Argent he/him Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 So that show is out as of this week, and on MTV too. If you didn't know, the show is based on Terry Brooks Shannara series, books that are a bit of a name in the fantasy genre (which I actually haven't read because of poor feedback). But the show. The first two episodes aired on January 5, and are in fact available for free on YouTube. I saw them both last night, back to back, and my first and strongest reaction was along the lines of "Wow, this story is so cliched, I can literally predict what's about to happen with almost perfect accuracy." Mild spoilers: And it is - there is the male protagonist who is orphan, but also descended from kings (bonus points for being the last living descendent). There is the wise and powerful wizard druid who must guide our hero on his quest. There is the rebellious princess who (kind of) beats the boys at their own game, and also runs away. There is the cunning rogue who seduces our hero just to steal his valuables. There is a dark force that was imprisoned in a magical prison ages ago, and is now awakening, but nobody believes in its existence. There is - and this is my favorite - a scene where our male protagonist must fetch his future love interest the female protagonist from the nearby waterfall, where he finds her bathing, and he is being a complete bumpkin about it, and she manages to ambush him, and they bicker while their older mentors are being attacked. Which has not one, but two TV tropes! All this being said, I kind of enjoyed it. Perhaps I enjoyed how blatantly cliched it is, but it wasn't an unpleasant experience watching it. I intend to come back next week, maybe treat it as a bit of a guilty pleasure. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Left he/him Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 Yeahh....I couldn't finish the first episode. I've never been a Shannara fan, and the books feel just as cliche as the show. I will say this, for a tv show, those effects were gorgeous. I actually really liked the look of the troll(as far as I got). My biggest problem? It feels like a mix of GoT and one of the dozen teen vampire shows. I'm guessing that's what the creators were aiming for, since that's probably a great market to aim for. It's just not me. I feel bad though, what with Deathstroke acting as the Druid and everything. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeiryWriter he/him Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 I also watched it, and I actually quite enjoyed it. I also started reading the Shannara series in elementary school and it's partially responsible for getting me into fantasy so I'm hardly an unbiased viewer, Elfstones has a huge amount of nostalgic value. Now to be honest I don't think the series is as bad as most people say it is, but it's by no means ground-breaking in the genre, it's just a good old-fashioned fantasy. That said in the first two episodes alone it's clear that this is definitely an adaptation, they've changed a number of things (such as them really bringing the post-apocalyptic thing to the forefront, it's not nearly as prominent in the books), enough that while I know the broad strokes of what's going to happen I'm curious how the changes are going to propagate. The visuals are also stunning. In the end though, I really hope this does well as it can help open the door for other series getting adapted. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argent he/him Posted January 8, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 I feel bad though, what with Deathstroke acting as the Druid and everything. Are you kidding, that's half the reason I am sticking with the show! That said in the first two episodes alone it's clear that this is definitely an adaptation, they've changed a number of things (such as them really bringing the post-apocalyptic thing to the forefront, it's not nearly as prominent in the books), enough that while I know the broad strokes of what's going to happen I'm curious how the changes are going to propagate. I actually didn't know the world is supposed to be a postapocalyptic Earth, not until I saw these episodes. I find this one of the best things in those two episodes. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Left he/him Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 Are you kidding, that's half the reason I am sticking with the show!It would be the only reason I would come back to it, the little I saw of him as Allanon looked good. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king of nowhere Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 i havent read shannara e i am not going to, neither am i going to see the show. But i heard that they were making it on tv, and i wondered why it appears that lately every fantasy saga is picked up for tv adaptation except the ones I'd like to see most. I read some people complaining it is clichèd, and while i cannot judge it for myself, it would be a good explanation; the producers of tv stuff don't want to risk spending milions on a show that will be a flop. Instead, to make sure they will have some public, they tend to produce exactly what was succesful before. If the public liked it then, they reason, it should be at least mildly succesful now. and that's the reason a lot of tv stuff feels clichèd. But hey, while I think they made a horrible mistake in not picking the reckoners or mistborn for adaptation, it could help pave the way for more fantasy adaptation in the future. Or it could reinforce in the general public the idea that fantasy is only about elves, vampires and werewolves. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orlion Blight he/him Posted January 9, 2016 Report Share Posted January 9, 2016 Haven't seen the show, but if they are adapting Elfstones, it should be a fun swords and sorcery show. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSC01 he/him Posted January 9, 2016 Report Share Posted January 9, 2016 It's... Well, it's really not a good show, but I'm watching it anyway. Visually, it's spectacular, but a lot of the acting is pretty bad, and the music is often very odd. Like, it will be all atmospheric and ethereal and in no way matches the mood of what's happening in the scene. It's kind of jarring. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hood he/him Posted January 10, 2016 Report Share Posted January 10, 2016 A few years ago, I started this series with...The Sword of Shannara. I didn't found it as bad as people say. Maybe, because at that time, I hadn't read LoTR. Anyways, I kinda stopped reading it midway, hoping to start again. I was quite excited by The Kingkiller Chronicles. When I see back, I find my way to fantasy quite weird. I mean, The Eye of The World was the first fantasy novel that I ever finished. After that --> The Black Company. (trilogy 1) Then ---> The First Law trilogy Then ---> The Kingkiller Chronicles (they're my favourites) Then ---> Trials 1-7 for Gardens of the Moon and then finally I went back to fantasy of 90's (WoT, Farseer trilogy , and so). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 11, 2016 Report Share Posted January 11, 2016 Oh cool I didn't know it was on YT so I'm watching it now. I hated these books. Only read 3 of them before giving up and the last I read is the one this is based on but it's fantasy so I ll watch it aslong as it stays on YT since I don't have MTV anymore. Maybe it ll go to Netflix since I'm sure YT is only gonna show Ep 1-2? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Left he/him Posted February 18, 2016 Report Share Posted February 18, 2016 Anyone still watching? Is it worth catching up on, or not so much? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argent he/him Posted February 18, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2016 It's a bit of a guilty pleasure. I can't get over how cliched everything is, and how utterly stupid the characters can act, but I am keeping up with it. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSC01 he/him Posted February 19, 2016 Report Share Posted February 19, 2016 Yeah, I've been keeping up with it; although, I just watch each episode whenever. With most shows that I DVR, I eagerly jump to the couch and get a-watching, as soon as I get home from work. Shannara... I usually watch the episode some time that week. Sometimes not. Is it worth it? I guess that depends on whether or not you feel that the cool fantasy setting (which really is excellently rendered--except maybe for the gnomes) makes up for bad acting and stupid writing. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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