Over the summer and the early part of the fall, I decided to catch up on what is effectively the only high fantasy series currently on TV, Legend of the Seeker. Given the generic sword and sorcery plot and the Sam Raimi production label I went in assuming Seeker would be a latter-day Hercules or Xena venture, which is to say campy and thoroughly disposable. What I discovered is that, while the show still leans heavily on genre conventions and has a mostly limited cast, Legend of the Seeker is actually a fairly entertaining series with a more engaging sensibility than its pulp origins suggest. Season 2 premiered this weekend, either on Saturday or Sunday depending on local broadcasters. I plan on covering the show every week, if only because I don't think Seeker really gets the critical attention it deserves... Read More.

I really didn’t want to watch Legend of the Seeker.

I knew it was the latest syndicated TV series from Xena: Warrior Princess producers Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi, but as much as I loved Xena, that pedigree actually worked against Seeker. Everyone kept saying that it was very much a straightforward fantasy project, and included none of Xena’s irony, humor, or wry self-awareness.

It’s not that I’m such a huge fan of irony — in fact, like the rest of the world, I’m getting pretty damn sick of it. But what was impossible not to like about Xena was its enormous risk-taking. The show was an almost dizzying creative explosion ...Read More