‘The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance’ Recap – ‘The Crystal Calls’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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​I have to admit that sometimes, when I’m watching a television series that is filled to the brim with juicy and epic plotlines, that I get a little nervous as we close in on the season finale. Because I’ve seen shows that quite frankly, don’t get to the point and let those epic plotlines drag along and that’s unfortunate because the final episodes of a season should captivate and enthrall the audience when all is said and done. Yet, as I settled in to watch the penultimate episode of season one of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, a series that features some grandiose and sweeping storylines, that nervousness was absent from my system. For this is a series that is always working toward something and I had a feeling that that the next episode in this tale was going to up the ante and wow its fans like never before.
 
As it turns out, that gut feeling was correct, because ‘The Crystal Calls’ turned out to be a tour de force episode, one that moved several plotlines that have been lingering, forward, in incredible fashion. All while setting the stage for a powerful season finale and really what set the tone for this tale was its opening moments. Because I have to admit that I was supremely impressed with the fact that one half of the Dual Glaive was right in front of Deet and Rian all along since the Maudra had it hidden within her staff and that reveal and the handing over of this important weapon allowed for the story to quickly move onto other storylines that needed resolution/progress, such as what would become of the Gelfing that were trapped in the Castle of the Crystal.
 
After all, the situation was grim in this place since the Skeksis were in panic mode over the possibility of losing one of their own, which meant a great many Gelfling were going to die in order to keep the Hunter alive. But a surprise move on Aughra’s part, wherein she offered her life in exchange for the Gelfling’s freedom, led to some genuinely surprising moments. Because I really didn’t expect to see Aughra sacrifice herself when one considers that she’s a huge part of the movie, nor did I expect to see an important character such as Tavra lose her life. But here we are, and I suppose the only real redeeming aspect to Tavra’s sudden and unexpected exit, is that her passing finally opened Seladon’s eyes to the horrors of the Skeksis and she finally seems to be on the right side of history when it comes to this particular fight.
 
But the genuine payoff when it comes to this particular tale, is the sheer fact that it sets the stage for the incredible battle we’ve been waiting for. For putting the Glaive back together allowed for Rian to finally speak to every last clan out there and rally his kind to war and it was wonderful to see Rian step into the hero’s role at last and truly strike fear in the hearts of the Skeksis. If anything, I really appreciated the straightforward nature of this particular tale. For a lot of the deeper meaning found in this story in earlier episodes from was removed from this story, all in an effort to get the plot moving forward and it truly succeeds in its mission. Because this one is fast paced and lovely and honestly, while the call to arms was awesome in its own right, what truly keeps sticking out in my mind when it comes to this brisk tale, are the Skeksis.
 
Because we’ve never seen them genuinely afraid before in this series, and they are in true panic mode right now and that is utterly delightful. For they are finally facing their mortality and the possibility that the Gelfling might give them a tougher fight than they expected and there is just something so supremely satisfying about seeing these twisted monsters squirm in their fancy robes. Plus, it was also quite awesome to see more hints of things to come in the movie by way of Aughra’s comment to the Emperor about how he dies and well, when all is said and done, this episode definitely left me quite excited for the season one finale. Because this is it, the fight we’ve all been waiting for is finally coming to fruition, and Thra will never be the same and at this point, it’s best I bid you farewell so that I can rush back to my TV and fire up the finale and see how season one of this incredible series comes to a close. Until next time. 

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