HBO’s latest fantasy epic, His Dark Materials, lands on the network tonight - and introduces fans to a whole new world known as Lyra’s Oxford, where there are daemons, magic, witches, and more. While fans of the book series that the show is based on (Phillip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy) will be extremely familiar with this world, new viewers may get a little confused.
This world looks very much like ours, although seemingly slightly further in the past, and yet there are strange airships, talking animals, and references to a looming presence known as the Magisterium. This is a world like ours, but not ours - and it’s a whole new mythology to explore.
In many ways, Lyra’s Oxford mirrors the Oxford of this world, with multiple colleges (although Jordan College doesn’t exist in our universe). Unlike this world, however, female scholars are rare and looked down on, and much of the technology for things like cooking and laundry isn’t as advanced. There is also something called “scholastic sanctuary,” where the Colleges are allowed to question doctrine, study, and give physical sanctuary to people (as well as theoretical sanctuary to ideas), which protects them from the Magisterium. So far, the world of the series and the books are very similar, although a few differences have popped up - and this is everything that new fans should know about how else Lyra’s world is different to this one.
Daemons: Pets, Souls, And So Much More
Probably the biggest difference between Lyra’s (Dafne Keen) world and our own is the existence of daemons; creatures that appear to be animal companions. Every human in this world has a dæmon, and the premiere episode goes a long way to exploring what, exactly, these are. Most importantly, a dæmon is not a pet, or even a familiar. Instead, these are described in the series intro as a person’s soul, outside their body. However, there is a little more to it than this. In the books, daemons are part of a person’s soul, but they also have their own personality, thoughts, opinions, and feelings. They are not simply an extension of a person, but an interconnected being who is a ‘person’ themselves.
Complexities of defining how a person/soul can be split into two distinct halves, there are a few important things to know about daemons and how they function in this world. Daemons are always in the form of an animal, but when a human is younger, they have the ability to change shape. This is seen when Lyra and Roger (Lewin Lloyd) are racing across the rooftops of Jordan College, and their daemons are changing form to keep up. Around puberty, however, daemons settle into a single form. From the books, it is clear that this final form can reveal a lot about the person themselves; servants tend to have dog daemons (or other reliable, loyal creatures), witches have birds, sailors often have fish or aquatic daemons, etc.
Daemons also have names, and can talk - and this is not a psychic connection, as anyone can hear the voice of another’s dæmon. Another aspect of dæmon mythology that appears in the books, but hasn’t yet been made explicit in the series, is that while daemons can be heard and addressed by other humans, it is absolutely verboten to touch another person’s dæmon. These are not pets to be stroked - touching a dæmon is a form of personal assault so severe that no one would even consider it. Finally, it’s worth noting that daemons are limited in how far they can travel from their human. In the books, the distance that a dæmon can go is barely ten feet, if that. However, it seems that in the series it is possible to go slightly further, as many servants and secondary characters are seen without visible daemons (presumably because of the extra costs of creating CGI daemons for literally every character on-screen).
I En’t Dusty… Dust With A Capital D
Dust is only briefly mentioned in the series premiere, but it is clear that this is going to be a big part of the His Dark Materials world - and not just because book readers know how important it is! Dust is first mentioned in the retiring room, when Lord Asriel (James McAvoy) is showing his specially treated photograms. He claims that these images prove that Dust is only attracted to adults, not children - and this assertion (along with the city in the sky) is so shocking to the other scholars that the Master (Clarke Peters) fears that it will be seen as heretical.
Later, Lyra attempts to talk about Dust to Roger, and he clarifies that this isn’t dust, the kind you wipe off a surface, but Dust, something very, very different. It’s worth noting that the series cuts out a very important line from the books in this initial mention of Dust, when Asriel is showing off his photograms. In the books, a scholar asks if the child in the photo is ‘a severed child’, and is told that is is an ’entire child’. This will undoubtedly come up at a later time in the series, but Dust is definitely not something that viewers can forget about, despite not getting as much attention in the premiere as some other elements of the mythology.
The Alethiometer: The Golden Compass
The title of the first book in the series is The Golden Compass, and is named after the alethiometer that Lyra is given when she leaves Jordan College. This only appears for a couple of scenes in the premiere, but anyone who has read the books (or watched the original film adaptation) should know that this is a big deal. The alethiometer is a device to tell the truth (the name literally comes from the words ’truth measure’), and is described in the books as a heavy brass item about the size and shape of a compass. Around the edge of the ‘face’ are a series of simple symbols (an hourglass, a skull, etc), and there are four hands. Three of these can be set to point at a specific symbol (by turning the dials on the alethiometer), while the fourth, thinner hand cannot be controlled, and swings freely around the face of the instrument. Some of this was glimpsed in the premiere, but presumably, fans will get a closer look as the series continues.
At the moment, Lyra is unaware of how the alethiometer works - although watching her talk to it like it’s a smartphone is possibly the most unexpectedly funny moment in the premiere - so while book fans know, there will be no spoilers here. However, the premiere did make clear that the alethiometer once belonged to Lord Asriel, and is incredibly rare (only six were ever made). The Master also says that the alethiometer is illegal - a major change from the book series. Originally, these devices were rare and difficult to read, but not actually against the law; this change is clearly made to increase the dominion of the Magisterium, and the fear of them. It also gives Lyra another explanation for why she should keep it a secret.
Who Are The Gyptians?
The premiere episode of His Dark Materials focuses primarily on two main groups of people: the scholars of Jordan College (along with Lyra, Roger, and Lord Asriel, of course), and the Gyptians. The Gyptians are also in Oxford when they are first seen, but they live in a very different way to Lyra and the inhabitants of Jordan College. The Gyptians are a nomadic group in this world, and live on riverboats, traveling the waterways. In the books, it is confirmed that they tend to travel seasonally and return to Oxford at the same times each year, and while the series doesn’t make this as obvious, it does show the Gyptians choosing to move on from Oxford by the end of the episode.
As the name (which is a variant on ‘gypsy’) suggests, the Gyptians of this world have a lot in common with the Romany people that inspired them. As well as being nomadic, they are seen as outcasts, and have powerfully strong ties within their own clan groups. They have their own rituals, like the celebration of a dæmon settling that was seen in the premiere, when Tony Costa (Daniel Frogson) became a man, and their own laws. The Gyptians do not have the same kind of government as the other people in this world, but do have authority figures. Both John Faa (Lucien Msamati) and Farder Coram (James Cosmo) are introduced in the premiere, and are clearly in power. John Faa (Lord Faa, in the books) is addressed as a ‘King’, and is the leader of the group.
Gobblers - More Than An Urban Legend
One of the biggest elements of the Gyptian storyline in the premiere is the Gobblers - an urban legend of sorts, of people who come and steal unwitting children. This is first brought up when Billy Costa (Tony’s brother) goes missing, but both Tony and Lyra immediately dismiss it as rumor and rubbish. However, as the episode continues, it becomes clear that the Gobblers are not just a story told to frighten children into staying home at night. Both Billy and Roger are shown to be captured by someone who has a fox dæmon, although no more of them is seen that a few shadowy glimpses. It’s also not clear why the Gobblers are taking children, although Lord Faa explains that many Gyptian children have been taken, and the rumor is that they are being taken to London.
Book readers will know who the Gobblers are, and why they are named the Gobblers, but as these are some of the biggest twists in the first book, viewers will have to wait and discover who has the fox dæmon and what they are doing with these stolen kids.
The Magisterium - Church, State, Or Both?
Another major difference between Lyra’s world and our own is the looming presence of the terrifying Magisterium. In the premiere, the Magisterium is barely seen, but what is revealed is a dauntingly large space and men in priest-like robes. It would be easy to assume that the Magisterium is simply the religious body of this world (and to an extent, that’s true), but they are much more than just a church. Ostensibly, they are the ruling authority of the Holy Church, however, in this world that means that they are also the major governing power, and the laws of this world are driven by religion. They are also essentially the only religious body in this world - although some may not be true believers, and others in the North may have their own faiths, the Holy Church is the only major faith in the original trilogy,
Unlike the Christian Church, the Magisterium wields significant power over all aspects of life - overseen by the Consistorial Court of Discipline. This is a court in the judicial sense (although without a whole lot of actual justice in play), and the members of the CCD seek out those who have heretical leanings - which means any beliefs or activities not in line with the Magisterium’s plans - and destroy them. The CCD is not above nefarious means of reaching their ends, and the Magisterium as a whole has more than enough money and power to do whatever they please. In many ways, the reach and influence of the Magisterium is similar to that of the Republic of Gilead in The Handmaid’s Tale - driven by religion, but acting as government, courts, and church all at once.
Armored Bears and Witches
Finally, two other groups are briefly mentioned in the premiere (and will become a larger part of the series as time goes on): the Armored Bears and the Witches. The Witches have yet to be seen at all, but are mentioned in the introduction as living far in the North, outside of the control of the Magisterium. The witches’ ‘whisper of a prophecy’ is also mentioned in the intro, although this is not returned to in the premiere episode. From the books, it is known that the witches are not quite human, although they look human and also have daemons (which are always birds, as witches fly on pine branches, and their daemons must fly with them). Unlike humans, however, witches have the use of magic, and a much longer lifespan. They rarely come South, so are not likely to show up in the series for a little while, until Lyra starts to move North herself.
The Armored Bears also get only a mention, although the trailer includes phenomenal footage of Iorek Byrnison (Joe Tandberg), the armored bear who will be a major character later in the series. At this point, however, the Bears are just mentioned in passing, as Lyra is talking to Mrs Coulter (Ruth Wilson) about things she has seen in the North, when she asks about ‘Tartars and Armored Bears’. The Bears are a race of intelligent polar bears, who have the ability to speak, and who are brilliant metalworkers - which is how they make the armor that gives them their name. They live on Svalbard, for the most part, but can be hired to fight for others. Although they are like humans in their intelligence and speech, Armored Bears do not have daemons, and they are incapable of being tricked.
There are many more parts of this world that will slowly fall into place as the series continues; the Tartars that Lyra mentions will presumably mak an appearance, the time in London will further clarify how this world is different to our own (and where it is shockingly similar), and the secrets of the North and the Alethiometer will come out. For now, however, viewers will have to wait to discover what else can be found in Lyra’s Oxford, and the world of His Dark Materials.
His Dark Materials premieres Monday, November 4 on HBO.
