The Dark Crystal: The Age of Resistance

Property of Netflix

Like a lot of people of my generation, one of the most memorable cinematic experiences of my childhood was see Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal for the first time. So, when I heard rumblings some two years ago of Netflix producing a prequel series to the original film, I was both joyfully excited and anxiously skeptical. Living in the age of reboots, remakes, prequels, and sequels that we do, where the results can be mixed, I hoped that the end result would be good.


To my gratitude, it was indeed.

Most prequels--as those of us who grew up seeing the Star Wars prequel trilogy know--suffer from a lack of tension because (if they focus on younger versions of characters we the audience already know the fates of), those of watching the film or TV show already know, in the broadest strokes, what happens. (SPOILER ALERT) We don't feel the same dramatic tension watching Obi-Wan Kenobi fighting Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace because we know--those of us who have seen A New Hope--that Kenobi's fate lays on the Death Star in a final rematch with Darth Vader.  With most prequels, the tension lies in seeing how something plays out--at least that's what the creators of such a series are banking on. The audience's curiosity of how something we know to have happened occurs will make up for the lack of immediate emotional tension.

Rian, Deet, and Brea, AoG's Three Protagonists

Age of Resistance manages to avoid this common blunder by focusing on new characters, in whom, over the season's run, we come to emotionally invest our hopes. In this case, it's the story of three Gelflings, each from one of the seven Gelfling tribes  And every character has their own narrative thread that all eventually lanyard together into a single powerful story about the coming together of a diaspora to face a common enemy: the wicked Skeksis. At the same time, familiar faces, like Aughra, the Chamberlain, and the Scientist appear to give the story a sense of cohesion and continuity with the original film.

The story is a perfect epic, in the old fashioned tradition of Tolkien-esque fantasy. All the Gelflings of Thra first must overcoming their own prejudices against one another for their differences in culture, values, and appearance, and realize that they are, in fact, one people. Then they must all come to accept that the Skeksis have subjugated all of Thra for one reason: to further prolong their own, seemingly immortal lives. It does what some of the best fantasy in this tradition manages to do: use the fantastic as a metaphor to reflect real human concern.

Aughra, the Voice of Thra

The effects, of course, are far more sophisticated than those in the parent story. Considering that there is a three-decade difference in the times of production, this is understandable. However, the effects, meaning the use of green screening and CGI enhancements, only serve to accentuate the real heart of this series: the art of puppetry. The amazing amount of  skill evident in bringing these characters to life is awe-inspiring; the subtle movements and practical effects are just as much a part of this story's success as the voice acting--probably even more so.

But, the voice acting list is nothing to scoff at either. Simon Pegg, Mark Hamill, Helen Bonham-Carter, Jason Isaacs, Natalie Dormer, Lena Headey, Mark Strong, Eddie Izzard, and Toby Jones are just a few of the well-known names behind the voices in the cast. Each one brings to their character the very same about of enthused performance as the puppeteers making the characters move.

Now, one thing I didn't expect was that this season appears to be merely the first of an actual series. Initially, I expected the whole story of the Age of Resistance to conclude by the end of this season, but no. From the events  of the final episode, it appears that there could be at least another ten-episode season ahead of us. Question still remain unanswered, and characters from the film (such as the Garthaim Keeper/General), have yet to appear. The big one of course is how is it that, in the end, the Garthaim manage to wipe out all of the Gelfling. And of course, the big question is, what will become of our three new protagonists?

The questions, of course, can only be answered if Netflix gives the go ahead to the production team for another season of Age of Resistance. And the only way we, the viewers who have thus far enjoyed the story, we get to see what happens is if more people go watch it. So, if you love dark, epic stories of the fantastic, and have an appreciation of classic forms of visual storytelling, go watch The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance right now.

And just to give you a taste, here's a clip from the fourth episode of the show. The sequence is easily one of my favorites because it's beautifully shot, it's where the story threads all, at last, begin to twine together, and the visuals plus the music in the background can just send a shiver down your spine.