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Nerdarchy > Film, TV and Video  > Chronicles of Shannara By Terry Brooks is Now a MTV Fantasy TV Series
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Chronicles of Shannara By Terry Brooks is Now a MTV Fantasy TV Series

Gaming like a box of chocolates: D&Dizing Forrest Gump


Hello and well met traveler of the Internet,

Nerdarchist Dave here with a bit of a review, my thoughts, or just plain ramblings about the new series on MTV Chronicles of Shannara based off of the novels written by Terry Brooks. I’m going to do my best to stay away from spoilers. If you aren’t familiar with the books or the shows on MTV it’s fantasy TV series. When it  comes to network television we seem to be getting more nerdy goodness than ever.

I’ve been eyeing Terry Brooks work for decades now, but have never gotten around to picking up one of his books sadly. I was pleasantly surprised to learn MTV was going to be doing a fantasy TV series based off of the Shannara series. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been though after HBO’s success with Game of Thrones.

The Shannara series is now 5 episodes deep currently and I believe they can all be watched on Demand through your cable provider. There are four main characters that get introduced in the 1st episode and have been pretty consistent in popping in and out of the story for the past 5 episodes.

Fantasy TV Series

Chronicles of Shannara Character Primer

Allanon– Played by Manu Bennett. He’s the mysterious Druid and kind of the herald of things to come. I was really excited to see this actor. I’ve really enjoyed his portrayal of Slade Wilson in the Arrow series.

Amberle Elessedi– Played by Poppy Drayton. A bit of a fish out of water character. Amberle is an elven princess that right from the beginning of the Shannara series begins redefining a woman’s role in elven society. Much of the story revolves around her.

Eretria– Played by Ivana Baquero. This character is very interesting and plays the role of an anti-heroine. This character is a smart survivor who’s a lot of fun to watch. She is a bit of a wild card compared to the other characters in the series. You never quite know which side she’s on. After a little digging I realize I’ve seen this actress’s work before. She was also in Pan’s Labyrinth.

Wil Ohmsford– Played by Austin Butler. Oddly enough I’m the second most familiar with this character through watching kids movies with my children. I’ve seen Austin in Aliens in the Attic and Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure. This is our reluctant hero that has been entrusted with magical elfstones almost immediately after the character was introduced. He also turns out to be a bit of a legacy character.

There are a ton of supporting characters in this Fantasy TV series that may or may not step up to take on bigger roles, but I’m going with those four as are our main characters.

The World of Shannara

I’ve never read any of the books and this just going off what I’ve watched so far. The world of Shannara  looks to take place in some kind of earth like world after the fall of civilization. Right from the beginning you see buildings and things of the modern world that have fallen into decay. Whatever happened it was so long ago and nature has reclaimed most of these structures as it’s own.

This is quite the twist in a fantasy setting for the humans to have come first and all the fantastical creatures to have come after. It’s usually the other way around. There are trolls, elves, half-elves, demons, gnomes, and other creatures in Terry Brooks’ world. All of which seems to be at each others throats and no one likes those that aren’t of their own kind. My guess is we are going to see plenty of other mythical creatures through out the series as well.

Chronicles of Shannara Trailer

As far as I can tell there are 10 episodes already shot and half of them have already been released.If you enjoy epic quests, swords and sorcery, and compelling characters your gonna love this.

Until next time “Stay Nerdy”

-Nerdarchist Dave

 

 

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david friant

My name is Dave Friant I've been gaming off and on for over 27 years. But here is the thing it's always been a part of my life I've kept secret and hidden away. I've always been ashamed of the stigma that gaming and my other nerdy and geeky pursuits summon forth. Recently I decided screw it! This is who I am the world be damned. From now on I'm gonna be a geek, nerd, or however folks want to judge me and just enjoy life. Currently one of my greatest joys is introducing my 13 yr old son to table top RPG's.

2 Comments

  • Steven Carroll
    February 2, 2016 at 1:54 pm

    I have been having a bit of a hard time watching the series. I understand that changes are necessary for adaptation from book to screen (I love the LOTR movies, etc.), however, they have made a LOT of completely unnecessary changes that do nothing to enhance the story or have any sense at times. They tried to make it a Young Adult book series in a way, which the books are not. Hopefully it gets better, but I may not finish the first season.

  • David Friant
    February 5, 2016 at 7:15 am

    I totally get that. It's the way I feel about a lot of the non-Marvel Studios comic book movies. Fortunately for me I've never read the books and can just enjoy it for what it is.

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