His Dark Materials: Audience and Industries blog tasks

 


Audience & Pleasures


1) What audience is His Dark Materials aimed at?

Teens and adults (12–40). They like fantasy, adventure, and deeper themes like religion and growing up.


2) Audience pleasures in The City of Magpies (Blumer and Katz):

  • Personal Identity:
    Lyra deals with grief and growing up — viewers relate to her struggles.
  • Personal Relationships:
    Fans care about Lyra and Will’s friendship and trust building.
  • Diversion (Escapism):
    The fantasy world of lets viewers escape from real life.

3) 3 Vs (Visceral, Vicarious, Voyeuristic):

  • Vicarious:
    We experience a magical world through Lyra’s eyes.
  • Voyeuristic:
    We peek into a hidden world and private conversations, like Lord Boreal spying on Mary Malone.


4) Fan & critic reactions to Season 2:

Most fans loved the visuals and story. Critics gave good reviews but some said it was a bit slow.


5) Preferred vs. oppositional readings:

  • Preferred:
    Fans love the adventure, strong characters, and deep themes.
  • Oppositional:
    Some didn’t like the anti-religion themes or thought it was confusing.


Industries


1) Who produced His Dark Materials?

BBC and Bad Wolf, with help from HBO.


2) Viewing figures for A City of Magpies vs Season 1:

Lower than Season 1. Fewer viewers watched live but many streamed later.


3) HBO’s role:

They gave money and helped make it big-budget. This made it look high quality.


4) Famous stars & why they were chosen:

Actors like Dafne Keen, Ruth Wilson, and James McAvoy. They’re well-known and talented — attract more viewers.


5) Who are Bad Wolf?

A UK company that makes big fantasy shows like His Dark Materials and Doctor Who (new ones).





Comparison: Doctor Who vs His Dark Materials

1) Technical conventions (1963 vs 2020):

Old Doctor Who = black & white, simple sets, slow edits.

His Dark Materials = HD, CGI, fast-paced, cinematic.


2) Genre & narrative:

Both are sci-fi/fantasy with adventures.

Doctor Who = time travel.

His Dark Materials = parallel worlds and magic.


3) Representations:

Doctor Who (1963) = mostly white, male-led.

His Dark Materials = more diversity, strong female leads, different cultures and worlds.


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