if marisa is able to be apart from her daemon ( something said to be excruciatingly painful) why is she physically affected by pan and her own daemon fighting, shouldn’t she be used to the pain ? i thought that her separation from her daemon causing her pain really personified her character ( a hatred for herself whether for a/ being a woman and having no real power ability to gain it in such a misogynistic society or b/ for losing hard earned respect with her and asriel’s relationship or c/ something else ) and that it was a form of self harm. this makes me doubt that though. thoughts ?

Every other character (that gets significant screen time) this season tries so hard to crawl 3 meters and gets trampled on, in the process, by everything the writers can throw at them. Marisa Coulter, however, prances in with minimal effort and casually dances circles around beings ten times stronger than her (presumably) because of sheer willpower and tenacity.

Am I missing something here? I’m not an avid fan, and read the books so long ago I don’t remember much. I accept criticism if I missed something here. It would actually be a welcome correction.

It bothers me because her character has such depth, so much to offer, and Ruth Wilson plays the part beautifully. She has so many layers it seems, so much agony and pain and determination with every call to action. I just want to peel that character layer by layer and enjoy the sugary journey, the other stuff is so distracting.

Last thing, I haven’t spent much time researching this subreddit and all the posts/comments, but I did do a quick search ahead of this post to see how tired my rant may come across. I saw a poll that showed most people really enjoy her character, more than the rest. So it does seem like I am missing something. Enlighten me!

Okay I’m done, I feel like I wrote a lot but said nothing. Thanks for reading.

SPOILER!!! Don’t read beyond this point if you haven’t read all the books.

After reading The Secret Commonwealth, I’m considering that Marisas daemon is not hers at all. Can’t remember if the daemon died when she died?

The despise and at best tolerating each other is as the daemon dealers describe the relation with a bought daemon. It was so long ago I read the previous books I can’t remember though.

In HDM, witches look like beautiful young women for their entire lives. Men fall for them easily, and while some witches are benevolent, they are just as likely to be cruel. Ruta Skadi, for example, destroyed an entire species of tiger because a group of people who worshiped them failed to show her proper respect. It is established early on in the story that Marisa Coulter has almost supernatural beauty and charisma, tempered only by her ruthlessness. She is able to see through a witch's ability to become unnoticeable, something no other human has been shown to be capable of doing. Despite her unusual similarities with witches, Marisa is not one, since she does not have a bird daemon and is never shown to perform magic. However, her similarities seem to go beyond mere coincidence, which leads me to wonder if witch traits can be passed down, even if the child is not a witch themselves. Why would the witch be her paternal grandmother, specifically? In HDM, witches are always female, and reproduce with human men. If they give birth to a son, he will be a human, and if a daughter, a witch. Since Coulter is not a witch herself, the relationship would have to be through her father.

First and foremost, no book touched me the way Northern Lights/Golden Compass did. I actually felt as if my chest had split open. I distinctly remember being 15 years old, sitting on my bed, the hairs all over my body standing up, breathless and fighting tears. I also marveled at the following books in HDM. After reading NL, I read Paradise Lost and decided to study literature at Oxford. I didn't get in, but anyway, the book hit me hard.

Yeah it's been years since then, but I happened to see LBS at an airport and then just yesterday I finished it. I hated it. Not because Pullman's writing wasn't incredible - it was!, but because I feel there was absolutely no need for this book. It undermines the spectacular story of its predecessors, and its own story line sucked.

• In NL, Marisa Coulter had no interest in Lyra, only shame in the fact that she was born, until the book actually takes place (ie Lyra is around 11 years old). In LBS, Mrs. Coulter is keenly interested for and searching for Lyra within months of her birth.
• In NL, Lord Asriel is said to have gone to the priory, simply taken Lyra and brought her to Jordan College. In LBS, that clearly didn't happen. Not to undermine Malcom and Alice, who I do like, but it was a really finely-etched and interesting fact of Lyra's past, that her father was so domineering and ruthless that he simply strode into the priory and decided where Lyra would grow up, in spite of the fact that he was minimally involved in her growing up.
• The magic in HDM was truly high fantasy. I will get back to this point later. But for example, the fact that no one could touch another's daemon was sacred and non-violable.
• Minor point, but Mrs Coulter's hair is golden in this book, and dark in NL. I guess she dyed it later. I know this is trivial.
• How did Lyra grow up carelessly playing outside in Oxford, if she was being fervently hunted for from birth?

On to why the story line of LBS sucked:

• What the hell was the point of Bonneville? He was truly frightening at first, but served no purpose. And after the second half just became ridiculous! How did he get off the island without a boat and with a daemon which couldn't move? How did his daemon end up with its mouth around Ben at the mausoleum, if it couldn't move? Why rape Alice? What point did that serve, why was it brushed over so lamely?
• What was the point of the Sisters of Obedience? That was so anticlimactic. I got a jolt of alarm when the aunt in the cave mention

Episode Information

Will and Lyra plan to steal the alethiometer from Boreal but are set back by an unforeseen guest. MacPhail takes decisive action, and Mary takes a leap of faith.

• BBC Page
• Wiki Page

Spoiler Policy for this thread

NO SPOILERS are allowed from the books. ONLY content from Season 1 and Season 2 Episodes 1 - 5 are allowed in this thread.

If this does not suit you, there are 4 discussion threads per episode:

Other information

The thread comments are default sorted to "new" to better facilitate live discussions. You can change that if you wish.

https://preview.redd.it/6ce720drzvy61.png?width=2880&format=png&auto=webp&s=d9f797716fc5f5545cae2695ea23c2ab87256156

I'm obsessing over the portrait in Mrs Coulter's flat (her office).

Does anyone know where it came from/who painted it?

Guessing it was commissioned for the series..? >!Reminds me very much of the Portrait of Marisa Van Zee from the Collectors....!<

So right now I'm catching up on s2 of the show. I just finished episode 5, The Scholar. Obviously they took some departures from the book with this little arc, and surprisingly, I think that has worked out well in one particular aspect: what the show is doing with Mrs. Coulter is very well done. For background, I have been disappointed with the show overall. I echo the complaints I've seen posted here many times - including the lack of daemons and the tell don't show approach among those. That said, I really enjoy the deeper dive we seem to be getting into the psychology of Mrs Coulter than in the books. Watching her talk to Mary Malone and feel the jealousy she experiences realizing that women can be scholars in this world. The added detail that she has published many papers under the names of men. The tacitly accepted implication from Lee Scoresby that she was abused by her parents. The realization that she wouldn't have been forced into a life of shame for having a child out of wedlock in the new world, and then the cuts to her gripping her daemon or leaving her daemon alone in Boreal's house. All of these things really give color to her mindset in a way that I find compelling. They dive into her self-hatred, her motivations and her mental illness in a way that is deeper than the books (Also kudos to the show for having Boreal play the cheesy baby making music in his pad, genuinely laughed out loud at that).

So typically I don’t jump on the token glass ceiling bullshit Hollywood tries to pass off as inclusiveness these days. Yes, sometimes there is a good women empowerment story but other times I feel like they’re FORCING me to like their “strong women roles” because we gave you one (says in mimicking high voice). Any who- not the soapbox I’m here to talk about.

I loved watching Ruth Wilson drink and process and the bullshit she’s been dealing with her whole life because she’s a woman who wanted to be a scholar. Boreal played off the PERFECT idiot, acting like he didn’t know what she was so upset about! Then Marisa is taking shots like her mind is literally imploding over this whole world she’s been fighting.

At this point in the show, I didn’t even care about Lyra and Will getting the Alethiometer. I just wanted to watch Marisa get drunk and start screaming 🤣

Maybe leave and start her own career in this new world- Lyra shows up but her mom drunkenly says “Listen.....listen... I just talked to that Malone lady? Yah. Fuck the Magisterium. Fuck our world. Fuck your dad- where ever that asshole went. I’m gonna stay here and publish my work. If you need me, you know where to find me. Fight the Authority, baby. Go do you!” Quick shoulder pat and she walks out.

That’s not in the books- none of this is super relevant. But I just really, really enjoyed that scene.

He doesn’t deserve the treatments he gets AT ALL. I feel so bad for him EVERY time. Godddddddddddd!!!!!

{SPOILERS}

I’m so sad seeing him locked away like that!

What is your opinion about this relationship? How would u describe it? What scenes would u like to see between them next season? Do u like their interactions?

I find their relationship so complex and fascinating, so I would like to read some opinions!

Let’s talk about Marisa Coulter (Nicole Kidman) in The Golden Compass. Surely I can not be the only one who had so many nightmares about her in The golden Compass as a child? Maybe it was because of the obvious kidnapping and that was scary in its self to see when I was so young. BUT I still remember clear as day how petrified of her character I was. Anybody else?

(I read the spoiler policy, but I'm still unsure if the title can be considered a spoiler or not, I hope not, but I can delete the post if it is)

I have written this some time ago, but I didn't think of sharing here at the time, but I'd like to know about people's thoughts on this theory. I hope the format is okay as well! Sorry for any typos!

----------------------------

Dust is actually harmful. Not in the sense of being sin, but it is ultimately what damages people from different universes to stay where they don’t belong. Keep in mind this isn’t super serious, I’m aware there are gaps in this theory (because I accidentally countered my own arguments as I was writing lmao) and beware spoilers for both trilogies.

Mrs. Coulter’s research.

We know Mrs. Coulter created the General Oblation Board to research and examine the readings of Dust in children and how to stop it from settling on them. Outside her other personal goals, which included being in the good graces of the Magisterium, she had an interest in Dust as a scholar, and while she has a lot of dubious actions, it’s fair to say she, at the very least, believed that Dust did something to people. While personally I do not consider Mrs. Coulter a woman of faith, she was raised in a society controlled by the Church - and she has personal and business dealings with them - so it’s safe to assume she was raised in the dogma that “Dust is Bad” and she believes in it, because why not? I mean, there is a lot of reasoning behind this claim, but none of it is important for this specific theory.

The Magisterium has the narrative, after Dust was discovered and studied by Boris Rusakov, that the particles are a representation of Sin. A lot of the discoveries surrounding Dust, connected it to the fact adults seemed more connected with it than children, which only served to help the story that Dust affected children less - especially before puberty - because they were innocent. Once puberty hit, and the daemon settled, a stronger connection with the particles was established and the role of puberty in the “Dust is Evil” story is very big, especially because puberty and sexuality go hand-in-hand for the most part and the Church admonishes the idea of sexuality as a whole (it’s a bit more complicated than just this, but I hope you get what I mean). All of these things contributed to how ingrained the idea of Dust as something bad was perpetuated across Lyra’s world.

It is a

Phil

• If you find your book in the thread below, send the number of the book via reddit chat or via Telegram.
• Almost all the books are in their latest editions and some of them are available in multiple editions too.
• Books are delivered through Google-Drive link.
• You can also send requests via reddit chat or by Telegram.
• Also, upvote the post if you found it useful.

1. 5 lb. Book of ACT Practice Problems: Manhattan Prep
2. Java Illuminated, 4th Edition: Julie Anderson & Hervé J. Franceschi
3. Business Anthropology, 2nd Edition: Ann T. Jordan
4. HTML5 and CSS3, Illustrated Complete, 2nd Edition: Sasha Vodnik
5. BTEC Level 3 National IT Student Book 1 (BTEC National for IT Practitioners): Karen Anderson et al
6. BTEC Level 3 National IT Student Book 2 (BTEC National for IT Practitioners): Karen Anderson et al
7. Fundamentals of Nursing, 9th Edition: Patricia A. Potter & Anne Griffin Perry & Patricia Stockert & Amy Hall
8. Financial Instruments: Equities, Debt, Derivatives, and Alternative Investments: David M. Weiss
9. Davis's Drug Guide for Nurses, 15th Edition: April Hazard Vallerand & Cynthia A Sanoski & Judith Hopfer Deglin
10. Nursing Diagnosis Handbook: An Evidence-Based Guide to Planning Care, 11th Edition: Betty J. Ackley & Gail B. Ladwig & Mary Beth Flynn Makic
11. Time Series and Panel Data Econometrics: M. Hashem Pesaran
12. Pocket Companion for Physical Examination and Health Assessment (Jarvis, Pocket Companion for Physical Examination and Health Assessment), 6th Edition: Carolyn Jarvis
13. Federal Taxation of Estates, Trusts and Gifts: Cases, Problems and Materials, 4th Edition: Ira Mark Bloom & Kenneth F. Joyce
14. Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Edition: Alnoor Bhimani & Charles T. Horngren & Srikant M. Datar & Madhav Rajan
15. Power System Analysis and Design (Activate Learning with these NEW titles from Engineering!), 6th Edition: J. Duncan Glover & Thomas Overbye & Mulukutla S. Sarma
16. Android Boot Camp for Developers Using Java, 3rd Edition: A Guide to Creating Your First Android Apps: Corinne Hoisington
17. Spanish B for the IB Diploma Student's Book (IBS): Sebastian Bianchi & Mike Thacker
18. Introduction to Computing and Programming in Python, Global Edition: Mark J. Guzdial & Barbara Ericson
19. Business English, 12th Edition: Mary Elle

Sudden Lee

Go post NSFW jokes somewhere else. If I can't tell my kids this joke, then it is not a DAD JOKE.

If you feel it's appropriate to share NSFW jokes with your kids, that's on you. But a real, true dad joke should work for anyone's kid.

Mods... If you exist... Please, stop this madness. Rule #6 should simply not allow NSFW or (wtf) NSFL tags. Also, remember that MINORS browse this subreddit too? Why put that in rule #6, then allow NSFW???

Please consider changing rule #6. I love this sub, but the recent influx of NSFW tagged posts that get all the upvotes, just seem wrong when there are good solid DAD jokes being overlooked because of them.

Thank you,

A Dad.

So far nobody has given me a straight answer

Okay, I read/listened to The Secret Commonwealth last night and I just need to scream into a void because I have no one to talk to about this. Obviously major spoilers for TSC below!

So, just to start off with what I liked, because there were a lot of aspects that I enjoyed in this book, just the negatives have really jumped out at me now that I've thought about it overnight. What I really enjoyed in TSC is actually the look into how people interact with their daemons, more specifically the way people are separated and the multiple ways that people can be separated. It was always presented in the original trilogy as this unfathomable thing, but now that Lyra is an adult, she's seeing more signs of it. I love that.

I also loved the espionage/sociopolitical aspects of the novel. Admittedly, I think Pullman could have spent more time on it, but in an already mammoth book, I'm glad that it wasn't even longer. I have some questions about what the hell happened to the Magisterium in the last seven years and why no one even within the Magisterium will talk about what Asriel (and Marisa) did. Did they all just forget about "the second eve" prophecy? What was the conclusion of that? Anyway, I at least enjoyed the spy stuff in La Belle Sauvage a lot and I was happy to see it in more detail here.

Okay, now moving into some more conflicted stuff. I did enjoy Lyra's perspective as an adult. I acknowledge that a lot of her struggle as a 20-year-old is navigating the past trauma of losing people in her life like Will and Lee and basically not having any real support system. Even her parents who sacrificed their lives for her didn't leave her anything to live off of despite their wealth (yes, I know Asriel was technically a poor). But I don't actually think Pullman does this in as artful of a way as he could have. I think a lot of praise for this book comes from readers who project a lot of their own issues onto Lyra, and as someone in my late twenties, I did the same. But stepping away from it, Lyra and Pan's actions don't actually make much sense to me?

The entire impetus of Lyra's journey is to find Pan, who she firmly believes is at the Blue Hotel. This is the type of logic jump that only works in the lens of "this is a novel and I need a way to make my hero leave Oxford." Logically, reasonably, Lyra should stay at Oxford. She could hide out, wait for Pan to return, knowing that even though they have argued they would eventually reunite because they both said thin

Until this week, I’ve enjoyed the additions to and liberties with the story in the tv series. I don’t feel like the show should be exact in every way, and I’ve thought the writers and director have mostly done a good job translating key elements and themes to the screen.

HOWEVER! I’m still bothered from watching this week’s episode and the liberties taken in particular with the scene where Will and Lyra steal back the alethiometer. They are portraying Coulters daemon as sweet and sometimes weak, and even Coulter is very off from my interpretations of her - and fine, whatever, they want to show this softer, struggling side of her. But to have Lyra (well Pan) so ruthlessly and viciously attack them!?! This is not Lyra. This is not Pan. Yes, there are parts of both her parents in her, but when she fights it’s out of necessity or the greater good. This portrayal of her was just cruel, and I’m still bothered.

What is their point? What is the show trying to accomplish with this extreme (in my opinion) shift away from the characters and story in the book?

>!spoiler!<

Well, toucan play at that game.

Windows

Martin Freeman, and Andy Serkis.

They also play roles in Lord of the Rings.

I guess that makes them the Tolkien white guys.

She said apple-lutely

'Eye-do'

This is my first post pls don't kill me lol.

The people in the comment section is why I love this subreddit!!

Cred once again my sis wants credit lol

Keep in mind, my son is 4 years old, so everything is an original to him.

I had to work late into the evening yesterday, and he was just going to bed when I got home. I had left home for the office nearly 14 hours prior, had a long day, lots of meetings, traffic, etc.

When I walked through the door, I was exhausted, run down, and starving. My wife hugged me and asked how my day was, and I replied, "Done. It was a good day, but has got me exhausted. I just want to grab a bite and go to bed. I'm hungry."

From my son's bedroom, I hear him shout, "Hi Hungry! Nice to meet you!"

Not only did it make me laugh, but I completely forgot about how hungry and tired I was. I went to his bedroom, and we laughed together about it. It was exactly what I needed.

Edit: Thanks for all the awards, kind strangers! I'll let my son know y'all enjoyed his joke too!

I heard parents named their children lance a lot.

First post please don't kill me

Edit: i went to sleep and now my inbox is dead, thank you kind strangers for the awards!

Japan.

Why Mrs Coulter didn't tell Lyra she was her mother in the episode 1x02, during the confrontation?
Do you think Marisa would have never revealed the truth to Lyra if she had decided to stay and not run away? Was she ashamed? Scared? Didn't think was the right moment?

P.S. I didn't read the books, so sorry if the motivation is explained in them.

"No, the regular kind!" I laughed.

Episode Information

Lyra ignores the alethiometer, with dangerous consequences for her and Will. Lee Scoresby’s search for Grumman brings an unlikely ally, and the witches seek answers.

• BBC Page
• Wiki Page

Spoiler Policy for this thread

This is NOT a spoiler-safe thread. All spoilers are allowed for the ENTIRE His Dark Materials universe.

If this does not suit you, there are 4 discussion threads per episode:

Other information

The thread comments are default sorted to "new" to better facilitate live discussions. You can change that if you wish.

Episode Information

Lyra and Will find allies who can help them in their search for Will’s father. The Magisterium learn something shocking, and Mrs Coulter meets a formidable foe.

• BBC Page
• Wiki Page

Spoiler Policy for this thread

This is NOT a spoiler-safe thread. All spoilers are allowed for the ENTIRE His Dark Materials universe.

If this does not suit you, there are 4 discussion threads per episode:

Other information

The thread comments are default sorted to "new" to better facilitate live discussions. You can change that if you wish.