First of all, I have not read the books, so I can only review this as a standalone work. On that level, I give this show a 7/10 rating. Good, but not great. A reasonable story and mostly good acting keep this show watchable and the viewer interested. On the weak side, some of the acting is quite bad and many of the story elements seem rushed over and superficial. It's quite easy to see that this is based on a book (books, actually) because the screenplay is quite bad at "telling" and not "showing" many details. I had to laugh a few times as a character would say something that was obviously for our benefit (the viewers) and not for the person he was speaking to.
Getting into some details, I liked Chris Gauthier's as Vetch and Sebastian Roche's as Tygath. I thought these actors breathed more life into these characters than was in the screenplay (Roche was also a good villain in the TV series "Roar"). I thought Shawn Ashmore's Ged was a little weak at first, but he did grow on me. Kristin Kreuk did what she always does, stand there a look pretty without adding much. The worst acting came from the actor who played Ged's father. Uh.
The special effects were barely passable, with some scenes not quite even reaching the standard of a computer game cut screen. However, some of the real life sets and locations were quite nice. The music went unnoticed, which in a way is good.
The biggest laugh/letdown/whatever was waiting to see Amanda Tapping. I had no idea who she would play, but she was listed in the opening credits and the SciFi channel's promos also made mention of her being in this show. Imagine my surprise when she was only on screen for a few seconds and utters one line! If I ever get into acting, I'm getting her agent because that's some fine PR work there.
So, as a standalone piece of work, Earthsea was worth watching and I would watch any additional sequels. However, it's very apparent that there is a much better piece of work underneath it all, so the real legacy of this miniseries is to inspire me to read the actual books.
Getting into some details, I liked Chris Gauthier's as Vetch and Sebastian Roche's as Tygath. I thought these actors breathed more life into these characters than was in the screenplay (Roche was also a good villain in the TV series "Roar"). I thought Shawn Ashmore's Ged was a little weak at first, but he did grow on me. Kristin Kreuk did what she always does, stand there a look pretty without adding much. The worst acting came from the actor who played Ged's father. Uh.
The special effects were barely passable, with some scenes not quite even reaching the standard of a computer game cut screen. However, some of the real life sets and locations were quite nice. The music went unnoticed, which in a way is good.
The biggest laugh/letdown/whatever was waiting to see Amanda Tapping. I had no idea who she would play, but she was listed in the opening credits and the SciFi channel's promos also made mention of her being in this show. Imagine my surprise when she was only on screen for a few seconds and utters one line! If I ever get into acting, I'm getting her agent because that's some fine PR work there.
So, as a standalone piece of work, Earthsea was worth watching and I would watch any additional sequels. However, it's very apparent that there is a much better piece of work underneath it all, so the real legacy of this miniseries is to inspire me to read the actual books.