I watched the opener for Legend of the Seeker today. I have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, it seems to be pretty well constructed as series go. On the other hand, it is only very loosely based on the series of books by Goodkind. Oh, it’s recognizable but that’s about as far as it goes.
The basic setup is about the same as in Wizard’s First Rule but there are notable differences. Kahlan brings the book of counted shadows with her instead of it already being in Richard’s possession. They added some mystical component to the Seeker’s power such that Richard could read the book by concentrating on it even though it was in a language he did not know. Also, the relationship between Zedd and Richard is quite different with Richard apparently perceiving Zedd as a crazy old man. Still, Zedd does act like a crazy old man in the books.
They staged the situation with the mob of villagers differently and they did not have the great scene from the book where Zedd defuses the situation without using magic at all. In fact, there were a number of such things changed.
All in all, though, it is a decent attempt at adapting the story. The book could not have been followed exactly as much of it cannot translate effectively to the screen. And, because it is a television series, there are some things that have to change just for the sake of pacing. While the story can take many chapters to really get moving in an epic fantasy, that simply cannot happen in a television series.
I do wonder if they are going to dispatch Darken Rahl in the first season. If memory serves, Darken was defated at the end of Wizard’s First Rule in the space of a single year. I also wonder if they are planning to bring the whole old world and Jagang story line into the mix. They will no doubt expand the story significantly to fill out a regular season.
I suspect most of the changes made were for reasons of pacing or the ability to frame the story sensibly. So far, the differences I have seen do not substantially alter the overall story as many of them can be dealt with relatively simply. For example, the fact the Kahlan brought the book with her instead of Richard already having it means he cannot have it memorized. But, the apparent mystical power that allowed him to read it may also mean that he can summon up what it says now that he has touched it.
My final verdict is this. If I had never read the books, I would not have been comparing it and I would have enjoyed it without question. Having read the books spoils it somewhat as there is no way to avoid the temptation to compare. Even so, I did enjoy it. In fact, my recommendation to anyone who has read the books and liked them would be to have fun noticing the similarities and the differences and have some fun speculating about why the changes were made.
After several episodes, I can honestly say that the series is fairly decent. While I am occasionally jarred by differences from the books, I am generally pleased with the result. Of course, my memory is somewhat faulty with respect to the earlier novels so some of what I perceive as differences may be a result of that while I’m an likely missing some of the more glaring differences.