So......the Legend of the Seeker premieres this weekend......will you watch it?

[Hero of Satsuma]

Seen a couple of adds for the show on tv.  Took a gander at its website (http://www.legendoftheseeker.com/.  Not sure if I am intrested or not. 

 

I won't be able to watch it either way, since WIVB and WNLO are both broadcasting companies for CBS/CW and are currently in a contract dispute with Time Warner, so 250,000 cable subscribers in WNY are without their evening news or sunday football on CBS.

 

Curious to see what the intrest is out there for this show.....

[Kaznen]

Ya know, it's the law that cable providers have to carry local stations.

 

Anyway, I saw the preview episode and it showed a few scenes.  Looks pretty faithful to the books.

 

One reason I hope it is successful is that if it works, whoever owns the rights to WoT this week might do the same and make a series.  Everyone is pretty much agreeing that is would be better then a movie.

[Almearafan]

I'm definitely going to be watching.

[Kadere]

I figure what the heck. I watched the first 10 minutes already and it looks ok, if not wholly accurate. I think it'll be equally as good as Xena or Hercules, and I was a fan of the books. So I'm looking forward to it.

[Majsju]

I will absolutely not watch, since it is based on books that are among the worst piece of rubbish ever written. And considering that screen adaptions usually are worse than the movies...*shivers*

[drizzt_scimitar]

The 10-minute preview seemed to initiate quite a few changes, actually. For one, Kahlan seemed to be bringing the book of counted shadows to give to the old wizard (Zedd), rather than Richard having previously memorized it. Also, it seemed that Richard didn't know Zedd already much at all, (there's a scene when he said "I barely know either of you"). Granted, that's not that important, but still. And the soldiers coming after Kahlan really overused calling her a confessor. In the book, the mysteries that she's a confessor, Richard knows the book by heart already, etc. are pretty major (if weak) plot elements. I might watch it, but maybe not. I did rather like the first book, I just felt that it went rapidly downhill from there.

[Kaznen]

When Richard found out that Zedd was the First Wizard and started acting all First Wizardy Richard reacted like he never saw Zedd before.

 

Turning the trusted friend the hero knew all his life and changing to some mysterious stranger will be very hard to pull off.

[the dude]

i think i'll just hug and kiss some nice poisonous snakes instead, thanks.  8)

[Singin Hobo]

I've always felt that the books had a decent story but were poorly written... Goodkind has imagination but no focus.  It will hopefully adapt better for TV.  And I think my love of Sam Raimi's every breath is enough to get me interested.

[Kaznen]

Everyone have your Tevo's fired up?  Legend of the Seeker premiers tonight, and I'm excited.

[Singin Hobo]

It's also up for free on iTunes right now!

 

woo.

[Hagazussa]

Am I going to watch it, hell yes, but it is not aired yet in Norway and I will try to be patient until it comes out on DVD instead of downloading it as I want to see it on my TV and not on a computer screen.

[Sirayn]

I'm watching the premiere now, and while everyone is deliciously pretty and their armour is all shiny, the dialogue is EYE-GOUGINGLY TERRIBLE. Predictable, loaded with cliches, the works. (Much like the series. Zing!) Plus Richard's dad is awful lively for someone who died before the series begins, and I did not need to see Zedd 95% naked.

 

On the other hand, Kahlan is as hot as I am shallow, and I am a fool for medieval visuals. Bring back the evil but square-jawed dude in the armour!

 

edit: Obviously all prophesied hero stories owe something to the Bible, but I didn't realise quite how Biblical this one was until I saw Herod, ahem, Darken Rahl send his Egyptian, ahem, D'Haran soldiers to massacre the baby Jesus, ahem, Richard who was prophesied to overthrow him.

[Sirayn]

A more balanced (and spoilerlicious) review, having watched the full episode:

 

Spectacularly awful parts

 

* The dialogue sucks. The only decent line was Zedd's line about the Seeker's quest not coming with an instruction manual, although I query whether they'd have heard of instruction manuals in Fake Medieval Europe.

* The fights were ridiculous. An unarmoured woman with two short daggers cannot defeat multiple heavily armed and armoured attackers in a straight fight! Period! Her attackers didn't use the most basic of common sense. Here is the benefit of about two seconds' thought:

- If you have a spear, kill her FROM A DISTANCE. Don't move in so close your spear is useless, then wait for her to stab you.

- If you have a shield, USE it.

- If you are archers, and your cornered victim is well known for KILLING PEOPLE BY TOUCHING THEM, you stuff her full of arrows from a distance.

 

Disappointing parts

 

* Darken Rahl is a poor man's Alan Rickman. Why does he sound so English? What is this fetish for English antagonists? Also, why does he have no personality?

* If you cut a man's arm with a dagger, he will say "Ow!" and move away, not collapse dramatically to his knees and stay there obediently while slowly dripping blood until a cup is full. I doubt he would actually bleed that much anyway unless you hit an artery, and in that case I'm expecting full-on arterial spraying. It was just a weird and illogical scene.

* Too much slow-motion. Overused and detracted from the dramatic moments.

* Chase was manly but bland.

* Kahlan needs to make less like a damsel in distress. Really.

 

Stuff that was surprisingly okay

 

* Kahlan is astoundingly hot.

* The square-jawed evil dude was enjoyable.

* +10 for the artillery regiment smashing up the boundary.

* Michael Cypher isn't gigglingly evil and may even have a personality buried deeply under his antagonist plot role. I think some elements of the series have definitely been improved in the translation to the small screen - there is no fire stuff, for example, and so far the plot actually makes sense.

* Darken Rahl writing in blood in a book and his writing appearing in another book like an instant messaging system? Over the top, but fun.

* The scenery is the unacknowledged last member of the cast and it is gorgeous.

* On the theme of gorgeousness, the cleavage factor in this episode is off the scale, plus Richard and Michael are both cute in a jailbait kind of way. I merely bring this up for anyone who wants to be dazzled by the pretty.

* The three main characters were okay, if not particularly inspired. I liked Richard's little hissy fit at Zedd's place, rejecting his Seekerness and all. (Hey, he hasn't massacred any peace protesters yet.)

 

Overall, I'd give this a C, as opposed to the source material which is an F. If you can overlook the dialogue and the tendency for your eyes to pop out of your head in horror and disgust when they start fighting, it's watchable. I'll watch the next episode.

[Kaznen]

I thought they nailed Kahlen and Zedd down perfectly.  If I hadn't read teh series I would have thought it was awesome.  I just think it was pretty good.

[Sirayn]

I did enjoy Kahlan, but I'm not sure to what extent I liked her because I'm so ridiculously shallow. She was pretty cool when she was about to cut Richard's throat - I felt she kind of slid downhill into damsel-in-distressery as the episode went on.

 

Zedd? Still traumatised by the naked.

[Singin Hobo]

I enjoyed it on a certain level... we've been without a Hercules/Xena for so long that something had to fill the void.  I was surprised that the special effects have not improved AT ALL... it seems that at this point you can have a fairly low-budget production that still has a handful of really great looking effects.  I was also disappointed in the overall design of the gar... I always envisioned them as having a body-type similar to the old Venom of late-90s Spiderman comics... with sort of the beefy squarish muscles and head

HERE'S A GOOD VERSION OF WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT

Obviously not a total knock-off or anything, but I've always seen that sort of zero-body-fat sort of muscular body, not really the weird lizardy/Gollumy sort of thing from the show.

[Far Dareis Mai]

I watched it...don't really like the books...didn't really like the show either. I felt that the effects were horrible (even for low budget), I thought the slow motion fight scenes were out of place...and nothing was really how I envisioned it...except for perhaps Kahlan--though I think she smiles too much, and she got all huggy-touchy-feely with Richard much earlier than I recall.

 

I was really disappointed in Zedd. I thought he looked just like Rayden from the Mortal Kombat movies...  :-\

[Hero of Satsuma]

Agree about the slow-mo action sequences. 

 

I always thought battle sequences should be fast paced, to try and illustrate the chaos and confusion of the fighting.  You save the slow-mo scenes for when he is flying through the air with his sword raised or when he comes to a halt on his horse and the horse rears up and kicks at the air.

 

I think that this was actually the opposite.

[anamul]

I have seen the previews.Casting for Kahlan is ok I guess...I mean it will be impossible to have some one like the Kahlan Terry Goodkind described in the book.Her age can be forgiven due to the fact that she must have an ageless look while appearing young.(Even though she doesn't look as young as described the book).

 

But the guy for Richard...totaly sucks.Apart from the book description if you compare him to the previous standard( Herculis)...Well there is a huge difference.I failed to see any personality in his appearance.He looked immature as well.As I have seen all the episode of Herculis, well you can guess, he doesn't come anywhere near to Kevn Sorbo's standard.And these kind of anomaly with casting makes us wonder "what the hell is going on with show biz?"

 

Once again the old saying: There is no Casting like Lord of the Rings....the whole series to movie was great in every aspect.

[the dude]

i actually ended up watching the first 20 minutes or so.....

 

i giggled the whole way.  it fully met my expectations.

[Luckers]

It was pretty terrible... but, that being said, better than the books. I suppose its because you only have to hear the terribly childish writing when they speak, as to opposed to it informing the entire world.

 

Richard and Kahlan were both very pretty though. A slight plus. Zedd was a disapointment--his character was one of the few that i enjoyed from the books, off-beat yet funny. In this he just reminded me of the alcoholic uncle that everyone avoids at weddings.

 

I really look forward to Goodkind's reaction though. Given the way he reguards his series, with its blinding truth that only 'people who hate life' can dislike, i imagine he'll find this an insult.

[the dude]

see, i pictured him sitting at home with a hooker to the left, a fifth of scotch to the right, a straw and razor on the mirror in front of him, and a little blood tricking from a nostril, yelling "WHOOOOOOO-EEEEEE!!!!!  YES SIR, I AM ONE ONE AWESOME MOTHER$#%%%$  HOT DAMN AM I COOL!"

 

but that's just me.

[nyneaeve]

this probly sounds so sad but whats Legend of the Seeker??? might be cause im in uk i never heard of it!

[Barmacral]

Legend of the Seeker is a brand new TV series based off of Terry Goodkinds Sword of Truth novels.