Characters from The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Book Series

When I was reading The Dark Crystal: Age f Resistance book series, I found the characters were really overwhelming. Lots of characters are introduced by name and it's hard to tell who is who (and who is important to the narrative vs one-off mentions). Plus many characters that you meet in one book may reappear in a later book. So I created a list of all the characters from the book. I wanted to share it in case it helps someone else who reads these books!

Jump to:

Book 1
Book 2
Book 3
Book 4

Book 1: Shadows of the Dark Crystal

Drenchen Clan

• Laesid - maudra
• Bellanji - Laesid's husband
• Naia - Laesid's daughter. Hero/POV character of Book 1 and 4
• Neech - Naia's muski
  
• Eliona - Laesid's second daughter
• Pemma - Laesid's youngest daughter
• Gurjin - Laesid's son, Naia's twin

Vapra Clan

• Tavra - a Vapran soldier
• Mayrin - all-Maudra 
• Mira - Rian's friend from the castle.

Spriton Clan

• Mera - maudra of Sami Thicket
• Kylan - songteller 

Skeksis (from all four books)

• skekOk - Scrollkeeper
• skekLach - Census Taker
• skekSil - Chamberlain
• skekSo - Emperor
• skek-Mal - Hunter
• skekTek - Scientist
• skekUng - General
• skekGra - Conquerer
• skekLi - Satirist
• skekSa - Mariner (female)
  
• skekZok - Ritual Master

Other

• Jarra-Jen - Gelfling hero of legend
• Olyeka-Staba - the Cradle Tree of the Dark Wood
• Smerth-Staba - the great tree in Sog
• urVa - the Archer
• Rian - Stonewood Gelfling. Branded a traitor along with Gurjin

Book 2: Song of the Dark Crystal

Stonewood Clan

• Mythra - Rian's sister
• 
  Fara - maudra
• Shoni - Rian's mother
• Timtri - Rian's little brother
  

Grottan Clan

• Argot - maudra
• Amri - their guide

Others 

• Gyr - songteller of legend
• urLii - in the tomb of relics (Storyteller)
• Krychk - spider

Book 3: Tides of the Dark Crystal 

Sifa Clan

• Onica - far dreamer
  
• Ethri - maudra ("Gem-eyed Ethri")
• Captain Staya
• Tae - Onica's friend
• Captain Medso
  

Vapra

• Seladon - Tavra's older sister
• Brea - Tavra's younger sister
  

Dousan Clan

• Periss - a thief
• Seethi - maudra
• Sandmaster Erimon - Periss's brother

Note: the 12 Dousan groups are divided into "xerics"

Other 

• Oszah-Staba - the Wellspring
• urSan - the Swimmer (female)

Book 4: Flame of the Dark Crystal

Mystics

• urTih - Alchemist
  
• urZah - Ritual Guardian (connected to skekZok)
• urSu - Mystic Master (connected to skekSo)
• urSol - Chanter
  

Others

• Lun - Spriton guard (boy)
• Gereni - Spriton guard (girl)
• Chapyora - Laeid's muski
• Kipper - a Drenchen guard
• Deet - Grottan girl who came with Rian to Stone-in-the-Wood
  

Flames of the Dark Crystal

Wow, I really did fly through The Dark Crystal: the Age of Resistance series!  I had to buy Flames of the Dark Crystal, the final book, on my Kindle because I couldn't wait to read it!

Flames of the Dark Crystal once again returns to Naia's point of view. Three of the seven flames of resistance have already been lit; now Naia and company just need to light the Stonewood, Grottan, Drenchen, and Spriton flames. After escaping SkekSa's ship, the Gelfling decide to split up, with Tavra (still controlling Tae's body because the Sifan was quite badly hurt in the fight against SkekSa at the end of Tides of the Dark Crystal) and Onica agreeing to go light the Stonewood and Grottan flames, while Naia, Gurjin,  Kylan, and Amri going south to light the Spriton and Drenchen flames. (Amri was given the choice of whether to go with Tavra and Onica to light his home flame, but chose instead to continue with Naia). Returning to Sami Thicket, Naia and company discover that the Spriton and Drenchen are on the verge of war between their clans, as the Drenchen want to march on the Skeksis at the castle but the Spriton under their maudra want to remain loyal to the Skeksis in an attempt to save their clan from the Skeksis' wrath. 

Naia also knows that getting the Spriton maudra to agree to light the flames of resistance will be tough. Maudra Mera made it clear from the original book that she was doing only what she thought was best for her clan. Even with Kylan's help, the group knows changing her mind won't be easy. Plus Naia's mother is pretty strong-willed, ready to go up against the Skeksis with only her clan. So getting her to back down and find another way won't be easy either. 

Knowing that the Mystics are linked to the Skeksis also makes Naia question whether violence is the answer, as killing a Skeksis means an innocent urRu will perish as well.

But in the middle of everything, Naia and company receive news that the Stonewood clan has been shattered by the Skeksis. Their maudra, Fara, tried to lead the clan against the Skeksis and was horribly beaten, and their home, Stone-in-the-Wood, was destroyed. 

After successfully stopping a war between the clans, losing her mother in a fight against SkekSa in the Swamp of Sog (though they succeeded in trapping skekSa rather than killing her), and lighting their two fires (plus knowing that the Grottan fire was also lit), the Drenchen and Spritons set out for Stone-in-the-Wood to help the remaining ragtag Stonewood Gelfling light the final fire. Unfortunately when they succeed in lighting it, they discover the Skeksis emperor, skekSo, can also speak through the crystal to the Gelfling rebellion. When the Gelfling do not give in to his demand that they stop this rebellion, he takes his Skeksis to forcibly crush the Gelfling in Stone-in-the-Wood. What follows is the epic battle for the spirit of the Gelfling rebellion!

As you can probably tell from my synopsis, like Tides of the Dark Crystal, a lot happens in Flames of the Dark Crystal.  The book is very fast-paced, which at times was detrimental because it made the story feel rushed. It was okay for the ending, but before that, everything felt a lot like Tides of the Dark Crystal: convenient and rushed. Like right off the bat, when Gurjin is magically there with Naia on skekSa's ship to rescue everyone else who was captive. He gave an explanation for being there, but it didn't really make sense. How was he even on the ship? I honestly thought he was going to be evil or something, but nope, he honestly just was there and tagged along with the group for the rest of the book.

I was also sad that we were back with Naia. I know it made sense with the narrative to be back under her pov, but she bothered me a lot, especially after being with Kylan and Amri during the last few books. I think I was really worried about how much she was doubting everything after the rescue of the group from skekSa - she felt alone, like people were moving away from her, and even like her brother had taken her healing powers. After everything she had gone through with these people to this point, those fears seemed silly. It made way more sense to be worried about the impossible task Thra and Aughra had given her, rather than the bonds she had with her friends.

I did like how things were handled when her mother died though. Having lost a parent myself, I both empathized with Naia and thought that sequence was well done. That was really brave of her to be able to put aside her grief and lead the Drenchen to Stone-in-the-Wood just after her mother died as well.

I also was glad that Naia and Amri got closer in this book. When I first started reading the series, I thought her and Kylan would end up a couple, but as the story unfolded, it seemed more likely that it would be Amri she ended up with, and I was glad.

The Garthim never do make an appearance in this series, which honestly was probably for the best. The series is about the Gelfling ultimately uniting to resist the Skeksis and take back their world; had the Garthim entered the narrative, even at the end, it would have drastically changed things.

So overall, I enjoyed reading The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance book series. I'm glad to have read it, and I am looking forward to watching the show!

Tides of the Dark Crystal

I practically flew through Tides of the Dark Crystal, the third book in J.M. Lee's Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance series. This time around we're following Amri, a Grottan Gelfling who joined Naia and Kylan in the second book. Amri is excited to see the daylighter world, though he is not sure of himself and his place within it. 

The group's adventures take them on a whirlwind tour of the land. Arriving on Ha'rar's doorstep, Tavra instructed them to meet with a Sifa Far-Dreamer, Onica, first so they could get the lay of the land.  While consulting with her, they discovered that Rian was nearby and needed their help - he was caught by the Skeksis! Naia, Amri, and Tavra succeed in saving him. In the middle of their rescue, Aughra created a dream space and tasked Naia and company with lighting the seven flames of Gelfling rebellion; Rian was given another task, and so he went his own way once again.

Naia, Kylan, Amri, Tavra, and Onica make their way first to where the Sifa are gathering, then to the Crystal Sea for the Dousa before ultimately making their way back to Ha'rar after they discover the Vapra fire wasn't lit as promised. There they need to find a way to inspire the Vapra after their leader, the All-Maudra Mayrin, was killed and the new All-Maudra, Tavra's sister, bends the knee to the Skeksis and dooms all the Gelfling to servitude and worse.

I didn't like Tides of the Dark Crystal as much as Song of the Dark Crystal. For one thing, it felt like our Gelfling heroes got around to the three clans really easily and conveniently, and succeeded really quickly with everyone. Everything felt a little too convenient. Yes, some of the things they had to do were difficult. But they kind of just succeeded immediately everytime - there never seemed to be any real setbacks.

The other issue was Amri. I liked him as a character, but a lot of his story felt like it was treading the same spaces Kylan's did - he felt like he didn't belong and was struggling to find his place in both the group and the more larger world around him. 

That being said, the ending was still pretty crazy, and Tides of the Dark Crysal left me wanting more; I can't wait to see how the whole story ends in the final book!

Song of the Dark Crystal

Song of the Dark Crystal, the second book in J.M. Lee's The Dark Crystal: The Age of Resistance series, picks up right where Shadows of the Dark Crystal leaves off. Naia and Kylan have made it to Stone-in-the-Wood and make contact with Rian. Rian is determined to make it to Ha'rar on his own. While Naia and Kylan at first want to join him, they instead decide that they should go their own way in search of a means of transmitting a warning to all of the Gelfling about what the Skeksis are doing. And so they begin their trek east, seeking help from Aughra. On their way, they encounter some friends they thought lost to skekMal. Their joy is short lived though, when one of them seems hellbent on catching up with Rian to the exclusion of all else. 

I really liked Song of the Dark Crystal. The story is told from Kylan's point of view this time, so it was fun to see how he thought as opposed to how Naia thought in the last one. A lot of interesting things happen on their journey as well: we get to meet some really unique Gelfling, and see some very different creatures from what we've seen before in The Dark Crystal. While I had my suspicions of Tavra really early on, I was not expecting her story to unfold the way it did. 

I also really liked seeing some of the different Gelfling vliyaya, or magic/mystic arts. As this story centered around Kylan, we got to see what the Spriton Gelfling was able to do (helped in no small part by the wisdom of one of the urRu, who got Kylan to change his perspective when he said: "The only thing you could do...or a thing only you could do?")  It also give a glimpse of what's to come for the Gelfling (hint, hint). I really enjoyed reading this book, and can't wait to see where the story leads next!

Shadows of the Dark Crystal

I was really excited to find three of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance books (I was hoping it was a trilogy, but there's a fourth book I'll have to track down at some point). I participated in The Dark Crystal Author Quest, which was the contest they had to find someone to write this story, and was very excited to see what the end result was. Plus I love the world of the Dark Crystal, and was excited to spend more time there. :)

Shadows of the Dark Crystal is the story of Naia, a Gelfling from the Swamp of Sog. When her twin brother is accused of high treason and vanishes, she sets out to find him and learn the truth. 

I wasn't sure what to think of Naia at the beginning of the story. She was clearly competent - she's in training to become the next Maudra of her clan. But she's also a bit headstrong and treated like a child by many of the other characters (possibly because her wings haven't bloomed yet? I'm not sure). But I really liked her as the story continued. 

I also really liked Kylan. He is a song teller, and not at all what you would expect from the warrior Spriton clan. But he is resourceful and kind, and his skills are a good contrast to Naia's.

When I wrote my story submission, I envisioned this era of the Skeksis much differently from how they are portrayed in Shadows of the Dark Crystal. So one of my complaints about the book stems from that - the Skeksis are portrayed so similarly to how they appear in the movie, that it's hard to imagine the Gelfling believing the Skeksis were ever good. They're like cartoon villains, which I found rather unfortunate - they didn't even try to really pretend that they weren't when directly accused of their crimes (and did very little to hide it - the castle was basically empty of others by the time Naia makes her way there).

My other big complaint is the number of names and characters the book throws at you in the first chapter. You only really need to know a couple of them, but it was hard to keep track of who is who; I had fo start a character list to keep everyone straight at the beginning.

Otherwise, I really enjoyed Shadows of the Dark Crystal. It was fun to see different aspects of Thra and how they're all connected. It was also fun to see how different all the Gelfling clans are that Naia encountered. I'm excited to start book 2, Song of the Dark Crystal, to see what happens to Naia and Kylan next!

The Dark Crystal Creation Myths Volume 2

A couple of days ago I read The Dark Crystal Creation Myths, Volume 2, which I recently got through inter library loans (illo).  Creation Myths, Vol 1 kind of ended on a (mild) cliffhanger, stating that Raunip was going to cause some trouble.  I was eager to see exactly what sort of trouble he would cause.  Luckily Creation Myths, Vol 2 picks up pretty much where Vol 1 ends off.   

Vol 2 still has the same framing narrative as Vol 1: a mysterious hooded figure is continuing to share stories.  But this time the figure tells you that he or she is dying.  S/he implores you to listen because s/he still has much to impart that should not be lost.

Where Vol 1 told a number of shorter tales, Vol 2 is telling only two: the framing narrative and the story of how the crystal cracked.  What's more, Gyr from Chapter 4 of Vol 1 returns (his tale seemed out of place in the rest of Vol 1).  After finding the song of the lone Urskek, Gyr has lost the will to make music.  But Raunip and Kel, the daughter of one of the great gelfling clan mothers, have come to his village to seek him out. They are journeying to the Castle of the Crystal to witness the next Great Conjunction and require a song-teller to witness the historic moment.  Although Gyr wishes no part of their adventure, Kel convinces him to journey with them, if only to the next village, at which point he can decide whether or not to continue on.  On their journey, the two gelflings fall for one another, which is why Gyr inevitably stays.

Joined by the son of one of the Pod People's clan mothers, the group makes their way to the Castle in time to witness the Great Conjunction.  There they find Aughra, who has been working on a way to get the Urskeks home.  It is before the Great Conjunction that one of the Urskeks seeks Gyr out and implores the song-teller to play the Urskek song he heard on his journey.  Though reluctant, Gyr does.  Unfortunately the song corrupts the Urskek, which has a disastrous consequence during the Great Conjunction.

I really enjoyed reading Creation Myths, Volume 2.  It was quite different from Vol 1, but that was okay.  This was an excellent story which I recommend to all fans of The Dark Crystal.  Unfortunately Volume 3, which should be the conclusion of the story, is due out sometime next year.  That's a longer wait than I would like, but based off the first two volumes, I am sure the wait will be worth it.

Legends of the Dark Crystal: the Garthim Wars

So I'm continuing my Dark Crystal reading with Legends of the Dark Crystal: the Garthim Wars, the only graphic novel the library actually had.  This one is a manga-style book; I generally don't like reading the traditional ones (I've gotten confused while reading a few that didn't lay their panels out in a logical way), but this one is more like a traditional North American book so it was okay.

The Garthim Wars tells the story of Lahr and Neffi.  Both Gelflings are the sole survivors from a Garthim attack on their respective villages; after finding each other, they go to warn the next village.  Lahr is the only Gelfling who has managed to kill a Garthim, making him a hero among the other Gelflings (who all believed they couldn't be killed).  The Gelflings are a peaceful race, but both Lahr and Neffi urge the village to change their ways: the Gelflings need to stand and fight, or else they'll be hunted into extinction.

I enjoyed reading The Garthim Wars, but I have to admit that it wasn't at all what I was expecting.  I didn't actually read the synopsis, so I was expecting a story centered more around the creation of the Garthim.  I didn't get that, but I got a pretty decent look at Gelfling life along with a good story.  Lahr and Neffi's story continues in Legends of the Dark Crystal: Trial by Fire.  I'm interested to see where it goes!

The Dark Crystal Creation Myths Volume 1

A friend of mine told me about The Dark Crystal Author Quest, a contest the Jim Henson Company is putting on to look for an author to write a new book set in the world of The Dark Crystal.  I have always loved the movie, but I've had trouble thinking of the world as anything other than that movie.  So I went to the library looking for The Dark Crystal graphic novels; they only had one, but have ordered the other three I wanted to read through their inter library loan (illo) service.  The first one, The Dark Crystal Creation Myths, Volume 1, came in for me almost immediately.  I had to put off reading it until after I got back from San Francisco.

The Dark Crystal Creation Myths, Volume 1 is made up of several different tales, all within a framing narrative.  The framing narrative starts out in Chapter 1: A Tale Well Told, which shows a mysterious hooded figure who has a companion that is the same species as Fizzgig.  The figure has agreed to share stories as payment.  And so once darkness falls, he or she begins.

Chapter 2: The Birth of Aughra, is the story of the beginning of the world, known as Thra.  Aughra was born to give voice to the voiceless and sight to the sightless, providing a link between the world itself and all the creatures that inhabit it.  She watched over the world and its inhabitants, most especially the gentle Gelflings.

Chapter 3: Strange and Distant Stars tells of a later time, when Aughra has turned her attention to the stars.  This is the story of the first great conjunction and the coming of the Urskeks.  This was also where Raunip, Aughra's son, was first introduced. 

Chapter 4: A Song of Tides, was an interesting sort of interlude from the main story, which involves Aughra and her son, Raunip.  A Song of Tides is the story of Gyr, a traveller who collected songs.  He dreamed of an older song that had become lost and forgotten, and so sets out on the sea to find it.

Chapter 5: The Secret Behind the Stars, has Raunip, who has always been distrustful of the Urskeks, try to incite the Gelflings to rise up against them.  He has seen a darkness within the interlopers that others, including his mother, have been blind to.  He also learns that the Urskeks who have arrived on Thra are not ambassadors, but were banished from their home world. 

At the end of three of the chapters, there's a short story as well.  The three are "The Covenants of Thra," which is an excerpt from an epic poem by Fellen the Elder, "How the Gelfling Maid Got Her Wings," which tells one version of how Gelfling women first got their wings, and "Jarra-Jen and the Horn of Thunder," which tells how Jarra-Jen freed the Gelfling slaves from Creghel's tyranny.  All of these were fun little excerpts.

The final story in the book is the special 8 page Dark Crystal story written for free comic book day.  It pretty much gives an overview of the main story within Creation Myths, Vol 1, while also hinting at what is yet to come.  I liked that it was included at the end of the book; I don't think I would have wanted to read it before the book came out.

All in all I really enjoyed The Dark Crystal Creation Myths, Volume 1.  The art is beautiful, as befitting something set in the world of Thra.  But what's more, Creation Myths really got me thinking of Thra as more of a living land.  There's much more potential for stories there than I was previously able to imagine.