Reading/Watching Log #94

Thanks to an accumulation of annual leave, I had three weeks off this month, and spent a fair portion of it desperately trying to make a dent in the massive pile of library books that I’ve brought home from my new place of work. This is not as much fun as it sounds, as after a while it began to feel more like a chore than a pleasure, which is not how you should be spending your holidays.

Rest assured, I also went on plenty of walks, and took my friend’s daughters to the movies (Barbie again). Spring has finally arrived in Aotearoa, and I’m soaking up all the available Vitamin D after what feels like a very long, cold and dark winter.

When it comes to the general theme of this month’s reading material, I temporarily put aside Slavic Fantasy and focused instead on what can only be called Old English Children’s Folktales. There were plenty of books based on English folklore or set in specific English locales, with titles like Sisters of the Lost Marsh and The Green Children of Woolpit and By Ash, Oak and Thorn. In terms of their general collective vibe, think The Borrowers by way of The Wind in the Willows.

Viewing wise, my choices were much less themed. We had another movie night at work, and thankfully everyone seemed to enjoy Casablanca (I say that because it was my recommendation). I finally caught up with Netflix’s Wednesday, which means I also watched the two The Addams Family films of the nineties. My sister introduced me to Vigil, a show I didn’t even know existed before she told me about it (which is very weird, since I usually have at least heard of most things) and rather sadly completed Carnival Row and The Nevers, two shows that vibed perfectly together, not least because they were both completely screwed over by their networks.

I did however manage to get in one unofficial “trilogy” – that is, three projects that were directly inspired by the works of H.G. Wells: the 2019 adaptation of The War of the Worlds, the 1979 film Time After Time, and the 2001 miniseries The Infinite Worlds of H.G. Wells – all so different, and yet all standing as a tribute to the reach of this man’s vision.

And three of these projects featured Eleanor Tomlinson!

Legend of the Seeker: Perdition

Back to it! I’m hoping that I can get through this season before the end of the year, but I’m not even halfway through these episodes and life isn’t getting any less busy. Plus, I don’t want to rush it. Once this season is over, that’s it. Show’s over.

This episode starts with Verna waking up Richard, who is very confused to find himself back at the Palace of the Prophets. Naturally there’s some weird shit going on, and though Verna has an easy explanation about what’s happening (his wizard powers are messing with his head) Richard isn’t remotely convinced that this is reality.

Neither is the audience, who has seen this scenario play out in countless television shows: Xena, Buffy, Angel, Charmed... they’ve all done a “trapped in a false reality” episode. Heck, I’ve just watched one on The Wheel of Time with Nynaeve!

Thankfully the show doesn’t insult our intelligence by trying to make us believe any of this is really happening. In fact, they reveal Richard’s true circumstances before the first ad-break, and instead chose to use the illusion as a chance to delve into his psyche and explore what he fears the most.

So, let’s have a run-through of what exactly that is...

His Dark Materials: The Botanic Gardens

And we’re done. All things considered, this was a decent ending to a fairly by-the-numbers adaptation of one of my favourite book trilogies, but at every turn it seemed to lack the vision of Pullman’s work. The show hit all the major plot-points, had a solid cast who knew what they were doing, featured relatively good visual design (costumes, set design, cinematography, etc) and seemed to understand the underlying themes – but there was simply no X-factor to the proceedings; no passion, no conviction.

In a way, this is because so much of the His Dark Materials trilogy is unfilmable. Not only is it well-nigh impossible to demonstrate the profound bond between a daemon and a human being without the insight that text can provide, but because ultimately the trilogy in its entirety is a theological mystery that contains an alternative spiritual worldview to Christianity and is solved through careful thought, research and discovery by its myriad of characters.

That naturally doesn’t translate well to a visual medium, best seen in the fact that the story’s emotional climax isn’t a no-holds-barred CGI battle between two massive opposing forces, but the sexual awakening of two preadolescents.

Because of that, this episode in particular feels more like an epilogue than a culmination of all the plot-threads that the show has been weaving for the past three seasons, the physical battle having already been won in the previous episode. It’s an unconventional ending to a deeply unconventional story, one that’s broken plenty of the rules of narrative structure along the way (there, we don’t even get a clear answer regarding who won the battle between Asriel and Metatron’s forces – only that the Magisterium’s power in Lyra’s world was weakened long after the fact).

This “wind-down” episode encompasses the last seven book chapters, yet given the stakes of the story as-written thus far, it’s tasked with the need to reestablish the central narrative issue: Dust is flowing out of the world and somehow our main characters must find a way to stop it.

His Dark Materials: The Clouded Mountain

It’s the penultimate episode, and unsurprisingly it has the sacrifice of Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter (along with their daemons) as its centrepiece, though it also tries to dramatize some of the Final Battle that the entire show has been leading up to, with mixed results.

The problem is that in the books, Pullman himself had zero interest in exploring the physical outcome of this war. Lyra and Will ran across the battlefield in search of their daemons, and that’s all we ever see of it. The focus is instead on the defeat of Metatron and the (deliberately) anticlimactic death of the Authority.

But that doesn’t fly in a visual adaptation, especially since we’ve spent the better part of this season watching the multitude of soldiers in Asriel’s camp preparing for battle. The audience expects to see them actually fight.  

So with the Clouded Mountain approaching in the sky above Asriel’s encampment, his forces get ready for the inevitable conflict. There’s lots of hustling and bustling, witches hover in the sky above, Ogunwe hugs his daughters (aww), and Xaphania lays out the stakes, which are glaringly obvious for anyone that’s been paying the slightest bit of attention thus far: “The Clouded Mountain draws closer.  The way forward now depends on Lyra. If Eve survives the Fall once more, all worlds will be liberated. But if Metatron can control the children or their daemons, the future is his forever.”

Thanks for that.

Woman of the Month: Claudia

 Claudia from The Dragon Prince

In recent years I have been reluctant to feature female characters in these posts before their stories have been completed. I well remember writing enthusiastically about the likes of Lexa and Vanessa Ives, only for them to come to deeply depressing ends.

But I feel reasonably confident that Claudia will come out the other side of this story intact, regardless of how closely she’s currently skirting to true darkness. It’s clear (to me at least) that Aaron Ehasz based this character heavily on Azula, of whom he once said he would have liked to write a redemption arc, one attained through the unconditional love of her brother. Having not been given the chance to do that with Avatar: The Last Airbender, the concept has been co-opted for The Dragon Prince between Claudia and Soren, the best characters of the show by an embarrassingly large margin.

Claudia is first introduced as a young mage with burgeoning powers, as well as the focus and discipline to hone her craft, but it’s her relationship with her widowed father that informs most of her character. As glimpsed in the graphic novel Puzzle House, the disappearance of her mother and the control that magic can give her are important facets of her personality, leading to blind obedience and loyalty to her remaining parent.

Across the seasons, she grows increasingly proficient in Dark Magic, something that initially seems incongruous with her sunny, cheerful disposition. This gradually becomes more ominous as her father ropes her into participating in various crimes (including the attempted assassination of the Crown Prince) though it’s her brother Soren who first realizes just how far across the line Viren has gone.

Most of the major turning-points in her life have involved her family: sacrificing a deer to save her brother from paralysis, turning on Soren after seeing him kill what he thinks is their father to save an innocent, and finally bringing Viren back from the dead and going to increasingly compromised lengths to ensure he stays that way. There’s even a visual component to her fall into darkness: her dark black hair gradually turning white with the strain of the magic she’s using.

I love a good corruption arc, and where we leave Claudia at the end of season five is definitely a point of no return for her. Having used aggressive force against the show’s heroes in an attempt to free a profoundly dangerous being from captivity, their counter-attacks lead to the loss of one of her legs. I have a strong suspicion that she’s not going to take that very well.  

There’s real darkness in this girl and she’s probably going to get worse before she gets better. And yet, I’ve never showcased a villainous character on a Woman of the Month post before, and I don’t think I’ve done so now. There’s still hope for Claudia, but she’s got to hit rock bottom before she can start finding her true self.

Reading/Watching Log #93

Well, Spooks is done. Done! All ten seasons and the movie. It was a great ride: half brand-new experience (since I’d never seen it before) and half trip down memory lane (since it took me all the way back to 2002). I enjoyed my visit to the noughties so much in fact, that I think I’ll stay there a while longer. I’ve found Inspector Lynley on a free streaming service, and have Hustle ready to go as well. It’s so nice to enjoy shows that don’t get cancelled after a single season!

I find myself in a bit of a reading/watching routine lately: more graphic novels, more Slavic fantasy, more Babysitters Club. And by a complete coincidence, I managed to read/watch three stories about the Holy Grail this month: a graphic novel, a short story, and a film. What are the odds? I’ve also made it through Genndy Tartakovsky’s latest offering, the third season of Harley Quinn (and the Valentine’s Day Special), the fifth of The Dragon Prince and the next Indiana Jones movie. Oh, and two more Robin Hoods. Whew.