The Shannara Chronicles was an adaptation of Terry Brooks’ popular fantasy novels! The Sword of Shannara (1977), the first book, was pre-Lord of the Rings for me, right at the pivotal time of sci fi and fantasy. It also featured artwork from the Brothers Hildebrandt which is stunning. What became known as the Original Shannara Trilogy started with The Sword of Shannara, there were various novels covering the history and future of the Four Lands, and the last series was The Fall of Shannara concluded with The Last Druid (2020).
The series was created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar who also created Smallville. Executive producers include Brooks and Jon Favreau. It was released on MTV in 2016 and lasted another season on Spike. Season one of The Shannara Chronicles streams for purchase on Amazon Prime. The series is based on the second book, The Elfstones of Shannara (1982). It begins with the two part episode “Chosen.” We see a pastoral hills wiht a river leading to devastation of a city now almost claimed by nature. The twist of Shannara is that it is a post-apocalyptic world that is now turned into a land of fantasy.
This leads to mist-shrouded mountains and finally a sea where across the way is a city, Arborlon, wrapped around a hill like Minas Tirith. We move across the city to a forested area, now at night, a figure runs through the forest. She is blindfolded with her hands tied behind her back and knocked into a grassy ditch. This is Amberle Elessendil played by Poppy Drayton. The actress starred as Madeleine Allsopp in “The London Season” (2013) of Downton Abbey. Her uncle, Prince Ander Elessendil (Aaron Jakubenko), checks on her after sending her to the knoll.
Jakubenko played Commodus in the show, Roman Empire. Both are Elves with the curved ears. He hops down to cut the rope with his knife and tells her she had missed the jump five times. She wants to practice for a race again, but Ander tells her that it will be at dawn. Amberle remind him that only the first seven to cross the finishing line become the Chosen. The palace has silver panneled sides jutting upwards like pyramid-like petals. Below it are the tents of the Chosen race, Amberle is helped by her servant Catania (Brooke Williams), the actress starred in the Spartacus series as Aurelia. They reach the other contestants getting ready below a large, stone statue of a griffin.
Lorin (Mattias Inwood) says she’s not allowed to be on the Gauntlet grounds. Inwood played Richard Burbage in the historical drama, Will (2017). Amberle takes off her cloak revealing her grey Gauntlet shirt. She tells Lorin that women are commanders in the army and on the High Council. Catania notes that she helped Amberle get past the Home Guard. He says that the Gauntlet. Catania tells her friend that there is “sweaty elf boy hate”, funny! Amberle holds out a red cloth to be blindfolded and hands tied behind her back.
The racers line up, the horn is blown, and already Amberle is kicked to the ground. We see the path through the forest that leads up to a hill where there is a single tree with orange leaves. This gives Amberle flashes of visions. She picks herself up and starts to run. The others are kicking, slamming others into trees and branches, and trying to keep up with the race. Amberle takes care of two of her rivals. She leaps over the ditch and another runner is not so fortunate with branches on the bottom of it. Two runners reach the cheering crowds and banners colliding into guards who are in front of the building called Sanctuary beneath the tree. This is watched by Commander Diana Tilton (Emilia Burns).
More runners, four, one throws himself into Amberle and then kicks her. Six Chosen. Amberle kicks her rival and then steps on him as she continues to the finish. Tamlin smiles as Amberle reaches a guard. The horn is blown ending the race. The opening has the Earth, then the United States in an x-ray, buildings torn apart by the apocalypse. Fires, a skull that bleeds into the white, where we see Human, leading into the other branches of Gnome, Dwarf, and Troll. The Elves existed before all of them.
On the griffin statue, stands the silhouetted figure of Amberle as the leaves start falling from the tree. We see the griffin statues at mountain peaks and the tree, spiraling up and trimmed like a bonsai tree. The Chosen are taken before the king. This is King Eventine played by John Rhys-Davies who of course was Gimli in the Lord of the Rings films. He welcomes them into the Order of the Chosen and recounts the story of the Ellcrys, the name of the special tree. Eventine notes that thousands of years ago, the Elves fought against Demons. The elder Elves learned magic and sealed away the Demons in the Forbidding. The Ellcrys is the guard against the Demons. The Chosen are the protectors of the Ellcrys.
He asks that they touch the Ellcrys to be accepted by it. Arion Elessedil (Daniel MacPherson), the older brother to Ander, says that Ander let Amberle embarrass their father. The king is abdicating his throne. Arion brings up their brother who died, Aine, and their vow to protect Amberle. It is Amberle’s turn, she touches the Ellcrys, and seized with a vision! She sees her touching the Ellcrys and sees her hand covered with blood, Amberle turns to see bodies covering a wasteland, Arborlon is destroyed. A winged Demon tears into a victim. Amberle screams!
Her scream suddenly wakens a bearded man in the snow. This is Manu Bennett who plays Allanon, not the alcholohic support group, but a Druid, think Gandalf. He connects many of the Shannara books. Bennett played Azog in The Hobbit trilogy. Mystic symbols cover his back and head. Alannon stands, the baton he carries unfolds into a sword, and says, “It has begun.” Morning, a rider leaves an oil tanker now stranded on a grass hill, and heads towards a house in Shady Vale. This is an early part for Austin Butler, pre-Elvis, as Wil Ohmsford. He is son of Shea Ohmsford, the half-Elven lead of The Sword of Shannara. Wil wears a leather jacket and a cap covering his ears.
He has brought white willow bark to the bed of his sick mother, Heady (Anthea Hill). His uncle, Flick Ohmsford (Mark Mitchinson), says the medicine is too late and gives him some time with his mother. His mother gives him a pouch with three bright blue stones. Heady tells her son that they are Elfstones that was given by Shea. She repeats to Wil to “Find the Druid” and then she dies. Later, Wil kneels by his mother’s grave under a tree next to his uncle. Wil shows Flick the Elfstones who thinks it caused the death of his father. At Arborlon, Amberle paints her vision, and Catania brings in Lorin (Mattias Inwood).
Amberle aks if he thinks the Ellcrys is real which is strange since she is its Chosen. He says magic died with the Druids. At his family’s home, Wil contemplates the Elfstones. Then, he packs to leave Shady Vale to go to Storlock and train as a healer. Flick warns him about the Gnomes, Trolls, and Rovers. Wil takes his horse and leaves Shady Vale. Arborlon at night, the celebration is going on, Amberle appears in a red dress that stuns the crowd. Ander escorts her into the main hall and she says that King Eventine, her grandfather, is not talking to her. They bring up Lorin and Amberle notices he is looking at Commander Tilton. She already has a boyfriend and Ander catches up with another woman.
Amberle has another vision. Lorin sees her and there is a vision flash. Amberle walks into the Sanctuary to again see the Ellcrys. She again touches the tree and then shocked to again find herself in a vision. Lorin is on the floor bleeding at his side. Amberle sees a dagger in her hands! She returns and drops only to see Lorin. Amberle tells him of her latest vision. She tells Lorin that she has to leave the city, he tries to pull her back, but she draws his sword and knocks him out with it! It is raining as Wil reaches the end of a broken highway surronded by waterfalls. In the morning, they reachfollow a stream with marked stones. A chain with three metal balls wraps around Wil’s neck and he falls! Wil looks up to see the forest is empty and then a monstrous man with a gas maks raises a club.
He dies with a knife in the back of his head! Wil sees at a hill, a woman casually holding a knife, she walks over to Wil thinking he is an Elf. This is Eretria (Ivana Baquero) a deadly Rover. Baquero is known for playing Ofelia in Pan’s Labyrinth (2006). She was eleven in that part, but has grown up to a young woman, 22 at the time of Shannara Chronicles. They have an awkward introduction and she notes that she killed the Troll. The duo soon encounters her father, Cephalo (James Remar). These three heroes joined by Alannon to save the Ellcrys and defeat the Demons led by Dagda Mor (Jed Brophy)! Brophy was Sharku in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002). Recommended if you somehow missed the fantasy series and like the novels by Terry Brooks! The Shannara Chronicles has compelling characters, romance, magic, a touch of horror, and some beautiful and terrifying visuals!
Five Elfstones out of Five!
#TheShannaraChronicles, #PoppyDrayton, #AustinButler, #IvanaBaquero, #ManuBennett, #AaronJakubenko, #JamesRemar, #BrookeWilliams, #EmiliaBurns, #DanielMacPherson, #JohnRhysDavies, #MarkMitchinson, #AntheaHill, #JedBrophy
No comments:
Post a Comment