Le Guin Peeved About Earthsea Miniseries

Several readers have written in with unhappy opinions on the Legend of Earthsea miniseries just aired on the Sci-Fi channel. Ursula Le Guin has also chimed in, with a short but highly critical blurb on her website, and now this dissection on Slate.com.

Comments

Re:Okay

[WillerZ]

Firstly: I am not Jesus, although it's a common mistake.

Secondly: I could do a google search, but I wanted to know if I cared at all before expending even that small effort.

Phil
(not Jesus).

i'd to present the alternative view

[circletimessquare]

i am in no way affiliated with the sci fi channel:

the sci fi channel is a forum for presenting works of sci fi

that means something

so please, dear sci fi fan, don't criticize more than you should, lest you prove to those who would program for you that it is not worth trying to program for you... see?

you can argue about who gets to present what, but for most of the sour grapes here, i find that complaining is what they do best

now i'm not saying my opinion supercedes that of le guin, nor that this tv series is worthy of praise... and i have fond memories of the tombs of atuan from when i was kid that i am certain the hacks at the sci fi channel can not possibly fully realize as the same magic on the small screen

but you do realize that to do something of what peter jackson did with tolkien requires so much effort, so much time, so much passion, so much skill, so much money, so much blood, sweat, and tears... and EVEN THEN you will find asshats who will whine and nit pick about it

so what am i saying?

i am saying that sci fi fans can be such incredibly cranky, perfectionist know-it-alls that you can deduce from their criticism in the end that it is impossible to please them... and therefore, why try?

so embrace the sci fi channel for existing and being a forum for works you enjoy, and give thanks for that, and build on it, and do not disparage those who try! please make sure that your criticisms are properly directed and scoped, or they will have an impact that only hurts you in the end: that sci fi fans are an impossible audience... do you want that impression to impact the future potential of presenting great works of sci fi on video or film?

do not bite the hand that feeds you, lest you not be fed again

sour grapes can be defined as "disparagement of something that is unattainable"

it is NOT unattainable to make of le guin's earthsea books on video something like what peter jackson did with tolkien on film

but it IS on the limited resources of the sci fi channel

consider that, then criticize, and don't criticize someone in such a way that you seem to be criticizing them for even trying, or they won't try anymore... is that the message you want to deliver? do you think i'm being strident in this characterization? read some criticisms of the sci fi channel's efforts again, and get back to me if you still think i am being overly strident

some of you threaten to destroy the very forum which tries to please you, simply because a lot of you, dear sci fi fans, can really be some horribly impossible to please perfectionists