar to this series trades off some of these things or just doesn't have them. I understand that not every series is going to be a masterpiece or have the ability to apply more then they do, but I can be picky with how I entertain myself.


Overall, for such a strange world, I have found the series to make me extremely invested in the welfare and future of its strange creatures. (Of course, being a Redwall fan, that might not be too hard.)

Has anyone else seen it? Does anyone else have any interest or ability to see it? (No knowledge of the movie is needed. I'm not even sure if they will be tying the two stories together.)

[Verdauga]

Hits 'revive' button to make it official.
If I remember correctly, the original movie was made by the same studio that did the muppets, but I think it was before the muppets. I've seen neither movie nor show, so I probably shouldn't be commenting, but I just hope the directors are consulting the original muppets writers.

[MeadowR]

The Dark Crystal movie I wasn't a huge fan of, but I'm finding the series to be incredibly intriguing and capturing my attention. I'm only four episodes in (each episode is like 45 minutes long), but in my opinion, there is so much to love in it, for many reasons.

Same here! What a great series it is and I would recommend it to anybody who is even semi-interested. Puppets! I don't know whether they are planning another - seems it had a largely positive reception - but if they are: great!!!