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Making a new thread since the original thread is from 10 months ago.

Here is the teaser trailer:



It's being produced by the BBC (with New Line Cinema bankrolling it) and it's only being distributed by HBO in the states (i.e. they have zero input into the writing), which is a sigh of relief for a lot of people I know.

For those who are unaware, His Dark Materials are a trilogy of novels by Sir Philip Pullman, The Northern Lights (known as The Golden Compass in the US), The Subtle Knight and The Amber Spyglass. Ostensibly a "Young Adult" novel, it's appeal is actually all encompassing because it is a dark, gritty fantasy series (although Sir Philip himself disputes it, calling it "stark realism") which alludes to concepts from physics, philosophy and theology. There are a lot of genuinely dark and thus depressingly realistic concepts dealt with in the books and it's all done phenomenally well.

There was a Holywood movie (which watered down one of the main narratives and still made people angry with it) made which doesn't actually exist the same way The Last Airbender movie doesn't exist.

On a personal note, when I first read the books I was a little past its "target" audience, but the trilogy still remains my favourite book series to date.

Yup, great series, I really hope the TV show will do it justice.
in related news there is also another book coming out set 7 years after the Amber Spyglass (called The Secret Commonwealth) and itis due to be released Oct/Nov 2019, which is a continuation of the main trilogy...

The TV series has already been renewed for a second season as well (despite not even being released yet).

Greenlighting a second series now is a good move; for story strong series it can give writers the confidence to not rush the first season's pace nor aim to bring it to a final conclusion which can sometimes really mess with story pacing. A solid known future is proven to produce better series in most cases.

I really hope this does well!

I really hope it turns out well, and does definitely seem from the trailer to do a much better job of the familiar relationship than the movie.

It's going to be very difficult to accept Lin Manuel Miranda as Lee Scoresby after Sam Elliott though- for all its faults (and they were many) the film absolutely nailed the casting for that aeronaut.

Is this that movie everyone lost their minds over a while back?


Automatically Appended Next Post:
NM yep it is, golden compass

Just noticed this. I knew it was in production, but hadn't seen a trailor. I'm very exciting.

Ruth Wilson is a perfect casting!

This is looking just phenomenal now...

If that Polar Bear can talk, Im totally sold (looks like a good series ).

made which doesn't actually exist the same way The Last Airbender movie doesn't exist.

A bit like Alien 4 so.

I always saw Alien 4 as a nice fanservice film more than part of the continuity of the story, but at least it removes itself far enough from the core story that you can ignore it safely. Unlike the prequel films that mess with things. I also liked that at least in 4 they had the boldness not to keep it as the original "evil company".

That said the best continuity is honestly the comic series that came out around the same time as the films. Alien wars on earth, battles on other worlds, fish aliens and the good old horror of aliens on a space ship

I was a bit apprehensive about it on a tv budget but the production values look great. Fingers crossed for it.

Went to see the film with an ex.

Fell asleep in the cinema and missed most of it.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Went to see the film with an ex.

Fell asleep in the cinema and missed most of it.

lucky you, its not a terrible movie but like lots of one media to another efforts compromise after compromise watered it down and the ropey casting didnt help

looking forward to this new version however

Jane Tranter, the woman responsible for bringing His Dark Materials to HBO, pushes back against the idea that the story is anti-religion.

Le sigh. I really hope this is just damage control for the US, and not an indication that they've gone for a more generic "authoritarianism is kinda bad you guise" tack.

 Yodhrin wrote:
Jane Tranter, the woman responsible for bringing His Dark Materials to HBO, pushes back against the idea that the story is anti-religion.

Le sigh. I really hope this is just damage control for the US, and not an indication that they've gone for a more generic "authoritarianism is kinda bad you guise" tack.

Welp. That's put a damper on my excitement. This is the same pussyfooting that ruined the movie.

I'll watch the trailer when I get home tonight. I only ever read the first book, with my Wife when we were in college for a "Fantasy In Literature" class. We both loved it, and I really hope this series does it justice.

Considering shows like Lucifer and Supernatural have done well or at least survived in the US market suggests that HDM should be "safe" but it will always attract some anti-religious fever now and then from certain circles.

Of course such circles would be against it even if they stripped out every single religious reference as it would still have things such as magic and familiars.


I also hope they've not cut down the religious elements because it really does damage a core part of the story, especially as you work into the second and third books and the greater story. Cut the religious you can sort of get away with in the first book because that's a book which asks more questions than it answers about the greater overall story. But any attempt to take it further would either fall apart or have to make massive story changes.


Thing is the story was never anti-religion, just anti-religious authorities. Quite specifically the ones in the fantasy realm it creates for itself.

 Overread wrote:
Considering shows like Lucifer and Supernatural have done well or at least survived in the US market suggests that HDM should be "safe" but it will always attract some anti-religious fever now and then from certain circles.

Of course such circles would be against it even if they stripped out every single religious reference as it would still have things such as magic and familiars.


I also hope they've not cut down the religious elements because it really does damage a core part of the story, especially as you work into the second and third books and the greater story. Cut the religious you can sort of get away with in the first book because that's a book which asks more questions than it answers about the greater overall story. But any attempt to take it further would either fall apart or have to make massive story changes.


Thing is the story was never anti-religion, just anti-religious authorities. Quite specifically the ones in the fantasy realm it creates for itself.

That's pretty much what Trantner says in the article above. So I'm still cautiously optimistic.

Who am I kidding actually, I'm well still very excited.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Went to see the film with an ex.

Fell asleep in the cinema and missed most of it.

Good situational judgement there. Ticket money had already gone to waste, so you made most use of it.

Trailer looks better than the movie (not much of a statement however). Where are people's daemons tho?

Honestly, I feel the source material is over-rated.

Hot take!

 Easy E wrote:
Honestly, I feel the source material is over-rated.

Hot take!

Yes, a very hot take. The books are phenomenal and are actually good unlike anything written by G.R.R. Martin this millennium.

They might still be nervous, cause while Good Omens and Lucifer toyed with religion in ways the very religious would consider sacrilegious, neither really cast religion as a villain. Lucifer even had a whole episode about Lucy learning compassion from a priest.

Backfire wrote:

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Went to see the film with an ex.

Fell asleep in the cinema and missed most of it.

Good situational judgement there. Ticket money had already gone to waste, so you made most use of it.

Trailer looks better than the movie (not much of a statement however). Where are people's daemons tho?

Literally everywhere. The first one is two seconds in. They're constantly on screen.

It says something about my wife's memory that when she watched the trailer and the main girl was spying on the dads secret meeting my wife shouted: "She isn't hiding in the wardrobe!"

Meanwhile, I only remember a basic outline of the plot and characters but no specific names or anything.

We read the book simultaneously with each other.

 LordofHats wrote:
They might still be nervous, cause while Good Omens and Lucifer toyed with religion in ways the very religious would consider sacrilegious, neither really cast religion as a villain. Lucifer even had a whole episode about Lucy learning compassion from a priest.

nut didn't the priest then get killed prompting a fairly justified rant at "Dad"

Turns out that this is a bit good, then.

I think we might be looking at a perfect adaptation the like of which we haven't seen since LotR here. The cast, the script, the props and costumes, the whole aesthetic, it's just absolutely bang on. Nothing really omitted, some things even added and expanded, in an absolutely stellar first episode. Tense, deliberate and more than happy to take its time. This is good television.

Kinda weird question but, should I watch this trailer if I plan to watch the show?

I've never read the books or really knew anything about them, but I've read on here that it's good, so I'm interested... but for some reason the last couple of trailers that come to mind have given away significant, major plot points I would have enjoyed more upon seeing them in the story proper (I'm looking at you, Bloodshot, last 2 Terminators, and so on).

 Ouze wrote:
Kinda weird question but, should I watch this trailer if I plan to watch the show?

I've never read the books or really knew anything about them, but I've read on here that it's good, so I'm interested... but for some reason the last couple of trailers that come to mind have given away significant, major plot points I would have enjoyed more upon seeing them in the story proper (I'm looking at you, Bloodshot, last 2 Terminators, and so on).

Looks fairly safe to me; more thematic than detail. The only slight spoiler is about one character turning out to be evil, but that’s kind of hinted at right from their introduction.

If you're the kind of person that doesn't like any kind spoilers, then I'd say avoid the trailers, but like Jadenim says the trailers are mainly thematic and only hint at some plot points rather than outright state them.

I am still cautiously optimistic about this, despite my usual strategy of assuming everything is going to be bad so you are surprised when it isn't. I just hope that the anti-religion/catholic/christian/whatever message isn't overly neutered and that they don't shoehorn in some idiotic current day "OrangeManBad" message.

So I finally got around to watching the first episode. Really solid episode that does great worldbuilding. Ruth Wilson does a fantastic job playing Marisa (spoilers)I am a little sad that they didn't spell dæmon correctly though, but I can understand why they did it since 99% of people would just get confused (this is why we can't have nice things).

Is it written down a lot? Adding the “a” is just a variant spelling, like haemoglobin/hemoglobin and the like.