Terry Goodkind is judging me. :'(

[Verbal32]

But....but....Bridget Regan is smokin' as Kahlan.

[Doselan]

Yeah, and speaking of casting, she's about the only person I saw cast that I agreed with.  She looked like I'd picture Kahlan.  But Richard?  He wasn't of large stature, and in the book they always talk about him being a big man... and zedd just looked like a creepy stalker pedo, and Darken Rahl had freakin black hair!  >:(  I mean really!!!

[Ashaman Kovan]

Yeah, and speaking of casting, she's about the only person I saw cast that I agreed with.  She looked like I'd picture Kahlan.  But Richard?  He wasn't of large stature, and in the book they always talk about him being a big man... and zedd just looked like a creepy stalker pedo, and Darken Rahl had freakin black hair!  >:(  I mean really!!!

 

Yeah. I agree that the chick who plays Kahlan is smokin hot and the only accurate cast member in my mind. I'm not sure if Zedd looks like a stalker pedo...Maybe like...Crackhead pedo lol. But yeah Richard is definitely way off from the way he's described in the books. And why oh why did they give Darken Rahl a English accent? I never once heard his voice in my head with a English accent. Not to mention he's the only damn person to have one. I don't know how many other D'harans they've had on the show ( I watched the first episode and then the one where Kahlan disguised herself as a mord-sith. Again, smokin hot) so I don't know if they've given the rest of them English accents as well. I doubt it though. I could complain on and on but I won't lol. Someone else take up the torch. Preferably someone who likes the books but hates the show. :)

[Sayerin]

Richard seems too immature and childish to me. When he tries to be stern os something, it urges me to smile and say 'yeah, you wish!' lol

[Corki]

Darken Rahl has an English accent as he has lived in the UK long enough to get one despite being a New Zealander originally. It happens when you move to the UK. Trust me, I am English and have an English accent, but do slip into a Welsh one now and then when I am back home. As for the rest of the cast, the majority are Australian and New Zealanders, so have that twang in the accent.

 

And yes, Bridget Regan was perfectly cast as Kahlan. If only I could remove Richard from the LotS background I have...

 

And to be honest, there really isn't anything wrong with LotS IF you step away from SoT and view it on its own. I have managed to watch the whole series thanks to YouTube, and enjoyed it. Yes, there were moments I screamed at it when they did things that weren't in the books, but that is going to happen. I bet it will happen with anything they do to WoT. It is something that happens within the TV and film industry. It is very rare for them to keep anything the same. Just look at how they butchered Homer's Iliad for the awful film Troy. Even Stardust was not the same as the book - but the changes were for the better.

 

I know it has already been mentioned, but I hate it when people say TG copied RJ. There are common underlying themes in the genre of Fantasy. And this is something I go on about constantly in threads like this, but they all go back to the Ancient times. Just read Homer's Odyssey. The themes we see today in our genre of fantasy were around then.

[Ashaman Kovan]

Darken Rahl has an English accent as he has lived in the UK long enough to get one despite being a New Zealander originally. It happens when you move to the UK. Trust me, I am English and have an English accent, but do slip into a Welsh one now and then when I am back home. As for the rest of the cast, the majority are Australian and New Zealanders, so have that twang in the accent.

 

And yes, Bridget Regan was perfectly cast as Kahlan. If only I could remove Richard from the LotS background I have...

 

And to be honest, there really isn't anything wrong with LotS IF you step away from SoT and view it on its own. I have managed to watch the whole series thanks to YouTube, and enjoyed it. Yes, there were moments I screamed at it when they did things that weren't in the books, but that is going to happen. I bet it will happen with anything they do to WoT. It is something that happens within the TV and film industry. It is very rare for them to keep anything the same. Just look at how they butchered Homer's Iliad for the awful film Troy. Even Stardust was not the same as the book - but the changes were for the better.

 

I know it has already been mentioned, but I hate it when people say TG copied RJ. There are common underlying themes in the genre of Fantasy. And this is something I go on about constantly in threads like this, but they all go back to the Ancient times. Just read Homer's Odyssey. The themes we see today in our genre of fantasy were around then.

 

Well I didn't mean the actor who portrays him. I mean why did they give the character one.

 

But yes you're right. It has been mentioned how one hates it when people say TG copied RJ. By me. A few posts ago. :)

[Corki]

Well I didn't mean the actor who portrays him. I mean why did they give the character one.

 

Um...because obviously they thought that Craig Parker was the best person for the role - and he just happens to have an English accent. And the fact that if he tried to put on an accent, he would probably ruin it. So it was probably better to play it safe. That is just a suggestion; not the actual answer. Personally, I see nothing wrong with it. It does help to portray each of the regions as different, considering Craig Horner is Australian (Westland), Bridget is American (Midlands) and Parker has an English accent (D'Hara). I think it is quite good. But obviously it isn't everyones cup of tea...

[Sayerin]

I have always imagined Richard quite different and a lot more magnetic.

[Doselan]

Idk.  I can see what you mean that it would be a good series if I stepped away from SoT, and had I seen the series before ever reading the book I'd probably have been in love with it... But I just can't seem to step away from the books... I just wanted to punch the screen the whole episode.  lol. 

 

I can understand a few artistic liberties here and there... but honestly... That show is so far from the books you may as well not even say it's based off of SoT.

[Ashaman Kovan]

Well I didn't mean the actor who portrays him. I mean why did they give the character one.

 

Um...because obviously they thought that Craig Parker was the best person for the role - and he just happens to have an English accent. And the fact that if he tried to put on an accent, he would probably ruin it. So it was probably better to play it safe. That is just a suggestion; not the actual answer. Personally, I see nothing wrong with it. It does help to portray each of the regions as different, considering Craig Horner is Australian (Westland), Bridget is American (Midlands) and Parker has an English accent (D'Hara). I think it is quite good. But obviously it isn't everyones cup of tea...

 

So you say "This is just a suggestion" but just before that you say "Obviously" as if you're privy to some behind the scenes information and know it to be true. I'd work on that if I was you. :)

[Werthead]

 

(you may need to turn on captions via the bottom-right button and it's NSFW)

[Ashaman Kovan]

Yeah....I don't know. Not as funny as whoever made it probably thinks. It's like they have...Damn....What am I trying to say?...Umm..It's a song by Styx? It'll come to me.

[Doselan]

Ok guys.  I need Taymist in here to help me out. 

 

I've been trying to give Goodkind an honest shot on this whole "not copying RJ" deal.  And to be fair, his overlying plot and theme don't seem to copy RJ's.  But certain elements are so similar and it's hard to ignore, y'know? 

 

Now I know that certain elements are going to be similar in this genre, I read you.  But when I look at authors like GRRM, I never once thought he was copying RJ in his series.  I mean honestly... The Sisters of the Light?  Novices?  Collers that control those with magic?  (I'm currently on book 2 btw).  Sisters of the Dark?  I mean, come on.  Richard was raised by a foster parent after being brought to a farm-like land from a very mystical magical place?  (not unlike one of our favorite young men).  I'm just saying, a few different choices of naming would have been in order perhaps.  And those darn male confessors... Able to destroy the world if not controlled?  Idk... It's getting hard to say he's not copying RJ.  :-\

[Verbal32]

Doselan-

 

If you are going to say that TG copied RJ, then you need to be aware of the RJ-Frank Herbert comparison.

 

The Eye of the World, published in 1990.

 

Dune, published in 1965.

 

I think we've established that Dune came first.  The Aes Sedai are VERY similar to the Bene Gesserit.  Women who are super powerful, with a possibility of a "chosen one" male that is even more powerful.

 

The Aiel?  Meet the Fremen from Dune.

 

EVERYBODY USES SIMILAR ELEMENTS.  Just because 2 authors happened to both use these elements, does not mean that RJ copied Herbert.  Therefore, Goodkind did not copy RJ.  To say one must imply the other.

 

 

But when I look at authors like GRRM, I never once thought he was copying RJ in his series. 

 

Martin's series does not have magic, so this doesn't fully apply.  The elements used in aSoIaF are different from the ones in WoT or SoT because the settings and plots are different.

[el Nynaeve]

I never noticed that about the book jackets. But then when I put down Confessor, I've never picked up another TG book and won't.

 

My biggest gripe with TG is the absolute religious tripe in the book (yes imo it is religious tripe, but my opinion only) which I hate to have shoved down my throat again and again and TG does it a lot. Plus I found his characters became flater and more black and white as the series went on. I didn't actually mind the first 4 or so. Plus the ending just, well, it sucked. :P

[Barmacral]

Verbal, my question to you is can you show me Goodkind's sources? I'm not certain that he didn't copy Herbert/Jordan because I've never seen any sources to where Goodkind got his stuff.

 

Both RJ and Herbert can provide sources to every group / culture / whatever else in their books, thats how I know RJ didn't copy Herbert.

 

But then, my beef with Goodkind is because he doesn't do his research before spouting off his mouth. I've seen an interview where he made a statement about Canada that was so horribly far from the truth it was obvious he knew nothing about us. That leads to me being very skeptical that he actually did any research of his own beyond reading Ayan Rand's book and deciding he liked her philosophy.

[Verbal32]

Verbal, my question to you is can you show me Goodkind's sources? I'm not certain that he didn't copy Herbert/Jordan because I've never seen any sources to where Goodkind got his stuff.

 

Both RJ and Herbert can provide sources to every group / culture / whatever else in their books, thats how I know RJ didn't copy Herbert.

 

Barm, you've answered your own question.  ;)

 

If RJ and Herbert can show they grabbed elements from other sources, and RJ and TG are similar, then doesn't it stand to reason that TG also grabbed from the same sources?

 

And are you potentially biased against Goodkind even more because he's an idiot and said stupid things?  I'm not sending the guy Christmas cards or anything, but I'm just saying that there was no copying between TG and RJ, unless you admit that the same is there between RJ and Herbert.  Herbert says "I got it from XYZ".  Jordan then says, "Hey, me too".  How do we know this?  We assume it because that's what all authors do.  The borrow heavily from elements that are similar in most fantasy.

 

I just don't like that people who hate Goodkind say he copies, but they love Jordan and refuse to admit the same is possible for him.  Personally, I think neither copied from the other, or Herbert.  They all got it from works MUCH older than any of them.

[Talya]

I can say *being on the second to last book of the series( that I don't think TG has copied RJ. It gets a little boring when you hear that this author copied that etc. In Fantasy there will be similarities. I didn't think the Sisters of Light were anything like Aes Sedai, There are many people with Magic in TG's world, not just women, there are Witches, Wizards, Sorcerers, and soceress's. So the guy was brought up an orphan, like that's really unusual, look at Frodo in LotR, and that was way before RJ and TG.

 

Why does he need to show resources, he may not have used myth and storis from around the world for his ideas. But they certainly aren't the same ideas as RJ. That becomes a lot more apparent in the later books too.

 

I have enjoyed reading the series and not once felt he stole from RJ. In fact The Eye of the World is more like LotR than TG's first book is like RJ! As a big Tolkien fan I don't complain, because although there are similarities I read tham as separate books and take them as different stories and not let the way I feel about an author effect how I read something.

[Barmacral]

Because Talya, if he's just lifting things off of other authors, thats plaigarism. You can get expelled from University or fired from your job for plaigarising things.

[Verbal32]

Then how do we know that other authors aren't also plagiarizing folks such as Herbert and just stating that they got it from the same references that he did?

 

We don't.  Goodkind is likely getting his stuff from the same sources that Jordan, Herbert, Tolkien, and others have.  Just because Jordan states works other than Herbert doesn't mean he didn't take it from Herbert.  I'm sure he didn't, but you get the idea.

[el Nynaeve]

I think what bothers a lot of people, and me a bit, is that Goodkind actually claims to be writing something totally original when that's not entirely true. He has said this, can't find the quote atm. Sometimes it's not so much the so-called stealing, but whether he gives credit where it's due.

 

It also bothers me that he claims to be writing 'Proper Literature' (his words, not mine) and not fantasy. Well sorry mate, but that is what you write, fantasy novels.

[Talya]

Sounds like the guy maybe a bit too far up himself. But that doesn't mean he copied someone. Barm, if he had done that, then there would have been a lawsuit. His story is nothing like RJ, the world, the people, the plot are all different. So How can you call it Plagerism?

[Doselan]

:o  Sudden explosion! :o

[Talya]

Look what you have started, lol

[Doselan]

Lol, I guess so.  I've been both attacked and sided with!  :o :P