So as much as I love the new The Dark Crystal: Age of
Resistance Netflix original series, I never quite vibed with the movie. Don’t
get me wrong, I definitely appreciate it for it’s awesome puppetry and visual
design, but the story and characters just always fell short for me. Still,
being a fan of the franchise in general despite my gripes with the original
movie, I just had to get the novelisation of the movie. Is it any better than
the film? Let’s see. Minor spoilers ahead, but none if you've already seen the movie.
If you’ve seen the movie, you know the story already, as
it’s pretty much beat by beat the same. A Gelfling named Jen, one of the very
last of his kind, sets out on a quest to restore a shattered Crystal that keeps
the world of Thra in balance and get rid of the tyrannical Skeksis lords.
Pretty basic fantasy stuff.
The execution in this book adaptation, however, I
surprisingly liked more than the movie. As I said before, yes, the story is
pretty much retold the same way as in the movie. But what makes the book better
is that we get more context for what’s going on. One of the main flaws of the
movie is that, despite there being this huge world with lore to explore, it
only barely scratches the surface of what’s really going on, often leaving
questions for the viewer. The book adaptation doesn’t answer all of these, but
it at the very least gives more exposition and explanation for certain things.
The characters still aren’t mightily amazing. Jen is still
Jen. He’s a very bland protagonist, both in the movie and the book, but I could
stand him a little more here for whatever reason. Kira I always preferred, and
I do here, too. The Skeksis are of course deliciously evil, making them the
most enjoyable characters in the book for me. Aughra is fun, too.
The pacing is also better in the book if you ask me. I never
quite could stay engaged for the entirety of the movie, partially due to the
pacing, which was rather slow if you ask me. Here, it feels much more balanced,
maybe because it is a written version of the story.
A nice bonus touch is some original concept art for the urRu, Skeksis and various locations scattered throughout the book.
It is no secret that I prefer this book to the movie. Is it
very good? I’d say no, but it definitely deserves a look, even if you couldn’t
get into the movie.
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