Allanon has been alive a long time. He is a Druid. He is a warrior. He is a teacher. But perhaps most importantly, he is a historian.
He knows the history before the Great Wars. He knows how the Four Lands came to be. And when he doesn’t know an answer to something, he has the will and the ability to find it, no matter how difficult the road.
In this new video from The Shannara Chronicles, we view Seattle as the city used to be before the Great Wars brought devastation and ruin to civilization. We see the Four Lands and where Seattle used to be. And while we see the time lapse, Allanon is speaking about it.
Then we get a look at the Druid Sleep that Allanon chose to employ!
The Shannara Chronicles will two-hour premiere on January 5, 2016!
More news soon!
12 responses to “The Shannara Chronicles: Video of Seattle & Allanon”
It’s been years since I read the novels, but from what I remember, it was only crypticly hinted that the world of shanarah was once our world. This movie seems to come right out and say it with out even hinting.
Since so much of Terry’s later Shannara work is tied exclusively to our world, he thought it best to highlight it earlier in the TV series. I think he made the right choice.
Thank you Shawn for your response. I’m VERY excited to see what you all have done with the Novel. The teasers and trailers have been overwhelming. The attention to detail and the sets look just amazing.
I’m… getting worried. First Amberle is described as “badass,” now Allanon uses cryogenics instead of magic for the druid sleep, which is making me also notice that we’ve never seen him use magic in the trailers… He *does* still have magic, right?!
Little tweeks are ok. Adding characters is ok. Making all the characters meet in the first episode… I don’t like it much but it’s ok. Completely changing a character’s personality is definitely NOT ok. If the only druid in the show never uses magic that is also not ok.
I was soooo excited for this show, but the last couple of trailers have dropped my enthusiasm down to 0. I’ll watch it, but I no longer expect much.
1. Amberle is a stronger woman in the adaptation, true. She is not a meek mouse as seen in the novel. It makes sense. If Amberle is a part of the Elessedil royal family, of course she would have been trained to use a sword. Especially with a warrior king like Eventine. This is one of those changes Terry is pleased with because it makes sense.
2. At no time does Terry describe how the Druid Sleep works. In my opinion, doesn’t make much sense for a Druid to use magic in the Druid Sleep when the Druid Sleep is meant to replenish used up magic. Plus, how do you think cryogenics would work without magic? It’s not like he’s in a machine tube freezer or something.
3. Allanon has used magic in the trailers. You need to look closer. 🙂
In short, wait and watch the show.
“Amberle is a stronger woman in the adaptation, true. She is not a meek mouse as seen in the novel. It makes sense.”
Stronger woman does not necessarily equate to “badass,” and personally I’m not a fan of this idea that a character who doesn’t fight is by definition weak. I never thought of the book version of Amberle as meek because she has a very strong will, determination, and courage in the face of something that terrifies her to her core. Calling her a mouse is quite an injustice IMO.
“If Amberle is a part of the Elessedil royal family, of course she would have been trained to use a sword.”
Interesting idea. I never thought of Eventine as a warrior king, just your typical king who was trained in swordplay and war strategy — like most kings — because there was a good chance he would need to use those skills at some point. Looking at history, many kings were “warrior kings” to the same extent that Eventine was yet their daughters and granddaughters were usually not trained for combat. Terry’s earlier books seem to follow that typical medieval dynamic, although the more recent ones have had a more modern concept of gender equality. I have no problem with the switch as new characters are introduced, but when you go back and rewrite characters to fit you’re treading on thin ice. People fell in love with Amberle the way she was; changing her now just feels like PC bullcrap. I’m glad Terry is happy with the change, and maybe it will be more palatable to newcomers, but I think a lot of fans will be put out.
“At no time does Terry describe how the Druid Sleep works. In my opinion, doesn’t make much sense for a Druid to use magic in the Druid Sleep when the Druid Sleep is meant to replenish used up magic.”
No, how the druid sleep works was never explained, but considering that the purpose of the druid order was to revive lost magic, not lost technology (Cogline is the obvious exception) it seems strange for something called the “Druid sleep” to be technological instead of magical. As for the Druid sleep replenishing magic, I must have missed or forgotten that part. I figured the point was extend their lifespan and their ability to protect the Four Lands by going into stasis when they were not needed and coming out when they were.
“I’m not a fan of this idea that a character who doesn’t fight is by definition weak.”
I never said that. Strong doesn’t equate into warrior. The simple truth is, Amberle in the novel can’t protect herself. In the TV show, she does an okay job of it. Sometimes. It doesn’t make her Xena Warrior Princess though. You are judging something before having even seen it. And remember: I’ve seen it. Wait. Watch. And then decide if you like it or not. But judging now is foolhardy at best for you.
“I’m glad Terry is happy with the change, and maybe it will be more palatable to newcomers, but I think a lot of fans will be put out.”
Yes, some fans are going to be “put out.” Terry and I have already said that. Fans that can’t understand this is an adaptation and not a paint-by-the-numbers retelling of the book should not watch the show. As Terry has previously said, he understands that the TV show is not for every fan. There are fans who want a word-for-word retelling of the book. Nothing wrong with that at all but it’s not what you are getting. That is not what Terry wanted to do with his book; he wants a companion to the book, not an exact retelling.
“I figured the point was extend their lifespan and their ability to protect the Four Lands by going into stasis when they were not needed and coming out when they were.”
Maybe I wasn’t clear about the Druid Sleep. There is no machine keeping Allanon young and replenishing his magic in the TV show. It’s not done by cryogenics as you suggested. The point of the Druid Sleep is to replenish the magic that was lost, to repay a “debt” as Allanon puts it after he’s used magic (The Sword of Shannara‘s Chapter 34).
I’m not going to argue. It’s pointless. Either you’ll watch it or not. My role here is to dispel erroneous information or opinions that pop up. Your original post had a lot of inaccuracies in it and that’s why I commented on it. Cheers.
Terry has always been very reticent to tie any present day location to the four lands. He said he wanted to let the readers fit things together. He has said the four lands are in a restructured North America, and Parkasia is in/near Japan. Locking down the ruined city as Seattle saves time explaining how things got from here to there, but its surprising.
(My guesses have placed most of the four lands in central California and Nevada, with huge geographic changes, even an alteration of the Earths axis. I’ve been working on a map to define the altered continent, but haven’t gotten quite a satisfactory fit yet.)
The Four Lands are primarily set in the Pacific Northwest, given what we know to be true about the King of the Silver River, his reach when the land is polluted, and his appearance in Seattle in the Genesis of Shannara series. Terry has also confirmed this in Ask Terry several times. 🙂
I’ve always thought of the large dome where they find Uhl Belk in the Druid of Shannara as being the Tacoma dome 🙂
Its funny to me that the seemingly fragile things are still around after so many millennia. The Seattle space needle, and a random helicopter would never make it so long. Please know this is not a negative comment. I love the look of the four lands that you’ve come up with. Actually it reminds me a lot of the environment on the show “Adventure Time” which is an awesome show.
I am so excited for this. I have been a fan of Shannara stuff for over 30 years, since I first read the Sword at 9 years old. I was so proud to have finished that huge book then, and as I grew up I lost the desire to read….though I hold onto the one statement that Terry Brooks is the one Author I will complete a reading for. Just call me the awesome mad fan, because…well…I am.