Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Game of Thrones are benchmarks for epic fantasy adaptations. Soon, we’ll be getting Terry Brooks’ Shannara Chronicles, thanks to MTV of all networks (That’s next on my reading to-do list). We’ll (hopefully) be getting a multi-media blitz for Stephen King’s Dark Tower series that’s been promised for so long. So that got me thinking about other epic fantasy series that deserve an adaptation.
I’ll be listing some of the series that I’ve read, and what medium I think would do it justice. I’ll also list some series that I may have started, but never finished. Greg can comment on that, since he reads faster than I can.
Things that I’ve read ***SOME SPOILERS AHEAD*****:
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Dragonlance Chronicles: This is just a given. The grand daddy of D&D licensed novels, Weis & Hickman’s classic trilogy needs to be done right. Forget that crappy 2008 animated movie based on Autumn Twilight, this needs to be an official movie trilogy. Each book is the perfect length to be adapted into 2 hour and 15 minute movies. This series, if done the right way, has all of the things needed to be entertaining. Just think of the emotional gut punch it’ll be when Flint dies, when Laurana watches Sturm die, or when Caramon is crushed when Raistlin dons the Black Robes.
Elric of Melnibone: This is the definitive anti-hero, who needs a truly Dark Fantasy series to do it justice. Michael Moorcock’s drug addicted, moody, brooding albino would be perfect for a mature series. With HBO killing it with Game of Thrones, a network like Showtime, Netflix, or Starz would be wise to give this guy a crack at the small screen.
The Demon Wars: Yes, I’m choosing this R.A. Salvatore saga first over a certain Dark Elf. To be honest, I think that the Demon Wars series have some of his best novels. I can totally see this on network or basic cable, like the CW, TBS, USA, etc. It can be done without a spectacular amount of digital effects or massive set pieces. At least, not until the Ascendance Quartet, when things get a bit more epic in scale.
The Legends of Drizzt: I’m going to shock some people, and suggest that the saga of everyone’s favorite Drow be adapted into an animated series. Imagine the look and feel of the Crystal Shard as produced by Paul Dini or Bruce Timm (Batman : TAS, Ultimate Spider-Man). Or how about the siege of Mithral Hall as presented by Production I.G. or Madhouse Studios (Ghost in the Shell, Ninja Scroll)? Why am I choosing an animated series? It’s simply a matter of the abundance of source material. An ongoing animated series allows you to cover all aspects of Drizzt’s story. You can present the saga in chronological order, or even in release order (as it should be read, IMHO).
The Death Gate Cycle: Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t this Weis & Hickman’s first series post-Dragonlance? Either way, it was a great premise, and another series that would lend itself to an ongoing animated series. Some people may draw some comparisons to Avatar: The Last Airbender, with its emphasis on the four elements. That being said, it would be pretty cool to see Death Gate done by the same production studio.
Now, lets talk about some other series that never read or that I started, but never finished. Greg, feel free to chime in on these:
The Wheel of Time: I read book 1, but never finished the rest. To be honest, I think this series is just too big to be adapted properly. Greg, thoughts?
The Night Angel Trilogy: I read book 1, and 1/2 of book 2 before I got sidetracked. From what I’ve experienced, this series screams premium cable or paid streaming service adaptation.
Mistborn: Never read it, and Greg won’t stop talking about it.
The Dresden Files: I read Storm Front, and liked the premise. I know there’s a crappy SyFy series out there, but there’s enough fans of the series for it to get a second chance. With SyFy now switching gears for better quality programming (12 Monkeys comes to mind), maybe the series can be resurrected.
