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gloamingroamingfish · 5 years ago

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I’ve got nowhere else to ramble about this really, so here, have my opinions and predictions about all the The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance characters revealed in this article from Newsweek., under a cut because it’ll be long. Uh, possible spoilers for a 40 year old movie? Or the series itself, on the off chance my theories are right? All photos can be seen in the article itself, this post is already long enough. Here we go.

Aughra

Can’t say I won’t miss her original voice, but Aughra’s new VA sounds like she’s going to do just as well, and might even be better suited to the miniseries than the voice from the original movie would be-- a short 80s fantasy flick is a different animal after all. This Aughra has a more complicated costume, which I like, she looks very scholarly, and she also a bit taller, or least less stooped. Yellow’s a good color for her. I just hope her trusty eye’s still removable.

Rian

I remember this character from back when the Henson Company threw a contest to find the author of a new Dark Crystal novel. He was the suggested protagonist, and it was around this time they fleshed out some things about the matriarchal Gelfling society, too. It looks like in this series he keeps his role as a Crystal Castle guard who discovers the Skeksis’ horrid secret and kicks off everything that happens next. He does resemble Jen a lot, which I think is a good thing. The designers knew their baseline. That is a quintessential Gelfling right there.

Gurjin

But of course with a whole Gelfling society to focus on instead of just two of them, they have to decide what variation in Gelflings looks like. This is a great start. I trust this guy. He looks level headed and capable. Probably lets Rian do most of the talking.

Maudra Fara

She looks kind of young for a Gelfling clan matriarch, but maybe there’s a reason for that. There will be a war in this show (that the Gelflings have to lose in order for the movie to happen). Maybe her mother was killed in battle. Fara gives me a “lost one or both parents” vibe.

Naia

Only says that she is Gurjin’s twin. Her name is ringing a bell, was she in another spinoff thing? TDC’s had a surprising amount of those.

Brea

I think I’ve seen her described as a “princess”. But one who can read, based on a photo that’s out! I can’t wait to see Gelfling books. I don’t have many solid impressions of her right now.

Deet

I can’t. She’s. Too cute. My gosh. She is just the right amount of fey and mop-topped and probably psychic. I love her and she reminds me of Kira, who was arguably a better Gelfling hero than Jen was (much love to Jen though).

I also appreciated hearing her speak in the trailer, because she used the same cadence as from the original film, same rhythms and word choices. It sounds like that’s a choice that’s been made across the script, which is a relief because it would have been really jarring to hear these characters speak the way modern screenwriters would make other fantasy tv characters speak, instead of that 80s puppet accent they need.

Tavra

Another weirdly familiar name. I don’t have any ideas about her role, really. I will say that on certain Gelfling ladies, you can see where the designers let the Gelfling baseline slip a bit. Some of them are just a bit too elfin and pretty for my tastes, I like them better when they sit further back in comfortably uncanny territory.

All-Maudra

Yes, this looks exactly like the Gelfing you’d expect Helena Bonham Carter to voice (I did think she was doing a Skeksis though!). Kind of puts me in the mind of a medieval noblewoman; from the info, it’s not clear if she’s literally the queen of all the clans, or just a figurehead, but she does function as a sort of diplomat to the Castle who specializes in dealing with the Skeksis... and from her clothes I’d say they’re rubbing off a little bit. (Is it just me, or does her crown sort of mirror the decorative spikes on the Emperor’s carapace?)

Oh no, what if she’s in cahoots? I can’t imagine consorting with Skeksis all the time is healthy for one’s morals...

Onica

Weirdly tricky to wrap my head around the idea of a Gelfling with curly hair and freckles, but Onica’s cute. Are they one of the sea sailing Gelflings?

Cadia

Gelfling with a beard. Alright. I guess that’s possible. I’ll bet he’s Onica’s uncle or dad or something. I like his face, I hope I like him. He looks like comic relief.

Rek’yr

No idea what to make of this guy. Why is his name different than the others? Is he a leader of an army or some kind of lone wolf?

You know, there are likely going to be Gelflings on both sides of this conflict. the Skeksan status quo is bound to be seductive to at least some of them. Because why not make this story crueler by letting some Gelfling be complicit in their own kind’s destruction?

Librarian

Ha. Nerd. I like his big hat. Which library are we visiting? The Scroll-Keeper’s? Or someone else’s?

Kylan

Okay, this one’s just straight inscrutable. What is that expression? Why are their clothes weirdly plain and red compared to everyone else’s? Red’s not really a Gelfling color. Am I just being paranoid or is there something up with this one?

They remind me of the Chamberlain and I have no idea why???

Seladon

No info here, either. Not listed as a Maudra, but is probably still powerful as Gelflings go. Perhaps connected to the All-Maudra? They seem related.

Ordon

Think I saw this guy in the trailer wielding a weapon. He has the look of an army man out to prove himself in battle only to valiantly sacrifice his life later. Suspiciously specific theory? Yeah, probably.

Mira

Another slightly too pretty Gelfling lady. I’m sure she’s fine. Next.

Maudra Argot

Utterly delightful grandma Gelf. This must be Deet’s Maudra; I adore her floppy hat and classy silver embroidery. She looks like she would offer her loved ones milk and cookies one second and kick Garthim beetle butt the next. I’m sure she speaks her mind, look at that defiant little chin jut. I love.

Hup

Podling!!! Yes I am most pleased this show will feature Potato People. Nothing bad had better happen to Hup.

Baffi

Dave Goelz returns to play a shrieking fluffball! We can’t not have a fizzgig. Fizzgigs all look the same so naturally the crew could only think to give Baffi here a sick eyepatch to set him apart. I approve!

Okay, here’s what I know you scrolled all the way down for! It’s time for our favorite decrepit decadent dinosaurs, starting with...

skekUng, the General

I almost hope this is not in fact skekUng, because this is frankly disappointing. Who is this??? It doesn’t resemble the guy from the original movie even a little bit. I know he would have lost weight in some places and gained it in others, I know it might just be a bad angle, but I can’t find anything in common between the two faces. His teeth are in the wrong place, his beak is the wrong shape, that’s not what his smug expression looks like--I remember him being slightly desperate even when he was winning--he doesn’t have his grizzled hair, or, more importantly, his expressive bushy eyebrows-- I refuse to accept that this is “just what he looked like when he was younger”. This is a totally different Skeksis! Who are you and what have you done with the General!

Even the armor is wrong! It’s supposed to be all bulky and beetle-like, like the Garthim, even with liftable wing-like parts, here it looks loosely ‘inspired’ but still flat and nondescript. Everyone else looks so good and almost just like themselves, crew, what went wrong here? Am I missing something?

Maybe I’m just upset because Ung’s the only one I’ve ever encountered in person. This isn’t even a bad Skeksis design, I’d actually like it quite a bit if it weren’t for the fact that it’s not him.

The Collector

Hello, who is this! I’d almost mistake this charming forest ogre for one of the “good guys” if their Skeksis-ness wasn’t so obvious. I love the silver and grey fabrics, the beaded hood and the mossy necklace of bottles, filled with...herbs? Did some kind of incident with forest plants cause that fungus-like growth/scarring on their face? It adds so much to their facial silhouette.

There was a character in the spinoff manga called skekLach the Collector, but he looked completely different from this Skeksis, much meaner and more imposing. I doubt this one is the same character or even that they have the same name; it would seem that the Henson Company has declared the manga Collector an AU version and retooled the character concept into someone different. I see this Collector as being like a sort of deadly apothecary, brewing potions and poisons from specimens they collect beyond the castle. 10/10 wicked-witchy birb.

skekAyuk, the Gourmand

Still the same old palace chef, sitting there looking like a Renaissance still life gone wrong; his clothes are in much, much better condition though, and you can see his quite unsettling lower teeth which remind me of a pig’s teeth, thanks a lot Henson Co. I know there’s no way you could have know I have a fear of pigs but now I’m all caught up in what I used to be scared the hog in the backyard would do if it caught me and moving on before I freak myself out, okay, very nice teeth there yes--

skekTek, the Scientist

Minus a few blood tubes, plus a few fangs, it’s nothing but a pleasure to see this guy back from his, uh... fate, in the movie. And given that the Skeksis’ precious vliya life fluid is looking like a huge plot point in the series, skekTek here is probably going to figure in the plot quite a lot himself, hooray! He’s going to be played by the inimitable Mark Hamill, who is probably enjoying getting to play slightly against type by being a subdued, schemy, sciencey villain rather than a loud hammy one, and it is going to be amazing.

The Hunter

Heard of this guy! skekMal, I think it was. Dresses in masks designed to frighten and confuse his prey--often Gelflings--during night hunting trips. The deep blue mixes well with the red to keep even his hunting outfit appropriately regal looking. The way I hear it, they have no idea he is in fact a Skeksis, and he has become the subject of terrifying stories told around the fire. Would not want to see this monster bearing down on me in the middle of the night, hellbent on claiming my skull as a hunting trophy.

skekSo, the Emperor

That is the most punchable face I have ever seen on a bird in my life.

But seriously, it’s great to see old skekSo somewhere other than his deathbed. Can’t wait to see what despicable things he gets up to in his prime. He kind of reminds me of a knight, the same way the All-Maudra reminds me of a medieval lady.

(That is totally the face of someone who scarred a generation of children for life by graphically crumbling into dust, and knows it.)

skekZok, the Ritual-Master

Well done resurrecting this particular design, this one’s not easy! I always liked how his head looked almost disembodied in the red velvet cupola of his carapace, and they nailed that penetrating icy blue stare of his, too. They even added to the skull-like effect by giving him a handful of brown, skeletal teeth. Brr.

Base on what I remember of skekZok’s voice, I wish Keegan-Michael Key good luck in reproducing it, although I trust him to bring his own flair to the character like Donna Kimball does with Aughra, too.

skekSil, the Chamberlain

Poor Chamberlain! You look as old and worn as you ever did, just slightly less bald. Oh, well, you’ll survive. You always do.

He’s got a specific vulture hook to his beak that I hope they remade accurately, I can’t tell at this angle, but he looks pretty much just like himself so far, almost like he wandered off the 1981 set and onto the 2019 one. The most important part of his face is his eyes, so I desperately hope the crew put in extra effort where it counts for him, expressionistically. I think we can expect to see plenty of this slimy, conniving old bureaucrat bird in the series, and his trademark skin-crawling whimper too, which it sounds like Simon Pegg’s been practicing in a mirror. I’ve seen Pegg voice act before, so I’m confident he’ll do a good job here. Have fun, Mr. Pegg!

The Heretic

Is that a huge nail through their...

...hey, wait a minute, I recognize this one!

They’re from an old piece of Froud concept art from early in production, when they were still nailing down a species look for Skeksis. It kind of puts me in the mind of a tropical fish. On the real puppet, though, it looks less like natural markings and more like face paint. Their clothes look un-Skeksis-like, too, more like urRu Mystic clothes than anything, although I doubt a Mystic would wear fur. That’s the sign of the Great Conjunction hanging on their chest. What is the source of this one’s heresy? Did they go try to live in the Valley of the Stones after rejecting the Emperor’s dominion over the Dark Crystal? Does it have anything to do with the nail in their head?

skekEkt, the Ornamentalist

And here’s the Castle’s resident fashionista and interior designer, looking pretty well, considering. Better kept clothes and better done makeup, at any rate. I kind of miss the caked on powder, the slathered on gold foil on his beak, and the awful and ashy clumped mascara. But I’m sure he appreciates knowing this prequel’s been very kind to him in the costuming department. Looking good, skekEkt.

skekOk, the Scroll-Keeper

skekOk didn’t have much to do or say in the movie, being just a shorter-than-average Skeksis who kept the records, when he remembered to. I’m glad to see they’ve updated his crocodilian face to be more expressive this time around, he was always one of my favorite designs.

Supposedly, Jim Henson once saw a children’s book in which a crocodile was taking a bath in an ornate bathtub. Something about seeing a hulking reptile in such fancy surroundings made the wheels in his head turn, and the earliest concepts for what would eventually become the Dark Crystal were born. skekOk in particular brings that story to mind.

(I love his sardonic “oh really?” expression in the article I’m looking at. These birds are going to have so much more room for their personalities.)

And then the article shows one single urRu Mystic:

The Archer

I believe their name is urVa. The Mystics tend to defend their Valley through song, but an extra line of defense can’t hurt, and archery can be a very meditative art. The Archer almost looks too active for a Mystic, his eyes just too wide and his fingers too nimble, but there must have been a time when the Mystics weren’t so ponderously slow and forgetful. Seeing the clear eyes and nostrils in their own beak (or beak-like mouth) really makes plain the connection between Skeksis and Mystics, when in the movie it came almost by surprise (but still made sense.) It will be interesting to meet a Mystic like this.

And that’s everyone in the revealed cast, leaving skekNa the Slave-Master and skekShod the Treasurer out of the original Skeksis, and all of the original Mystics, all un-accounted for in the article I read. The show will come out on August 30th. Fingers crossed it’ll be a unique but great experience!

#the dark crystal #age of resistance #dark crystal age of resistance #tdc aor theories

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