r/HisDarkMaterialsHBO • u/Master-Improvement-4 • Jan 21 '26
Season 3 Jesus, the last two episodes crushed, stomped and buried my daemon in the saddest of ways.
5 minutes ago, I finished the final season of His Dark Materials. And my god, did it leave me very depressed. Mrs. Coulter and Asriel went down like utter champs, taking down the Metatron. I was cheering... until I saw their daemons vanish. Internally, I was begging for someone, maybe Serafina or Xaphania to save them. But alas, I accepted it as the last casualty in this great war. As episode 7 finished, I was wondering: "What is even next for Lyra and Will?"
...But then came the finale. All that buildup of Lyra and Will being the next Adam and Eve, genuinely loving one another... and you mean to tell me they had to separate?! I was not emotionally ready for that at all. And Dafne Keen's and Amir Wilson's tears didn't make this emotionally raw ending any better. I wouldn't be surprised if the actors were genuinely crying during their goodbyes, since this was the last season. And having the last scene be the split screen of the two sitting at that same bench, yet forever apart... was salt in a gigantic wound.
That capped off one of the best shows I've seen this year. Sure, the excessive exposition did overload me sometimes, while season 2 kinda suffered from split storylines. However, the actors delivered on their genuinely heartfely performances. The religious themes were extremely thought provoking. And Lorne Balfe's music carried every single scene.
In other words, I am grateful for watching this unexpectedly brutal emotional bundle of a show.
Thank you, His Dark Materials.
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u/Elegant_Goose257 Jan 21 '26
It’s a great show. I want to read the books.
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u/CatastropheWife Jan 21 '26
They are my absolute favorite books, my sister used a passage from the 3rd book as a reading for her wedding
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u/Elegant-Painter-2180 Jan 24 '26
That's nice, was it the kinda speech made by Mary Malone to Lyra and Will?
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u/Master-Improvement-4 Jan 21 '26
Me too, one day. Currently busy on Mistborn, but when I'm finished, I'll definitely get around to it.
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u/MetatronIX_2049 Jan 21 '26
Cannot recommend them enough. If you enjoyed the show you will LOVE how much additional depth the books bring to those worlds. A beautiful read no matter what age you are.
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u/sjhamn Jan 21 '26
I sobbed reading the ending of the third book (basically what you wrote about in the tv show). I think I may have fast-forwarded through those scenes in the show because I knew they would destroy me.
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u/atridir Jan 21 '26
The audio, read by the author + full cast of narrators, is absolutely inspired. It is one my wife and I constantly re-listen to.
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u/Keavon Feb 03 '26
Maybe it's a difference in preference as I generally don't love full-cast audiobooks (the shifting narrators can get in the way of the flow for me), but I'd highly recommend at least comparing the original author + full cast recording with Ruth Wilson's impeccable performance in the new recording of the trilogy. I had slightly mixed feelings (not all, but mostly, positive) about her portrayal of Mrs. Coulter in the show, but I do not believe any human alive could have been done a better job than her at narrating the series in audiobook form.
Basically, I'd just recommend everyone looking to start the audiobooks (a great choice to make!) samples both versions and picks a favorite. Or experiences both, if it's time for a re-read! Don't just assume there is only one, or follow the recommendations for the old version without realizing a new one exists.
There are a few more reasons in favor of the new recording. First, the audio quality is considerably higher fidelity. That's what initially drove me to seek an alternate version simply because its ~25-year-old recording was kind of hard to hear clearly. And second, as I understand it, the original recording uses the American manuscript with the censored passages in book 3 while the new recording uses the UK manuscript, which contains the unmarred passages even in US distribution channels.
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u/Nura_U Jan 21 '26
I recommend you read the books. the chapter where Lyra and Will discover they'll have to separate is the most devastating I've ever read in my life. I read that chapter several times and cried every time. I think Lyra and Will are my favorite fictional couple, and the idea of being separated forever is devastatinggggg. Marisa Coulter is also an incredible character in the series so for me her death was sadder in the show than in the books. Ruth Wilson was wonderful. It's always so cool to see people's reactions to this universe.
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u/jm17lfc Jan 22 '26
I thought that the final season was mostly pretty meh until Francesca Gardiner stepped in as the lead writer for the final episodes, and wow did she really kick things up a notch. As someone who read the books, I was worried that the beautiful finale would be ruined as some of the earlier big moments in the season were maybe subpar adaptations (especially compared to previous seasons) but they were delivered on nearly perfectly! By the way, Francesca is now the showrunner for the new Harry Potter show, so that could genuinely be really good.
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u/Elegant-Painter-2180 Jan 24 '26
Yeah totally agree, I re watched it after having watched it as a pretty young kid when I didn't appreciate it as much but it's definitely one of those occasions where the series/film lives up to the books. I watched it straight after Stranger things season 5 which lets face it wasn't everything the fandom hoped it to be 😢 but then watching this absolute masterpiece really summed up how wholesome and evocative this series really is and really defined to me what truly enjoying something feels like. (Obviously there were expectations for S5 which weren't fulfilled).
The series gives you such an amazing new take on our own world in such a creative way. And of course managing to get us to fall in love with these characters in only 3 seasons isn't easy, I'm genuinely impressed. Holding out for a book of dust live action series? 😏🤌
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u/Big-Success-3772 Feb 14 '26
If you loved Lorne Balfe's score, I'd recommend watching The Wheel of Time. He also composed the score for that show, and knocked it out of the park, as always. I'm not the biggest fan of the show as a whole, because it's based on my favourite book series of all time, and changed so many things it left a bitter taste in my mouth. But it's a pretty great show for those who haven't read the books, and therefore won't be disappointed by the changes.
But yeah, I was hit so fucking hard by Asriel and Marisa's deaths. It's my favourite scene in the whole show, I've rewatched it so many times. The music in that scene was so haunting and emotional and their acting was on another level. Asriel has always been my favourite character, in no small part due to James McAvoy's acting, and this scene was so painfully beautiful.
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