Game of Thrones concluded its epic 8-season run early this morning ( or will tonight if you weren’t willing to stay up and watch the finale) however HBO is already preparing for their next big fantasy series which they are hoping will once again take over living rooms and fuel more online debate.
That series is His Dark Materials, which like Game of Thrones, is based on a
popular fantasy book series. In this case, it’s writer Philip Pullman’s work, which includes the classic novels The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass, as well as a new sequel trilogy to these which started in 2017 with The Book of Dust. As far as fantasy source materials go, few could be more perfect for the screen than Pullmans’ novels which means that HBO once again has the perfect platform on which to build yet another remarkable series. That’s if they do the source justice and properly allow both Pullman’s imaginative fantasy world and his commentaries on religion and power to come to the fore.
Set in an alternate world where one’s soul manifests as a shape-shifting animal called a Daemon, His Dark Materials follows a young girl named Lyra Belacqua (played in the series by young Logan breakout star Dafne Keen) who travels to the Arctic to find her friend Roger. He (and other children in her version of Oxford) have been kidnapped by The Church, which is experimenting on them as it studies the nature of an elemental particle called Dust. That particle imbues people with consciousness, and that’s something that the Church has deemed heresy. Lyra’s journey brings her on a considerable adventure across worlds and lands her in the midst of a massive war being waged across existence.
Check out the trailer below:
This first season is likely going to take its inspiration from the first novel in the series, The Golden Compass, which was previously adapted into a feature film back in 2007 with the hopes that it would become a hit movie trilogy of its own in the vein of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Sadly, that movie was a horrible mess that failed to live up to the source material and missed the mark in properly utilizing some of the best things from the books, including Pullman’s more harder hitting story beats. It does appear though as if this new series is learning from those mistakes and looks to delve into some of the darker elements of the novels and explain things a little better this time around.
This trailer may be brief, but certainly looks to be as epic in scale as the books itself. And with HBO (in partnership with the BBC) bringing in some remarkable acting talent into the mix with the likes of Ruth Wilson, James McAvoy and Lin-Manuel Miranda to join Keen, they are certainly setting up this series for every chance of success. Let’s hope they can pull it off and do the series justice. We don’t have any release dates for His Dark Materials just yet, but once all the excitement from Game of Thrones dies down, expect HBO to announce it and start pushing their marketing.
Last Updated: May 21, 2019
Craig "Crios" Boonzaier
May 21, 2019 at 11:56
I really need to read the books. I only ever read the first book Northern Lights/Golden Compass
Weanerdog
May 21, 2019 at 12:43
Random question, how hardcore is Northern lights. What age would you advise kids to be before they read it. I know this is a loaded how long is a piece of string type question but just off the top of your head?
Incubus
May 21, 2019 at 13:16
The later books have some sex in them if I remember. Dit was lank terug, okay.
Weanerdog
May 21, 2019 at 13:26
Thanks,
hades
May 21, 2019 at 13:26
Personally I read them for the first time when I was 15 and it’s probably fine for that age group. Was aware of them before that age, but was made to wait a bit because adults around me thought the strongly atheist/anti-theological subject matter was a bit much for a younger mind, or something like that (ironic, since I’d gone agnostic years before reading them). Subject matter that might put some people off aside, nothing too bad, bit of violence (worst I can think of offhand involved a bear getting his bottom jaw ripped off in the first book), bit of burgeoning sexuality, the usual sort of thing you get from YA books really.
La Belle Sauvage from the Book of Dust sequel series was quite a bit more mature than the His Dark Materials trilogy books though – the protagonists are children, but there are a couple of f-bombs and the primary antagonist was a rather menacing sex offender (implied to also have a thing for children, if I recall correctly) who chases after them.
Craig "Crios" Boonzaier
May 22, 2019 at 11:34
I read them around 12/13 years old, kinda young adult novel. The author has agnostic beliefs and somewhat brought that into his books with a fantasized version of the Catholic Church, which received a lot of backlash in day which i remember, for their portrayal of being overly evil.
There are other themes touched on, but however I cant comment on the latter part of the trilogy, having not read them.
As long as the kids go into it with an open mind and obviously remember that it is ultimately a fantasy novel.
Weanerdog
May 22, 2019 at 12:09
Thanks for the reply, my son got the book for his birthday and with HBO grabbing it I got a little worried that the book might have graphic scenes.
RinceThis
May 21, 2019 at 11:56
HBO needs to make sure the source material is complete before they venture out on another big show like this. Are they?
Original Heretic
May 21, 2019 at 12:06
That series is done, so yeah, should be fine.
I just hope they don’t try to expand 3 or 4 books into 10 seasons.
Original Heretic
May 21, 2019 at 12:06
Game of Thrones excitement? More like disappointment…
Guz
May 21, 2019 at 12:15
HBO’s version of”please don’t cancel after GOT finishes. This all seems quite a ways off and west world only coming 2020 so they need to at least release it this year
HvR
May 21, 2019 at 13:06
Somebody should probably tell them it is too late
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=now%207-d&geo=US&q=cancel%20HBO%20subscription
Yahtzee
May 21, 2019 at 12:15
So its discount Game of Thrones
HvR
May 21, 2019 at 12:23
Game of Throne: PG-13 Release
They should get Ryan Reynolds to do the trailer
RinceThis
May 21, 2019 at 12:23
https://media.giphy.com/media/nFjDu1LjEADh6/giphy.gif
HvR
May 21, 2019 at 12:23
Interesting that His Dark Materials sequel trilogy starts with A Book of Dust and the last book in Song of Fire and Ice is going to be called A Book of Salty Tears
Guz
May 21, 2019 at 12:43
To be fair this season was under cooked so some salt is fitting, perhaps not the whole shaker but it was missing that je ne sais quoi
G8crasha
May 21, 2019 at 13:16
Considering that this book series was intended for young adults, don’t expect explicit sex, nudity and gore, like GoT! So yeah, story will be epic hopefully (LOTR epic), but for those that enjoy the more, shall we say, “visceral” aspects of such series, you will most probably be disappointed!
Guz
May 21, 2019 at 12:15
I’m more interested in what Amazon is cooking up with their LOTR show, haven’t heard anything major yet but that is the next big one I’m waiting for
Original Heretic
May 21, 2019 at 12:43
Wheel of Time, too.
Guz
May 21, 2019 at 13:06
Forgot about that as well, pity it gonna be a while before they come out, but at least the shows writers cant mess with that plot to badly
G8crasha
May 21, 2019 at 13:16
Considering that this book series was intended for young adults, don’t expect explicit sex, nudity and gore, like GoT! So yeah, story will be epic hopefully (LOTR epic), but for those that enjoy the more, shall we say, “visceral” aspects of such series, you will most probably be disappointed!