the dark crystal

November 11, 2022

Ultimate Dark Crystal Comics Collection Now On Kickstarter

Peter Paltridge Boom Studios, comic books, comics, Jim Henson, the dark crystal, the jim henson company 2

When film is concerned, there are only two tales of the Dark Crystal: the original 1982 film, and the prequel TV series that Netflix graciously let happen but then annoyingly killed after one season. When you throw comics into the mix, though…there’s suddenly a lot more. Boom Studios and their subsidiary Archaia have been publishing Dark Crystal stories for years, from prequels to sequels to areas in between. Now they’re giving up the license, but not without printing one giant, massive, hardcover collection of all the work they ever did in Thra. The Dark Crystal 40th Anniversary Library celebrates the birthday of Jim Henson’s fantasy creation with SEVEN volumes of material. The collection is now wrapping up its Kickstarter campaign, with less than 72 hours to go as of this writing. This complete collection consists of five mainline volumes and two bonus volumes, to make for a lot of volumage: JIM HENSON’S THE DARK CRYSTAL: CREATION MYTHS HC (Collecting JIM HENSON’S THE DARK CRYSTAL: CREATION MYTHS #1-12) JIM HENSON’S THE

September 22, 2020

Netflix’s Dark Crystal Show Wins Emmy, Gets Cancelled One Day Later

Peter Paltridge Netflix, Streaming, the dark crystal, the dark crystal: age of resistance 1

If anything sums up how frustrating it is to be a Netflix viewer, it’s this: last Sunday, The Dark Crystal: Age Of Resistance won the Emmy for Outstanding Children’s Program. The following morning, Netflix announced the show’s cancellation. Age Of Resistance was a prequel to the classic 1982 film, focusing on the rise of the buzzard-like Skeksis and the eventual fall of the elfin Gelflings that previously thrived in the land of Thra. The look and feel of the program was very faithful to the movie and, as a result, it looked like no other TV show on the air right now, which is saying a lot considering HOW MANY SHOWS we’ve got these days. “We can confirm that there will not be an additional season of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance,” said executive producer Lisa Henson sorrowfully. “We know fans are eager to learn how this chapter of The Dark Crystal saga concludes and we’ll look for ways to tell that story in the future. We are so

June 27, 2019

Six New Characters Announced For Dark Crystal: Age Of Resistance

Peter Paltridge Netflix, Streaming, television, the dark crystal, the dark crystal: age of resistance, the jim henson company 0

The Dark Crystal is getting prequel-fied, thanks to a joint effort between The Jim Henson Company and Netflix. Today we learned a bit more about it — who is populating the new world, and who will be playing those characters. Already the roster of Dark Crystal: Age Of Resistance is jam-packed with stars like Mark Hamill, Helena Bonham Carter and Keegan-Michael Key, but it turns out that was just the warm-up. Take a look at the six characters announced today and try to guess which star is playing them. This is obviously Lena Headey, also known as Gelfling Maudra Fara. This Skeksis is simply known as “The General.” Can you guess who’s playing him? It’s Benedict Wong (Doctor Strange). Another Skeksis, “The Collector,” and way too easy — you can OBVIOUSLY tell this is going to be Awkwafina. There is also Hannah John-Kamen as Nala, and she’s not a household name so I’ll just tell you she was in Ant-Man And The Wasp. This one-eyed Fizzgig will be played by

May 30, 2019

Netflix’s Dark Crystal Prequel Looks Great

Peter Paltridge Netflix, Streaming, television, the dark crystal, the dark crystal: age of resistance 0

Jim Henson was never satisfied with the public perception of puppetry as a kids’ medium, and he spent his life trying to push it in as far a direction from Sesame Street as private funding would allow. (Yeah, I saw the same Defunctland video too). 1982’s The Dark Crystal is a prime example of Jim’s ambition — at the time, nobody really knew what to make of it. Over time, the film became a cult classic, and since The Jim Henson Company needs to lean on the non-Muppet projects Disney didn’t acquire to survive, The Dark Crystal is coming back — in the form of a 10-episode miniseries to premiere on Netflix this summer. Not a single Gelfling or Skeksis has been blasphemously computer-rendered….this is all old-school puppetry, brought to motion by human hands! Of course it would be a lie to say there’s no CGI work in this miniseries at all — a lot of the environments look CG, where they would have been matte paintings back in the

December 17, 2018

The Dark Crystal Prequel Has A Star-Packed Lineup

Peter Paltridge Jim Henson, Netflix, television, the dark crystal, the dark crystal: age of resistance 0

The Jim Henson Company has been in a weird position ever since they sold the Muppet characters to Disney. The sale was only for Kermit and the cast of The Muppet Show, not any other series Henson ever created. Ever since, the company that bears Jim’s name has soldiered on, living off its less popular but still somewhat beloved properties. In his later years, Henson pushed the limits of puppetry in a frustrated effort to break the “kiddie” image the medium had. A lot of his projects during the 80s had dark themes. lots of shadows, monsters that weren’t funny, and mature storytelling. 1982’s The Dark Crystal was exhibit A for this phase of his life, and now it’s coming back. JHC launched a Dark Crystal comic book last year, but they want to do more. They’re now hard at work on a Dark Crystal TV series, set before the events of the movie. Netflix bought ten episodes, which will premiere on the streaming service eventually, probably next year. We’ve