The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance episode 1

Episode 1: End. Begin. All the Same.

I'm the target demographic for Netflix's new series, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, I suppose. I was wowed by it back when it first hit theaters, and I've owned copies on VHS and DVD in the ensuing years. I was stunned by its technical accomplishment and the sheer artistry and imagination that went into the production. Labyrinth hasn't stuck with me as much. Still, I never thought of The Dark Crystal as having much of an influence on my writing until I stopped to think about it, and realized, oh year, there's a bit here, and another bit there, creeping into my work. Particularly early on, which I wrote more fantasy. So maybe I should give it more credit than I have in the past, hmm?

That said, I didn't jump for joy when the series dropped last month. I certainly wasn't as excited as I had been when rumors circulated years ago about a sequel series. Age of Resistance is a prequel, and that left me skeptical. Don't get me wrong. I love the concept of prequels, exploring the distant past of some particular setting, meeting new characters and getting a new appreciate for the legacy and worldbuilding. Where prequels fail is when creators tie them too closely to the original work, so that said prequel exists solely to set up the events we've already seen played out. That would seem to be the case with Age of Resistance-- we are introduced to Gelfling society at its apex, but know that any resistance is doomed to failure, and Gelfling genocide is inevitable. Couple that with disappointed comments online from people who loved The Dark Crystal but turned the new series off before the end of the first episode... I was not encouraged. But since then I've heard positive, even enthusiastic word from people whose opinions I respect, so my interest was piqued.

Obligatory Plot Summary: The series opens with a voiceover giving the general state of affairs on Thra, the world whereupon this story is set. There are seven Gelfling tribes, arranged in a hierarchy, and they owe their allegiance to the Skeksis, who are keepers of the Crystal of Truth. The Skeksis arrived in the distant past, taking guardianship of the Crystal from Mother Aughra, who thought this was just keen as it allowed her to spirit walk across the universe using a spectacularly oversized orrery. Deet, an underground-dwelling Gelfling of the Grottan variety, is attacked by previously-friendly creatures, and learns there is an unnatural sickness, "The Darkening," spreading through Thra. She goes to warn other Gelfling tribes. In the Gelfling capital, a tithing ceremony to the Skeksis plays out in a way that shows the Skeksis are needlessly cruel, and the All-Maudra, essentially high queen of the Gelflings, has been corrupted by the Skeksis and compromised by greed. Her youngest daughter, Princess Brea, sees through the charade. Back at the Castle of the Crystal, the Skeksis Scientist and Chamberlain capture one of the Gelfling honor guards, Mira, and use a machine to corrupt the Crystal's power and drain Mira's life essence, which the Skeksis then consume to prolong their own lives. Rian, Mira's Gelfling lover, sees this happen and flees in horror, but not before he's discovered by the Skeksis.

Musings: Wow. I absolutely understand why people gave up on this one so quickly. This first episode is wildly uneven, to put it kindly. Many characters are introduced, but there's not much of an opportunity for the viewer to make much of a connection with any of them. The episode is therefore reduced to a bunch of stuff happening on the screen. The puppetry is spectacular at times, and at others it comes off as crude and primitive. CGI is used throughout, and when it draws attention to itself, it is quite jarring. The whole episode felt rushed, but at the same time, not much happened. Mira was the only Gelfling I had much interest in, and she was promptly offed in a scenario that doesn't count as fridging, but does tread that cliched ground where the woman dies to provide the male lead motivation. Try as I might, I don't see any reason why the roles couldn't have been reversed, with Rian dying and Mira fleeing. There's a lot of cliche in the characters at this early stage, and that stands out--in the original movie, the whole world was fleshed out in the first 15 minutes and we were well into the plot. By the 90 minute mark, an entire epic story had been told. In this iteration, after 50 minutes we've only scratched the surface of the narrative.

The most jarring moment comes in the opening minutes, when the narrator, in a glaring break with continuity from the movie, informs the viewers that the Skeksis appeared one day from parts unknown, and took possession of the Castle of the Crystal from Aughra. There's no mention of the Crystal cracking, no reference to the Mystics or the urSkesk. It feels very much like a new set of creators coming in that A) didn't pay that much attention to the original, or B) made arbitrary changes to suit their own narrative choices. Having pondered this for some time, I suspect this apparent continuity error was made with intent, that the voice-over narrator is unreliable, or rather, is speaking from the point of view of the Gelflings, parroting what is believed to be true. We shall see.

Ultimately, episode 1 is a beautiful 50 minutes of television, but not a terribly engaging one. I'm inclined to watch more out of general curiosity, not because the story compels me.

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