Tuesday, March 30, 2010

TV Review - Legend of the Seeker


Ever since the (great) ending of Battlestar Galactica I have been looking for a replacement show, and there are a few very good options that come to mind. Chuck, Spartacus, True Blood, etc.
Being currently in a “fantasy-type” mood and watching films such as The Lord of the Rings and The Sword and the Sorcerer again, I heard through the grapevine about this little known show called Legend of the Seeker (LoS).
Starring Craig Horner, Bridget Regan, Bruce Spence, Tabrett Bethell and Craig Parker, the show is based on the Sword of Truth novels by Terry Goodkind, and tells the tale of a young woodsman who is destined to save the world from an evil and powerful tyrant.
Sounds familiar? Of course it does. It’s high fantasy!

My wife and I have been calling he show “Shire Wars” because it really is Star Wars set in The Shire. Not a single episode airs without us pointing to the TV screen and shouting things like “This is where they shot the Insects coming out of the ground scene in LotR!” or “This is where they run across the plain after leaving the mines of Moria towards Lothlorien in LotR!” or “If you want him, COME AND CLAIM HIM!!!” – Because that river from LotR is filmed very often in LoS. Add to this a glowing sword, a wizardly mentor teaching the youngling how to use and control his powers, a badass loner that joins the group after reluctantly helping out, hidden family relations, Ewoks and Gungans (no, not really), etc and you really have Shire Wars!

That being said, Legend of the Seeker has managed to keep me watching religiously for almost two seasons now and this is not an easy task to accomplish. I’m very picky (and yet I watch Smallville. Go figure).
Produced by Sam Raimi and his team, who gave us Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess, the show is more serious than these two previous works with more action and risky subjects. Sword fighting is plentiful and filmed quite well for the most part, using slow motion techniques akin to those found in films such as 300.
We even have a wizard (of the first order, no less…) who actually uses fireballs and teleportation!

Suck it, Gandalf!

Legend of the Seeker takes some risks with the material, as we often learn that children are being raped, tortured and killed (without actually seeing it on screen, but still… I’m a dad so it affects me). The D’Harans, a cruel people led by Darken Rahl (Craig Parker) who seeks to rule the world, are truly vicious and a real challenge for our heroes. Here, we are far from the normal bad guys who are usually nothing more than bumbling fools and sword fodder. They pose a real threat; killing and torturing the people of the Midlands in order to spread fear and seize power.

You know, like America. There. I said it.

The first season introduced us to the characters while laying down the story of how Richard Cypher (Craig Horner) and his new friends, the Confessor Kahlan Amniel (Bridget Regan) and the Wizard Zeddecus Zul Zorander (Bruce Spence) used wits and good nature along with the Sword of Truth to slay Darken Rahl and free the people of the Midlands from his tyranny.

Yes, season one concludes with the slaying of the main villain. But remember, Death is only another part of a journey. Or something to that effect…

Each episode is pretty much a stand alone affair, with minor scenes that follow the thread of the main storyline. Some episodes are more centric to the core story, but those seem to show up at the beginning and end of the seasons and in the middle, around hiatus, with a nice little cliff hanger to keep us waiting for a few weeks or months. 35 episodes in total have aired as of this writing and a third season has been announced but unconfirmed.

The characters in Legend of the Seeker are an interesting bunch. From the leads to the supporting cast, everyone was meticulously written and shines onscreen thanks to some pretty fancy acting, especially for a show like this (high fantasy on TV? Come on!).

Richard Cypher is our Seeker, the good hero, pure of heart and mind with a streak just mean enough not to give him nightmares of all the bad people he has killed. No Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder for our Seeker. Craig Horner plays the role with passion. We can see how much fun he is having with it. He is however one of the weaker actors of the cast and his work has suffered since the end of the first season. Let’s just say he over does things sometimes and leave it at that.

Kahlan Amniel, the Mother Confessor who can bend men to her will with a single touch, turning them into slaves who will do anything, obey her every command without a sigh, a complaint or a ball scratch. “Can you stop watching the game and take out the garbage sweetie?” “Yes Mother Confessor”. It IS high fantasy… Bridget Regan is the shining jewel of this distribution. She masters the character completely and her performance is only more appreciated when the script demands some variations, such as when Kahlan is being impersonated by a con artist, or when her personality is split between two copies of her body. I can’t wait to see what Ms. Regan does next.

The Great Wizard of the First Order Zeddecus Zul Zorander serves as the Obiwan/Gandalf of the story, a mentor to the Seeker who has many secrets of his own. Most notably, Zedd is Richard’s Grandfather (don, don, don, doooonnn) and can actually throw fire balls/stream known as “Wizard’s Fire”. He is wise but also serves as comic relief on many occasions. Bruce Spence is best known for his roles in Mad Max 2, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (he played The Mouth of Sauron) and Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (he played that tall ugly red and white guy who’s people is under siege from General Grievous). He handles himself well but the long white hair doesn’t suit him. He should tie them in a pony tail.

Darken Rahl is the main antagonist in The Legend of the Seeker. He is pure evil, demonstrated by his willingness to send out parties of soldiers to murder little babies in the middle of the night in order to avert a prophecy that predicts his own death at the hands of one of those babies. Well, when one of them grows up, I mean he won’t be killed by an actual baby. That WOULD be silly and it would make the story very short. Lord Rahl is a powerful wizard and a very capable swordsman. Craig Parker, who played Haldir in LotR: The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, is pretty good with Rahl. His contained performance shows a calm dictator with a glint of madness in the eye, like if a monster was ready to jump out of his skin at any moment.

Cara is a Mord’Sith, a cast of women who serves as Lord Rahl’s personal protectors. Mord’Sith use pain and suffering to make people do their bidding, unlike a Confessor who uses love and compassion for the same purpose. Cara uses two Agiel as weapons; they cause her constant pain which she can withstand because of her training, and she is completely devoted to Richard, who she thinks is the new Lord Rahl. She is quite stunning, and a real badass. This is Tabrett Bethel’s first major role, having done some minor acting in the past, along with modelling and cheerleading. Of the main cast, despite her awesome role, she is the weakest so far, with a very small range of expressions. We actually call her Zoolander because she always has the same face on.

The show is based on the “Sword of Truth” series of books by Terry Goodkind. I recently began reading the first writing, Wizard’s First Rule, and I enjoy it very much. For me a book needs to captivate me within the very first pages or I will abandon it, much like a television show and this book, just like its small screen counterpart, has done just that.
Despite its many flaws, The Legend of the Seeker is one of the best High Fantasy-set television shows ever made, with high production value, great writing, very decent acting overall and just loads of fun to watch.
Legal mumbo jumbo has kept a confirmation for a third season from being set and the terrible timeslot is surely hurting the ratings, but I can only hope it will return and continue this great story for a few more years.

8/10