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185-543: Jim Henson was inspired to design the Skeksis by an illustrated edition of a Lewis Carroll poem showing two elegantly dressed crocodiles in a bathroom. He became intrigued with the idea of a reptilian race assuming control over a formerly splendid past society, and developed the Skeksis with the concept that they represented the darker side of human nature. Numerous names were proposed for the species, including Skekses, Reptus, Karackt and Skek-sis. Henson himself commented on

370-455: A firca . His creature and costume design were provided by Brian Froud and his designer and fabrication supervisor was Wendy Midener. Having escaped the slaughter of her people when hidden by her mother in a hollow tree trunk, Kira ended up wandering into a Podling village and was adopted by them. Taught by the Podlings, Kira learned to converse with wild animals and is given to wandering

555-454: A historian to alter the documentation of his kind's history to reflect his ever-shifting political allegiance, until all truth was lost. He was also prone to mood swings and could often be found mumbling to himself. He was always late for the Skeksis' meetings and very often fell asleep during them. In Age of Resistance skekOk is also shown to have diplomatic talents that rival skekSil's, being in charge of recording (and occasionally extorting)

740-596: A stammer – a condition shared by most of his siblings – that often inhibited his social life throughout his years. At the age of twelve he was sent to Richmond Grammar School (now part of Richmond School ) in Richmond, North Yorkshire . In 1846, Dodgson entered Rugby School , where he was evidently unhappy, as he wrote some years after leaving: "I cannot say ... that any earthly considerations would induce me to go through my three years again ... I can honestly say that if I could have been ... secure from annoyance at night,

925-487: A botched attempt by the urSkeks to purge themselves of their imperfections while returning to their homeworld during a Great Conjunction, an event where the three suns of Thra produce a pure light that hits the Crystal, the Skeksis are the embodiments of their original selves' worst inhibitions compared to their urRu counterparts. Moments after coming into being, two of their own were accidentally killed, and infighting among

1110-452: A depression that lasted some years. In 1876, Dodgson produced his next great work, The Hunting of the Snark , a fantastical "nonsense" poem, with illustrations by Henry Holiday , exploring the adventures of a bizarre crew of nine tradesmen and one beaver, who set off to find the snark. It received largely mixed reviews from Carroll's contemporary reviewers, but was enormously popular with

1295-546: A different kind of evil, such as cruelty, selfishness, greed, unchecked ambition, treachery, and wrath. The Skeksis were full-bodied puppets operated in a very similar way to Big Bird . The puppeteer's secondary arm was in the arm of the Skeksis and the puppeteer's primary arm was held up over the puppeteer's head and the hand operates the jaw. A monitor inside the suit allowed the puppeteer to see. The series prequel The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance introduced new Skeksis characters who appeared in other media. In Archaia Comics

1480-463: A dozen books under his real name. Dodgson also developed new ideas in linear algebra (e.g., the first printed proof of the Rouché–Capelli theorem ), probability, and the study of elections (e.g., Dodgson's method ) and committees ; some of this work was not published until well after his death. His occupation as Mathematical Lecturer at Christ Church gave him some financial security. His work in

1665-555: A family of high-church Anglicans , and pursued his clerical training at Oxford University's Christ Church constituent college , where he lived for most of his life as a scholar , teacher and Anglican deacon . Alice Liddell – a daughter of Henry Liddell , the Dean of Christ Church – is widely identified as the original inspiration for Alice in Wonderland , though Carroll always denied this. An avid puzzler, Carroll created

1850-545: A farming community that live on the southern plains of Thra and are a rival of the Stonewood Clan. The Spriton Clan reside in Sami Thicket, but mostly are in other parts of Thra trading items with its other inhabitants. Agriculture and creature husbandry are also part of their lives. Among the known members are: Described as "a friendly monster " in the initial draft of the screenplay, the character of Fizzgig

2035-513: A fighting chance against them, skekUng succeeded him as Emperor. In the film's deleted scenes, skekSo's decayed remains are cremated. He also has an appearance in Legends of the Dark Crystal . In the film, he is performed by Jim Henson and voiced by Jerry Nelson . In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , skekSo is performed by Dave Chapman and voiced by Jason Isaacs . Also known as

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2220-480: A friend of Aughra , having mentored her when he and urTih were originally the urSkek TekTih. During the events of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , skekTek outfitted himself with a visual prosthesis after his right eye was ripped out by a Peeper Beetle as punishment for failing to prevent the Gelfling Rian from escaping with a vial of essence. By the time of the film, he had replaced his jugular vein with

2405-492: A glass, ensured the right amount of liqueur for the price paid; a double-sided adhesive strip to fasten envelopes or mount things in books; a device for helping a bedridden invalid to read from a book placed sideways; and at least two ciphers for cryptography . He also proposed alternative systems of parliamentary representation. He proposed the so-called Dodgson's method , using the Condorcet method . In 1884, he proposed

2590-1064: A handheld trigger device that controlled the flexible rods serving as its fingers. For Age of Resistance , the technical crew devised simpler ways to puppeteer the creatures, including the Skeksis. For wide shots of the Chamberlain, for example, his head was placed on a mechanical neck. This reduced the need for several performers and allowed the numerous animatronics in his head to be controlled from offscreen. The Skeksis are tall bipeds, possessing both avian and reptilian features. They dress in elaborate (but threadbare) garments and robes of lace , velvet , and brocade to conceal their frail, rotting bodies while also appearing large and more intimidating. Their heads are beaked and vulturine in form, while also sporting sharp teeth (some Skeksis have more or less teeth than others). Their gluttony gives them enlarged bellies, and they have long, lizard-like tails, as well as curved quills on their backs. Despite possessing four arms, like their urRu counterparts,

2775-407: A knee injury sustained in middle age. As a very young child, he suffered a fever that left him deaf in one ear. At the age of 17, he suffered a severe attack of whooping cough , which was probably responsible for his chronically weak chest in later life. In early childhood, he acquired a stammer , which he referred to as his "hesitation"; it remained throughout his life. The stammer has always been

2960-553: A manner that concept artist Brian Froud described as being "... between a dog and a dinosaur ". In Archaia Comics The Dark Crystal: Creation Myth Volumes 2 and 3 , four new Mystics were introduced: In the Dark Crystal Author Quest series by J.M. Lee, three new canonical urRu are introduced and one appearing in the Netflix series The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance . The urSkeks are the beings from which

3145-502: A member of his father's old college, Christ Church . After waiting for rooms in college to become available, he went into residence in January 1851. He had been at Oxford only two days when he received a summons home. His mother had died of "inflammation of the brain" – perhaps meningitis or a stroke – at the age of 47. His early academic career veered between high promise and irresistible distraction. He did not always work hard, but

3330-417: A pocket or purse, as the most common individual stamps could easily be carried on their own. The pack included a copy of a pamphlet version of this lecture. Another invention was a writing tablet called the nyctograph that allowed note-taking in the dark, thus eliminating the need to get out of bed and strike a light when one woke with an idea. The device consisted of a gridded card with sixteen squares and

3515-456: A practice new to the nineteenth century. He exerted his agency of this craft by literally rewriting the text created by the image to produce a new dialogue about childhood. However, popular taste changed with the advent of Modernism , affecting the types of photographs that he produced. To promote letter writing, Dodgson invented "The Wonderland Postage-Stamp Case" in 1889. This was a cloth-backed folder with twelve slots, two marked for inserting

3700-442: A proportional representation system based on multi-member districts, each voter casting only a single vote, quotas as minimum requirements to take seats, and votes transferable by candidates through what is now called Liquid democracy . Within the academic discipline of mathematics, Dodgson worked primarily in the fields of geometry , linear and matrix algebra , mathematical logic , and recreational mathematics , producing nearly

3885-503: A rule for finding the day of the week for any date; a means for justifying right margins on a typewriter; a steering device for a velociman (a type of tricycle); fairer elimination rules for tennis tournaments; a new sort of postal money order; rules for reckoning postage; rules for a win in betting; rules for dividing a number by various divisors; a cardboard scale for the Senior Common Room at Christ Church which, held next to

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4070-431: A significant part of the image of Dodgson. While one apocryphal story says that he stammered only in adult company and was free and fluent with children, there is no evidence to support this idea. Many children of his acquaintance remembered the stammer, while many adults failed to notice it. Dodgson himself seems to have been far more acutely aware of it than most people whom he met; it is said that he caricatured himself as

4255-464: A special letter register which he devised. He documented his advice about how to write more satisfying letters in a missive entitled " Eight or Nine Wise Words about Letter-Writing ", published in 1890. Dodgson's existence remained little changed over the last twenty years of his life, despite his growing wealth and fame. He continued to teach at Christ Church until 1881 and remained in residence there until his death. Public appearances included attending

4440-438: A spirit-like skull mask that conceals his scarred face and sports an extra pair of retractable arms. Considering himself a sportsman who relentlessly hunts his quarry down, skekMal is a brutal killer so feared even by his own kind that they tend to summon his services as a last resort. Thus few Gelfling knew of his existence as he eats his prey and keeps their skulls as his trophies. He is skilled in trapping and combat, being one of

4625-486: A system of symbols representing an alphabet of Dodgson's design, using letter shapes similar to the Graffiti writing system on a Palm device. He also devised a number of games, including an early version of what today is known as Scrabble . Devised sometime in 1878, he invented the "doublet" (see word ladder ), a form of brain-teaser that is still popular today, changing one word into another by altering one letter at

4810-523: A thumb on each hand. Female Gelfling have fairy -like wings that can be folded to fit easily under their clothing, allowing them to safely glide down from high places, even with the added weight of a second Gelfling holding onto them. The Marvel Comics adaptation of the film states that in the past, females could fly, but the wings have become vestigial. Gelfling also possess an ability called " dreamfasting" that allows them to psychically share thoughts, memories, and emotions through touch. The name "Gelfling"

4995-427: A time when people commonly devised their own amusements and when singing and recitation were required social skills, and the young Dodgson was well equipped to be an engaging entertainer. He could reportedly sing at a passable level and was not afraid to do so before an audience. He was also adept at mimicry and storytelling, and reputedly quite good at charades . In the interim between his early published writings and

5180-615: A time, each successive change always resulting in a genuine word. For instance, CAT is transformed into DOG by the following steps: CAT, COT, DOT, DOG. It first appeared in the 29 March 1879 issue of Vanity Fair , with Carroll writing a weekly column for the magazine for two years; the final column dated 9 April 1881. The games and puzzles of Lewis Carroll were the subject of Martin Gardner's March 1960 Mathematical Games column in Scientific American . Other items include

5365-416: A transparent external tube to monitor his own circulation and his right arm and right leg with mechanical prosthetics and can be seen leaning on a cane. Because of his maltreatment by the other Skeksis, skekTek outright called himself "the most abused creature in all of Thra". skekSil provided skekTek with Gruenak helpers before later killing them when they tried to rebel, using one of them for parts in creating

5550-525: A transparent tube, skekTek is the Skeksis who conducts his research and experiments in the Castle's Chamber of Life. Through both skekSo's abuse and skekSil's influence, skekTek learned to harness the Dark Crystal's ability to extract essence and created the Garthim soldiers to quell the growing threat of Gelfling rebellion, and eventually, as an extermination force against the entire race. He was once considered

5735-424: A useful entrée into higher social circles. During the most productive part of his career, he made portraits of notable sitters such as John Everett Millais , Ellen Terry , Maggie Spearman , Dante Gabriel Rossetti , Julia Margaret Cameron , Michael Faraday , Lord Salisbury , and Alfred Tennyson . By the time that Dodgson abruptly ceased photography (1880, after 24 years), he had established his own studio on

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5920-579: Is a Sanctuary Tree that appears in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and makes it home in Grot, being one of the many Great Trees that held the Darkening at bay for a millennia before it became too strong for them to subdue thanks to the Skeksis' experiments with the Dark Crystal. When the tree's death occurs, Vliste-Staba gives Deet the ability to absorb the Darkening into herself to purify

6105-406: Is a strong supporter of skekUng, and at one point was considered for promotion to the rank of Patriarch for his loyalty. When the Crystal was restored, skekNa was absorbed by urNol as they reverted into their original urSkek form NaNol. He was mentioned by skekZok in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , as skekOk considers calling the rest of the Skeksis back to the Castle during their battle against

6290-476: Is a transliteration of Ghel-lflainnk , which means "those who live without knowledge of the future". This is due to their innocence and naïvety. The Gelfling once had a flourishing civilization with a writing system similar to hieroglyphics, having relied on Aughra during the Age of Innocence before the urSkeks' arrival, which hastened their development while they venerated the aliens for their advancement. Initially,

6475-465: Is also missing the personal catalogue number that Dodgson meticulously catalogued his photos under. "[Dodgson's] usual practice was to add a number on the back of any prints which he had developed". Wakeling also points out that Dodgson never made "full frontal studies...particularly a girl as mature as this.. There's no way the Liddells would have allowed a picture of this kind to have been taken." It

6660-550: Is currently unknown whether this photo is by Dodgson, nor who wrote the pencil inscription on the back of it and for what reason. The photo was not included in Wakeling's catalogue raisonné of Dodgson's complete surviving photographs and has remained unused by other subsequent documentaries on Dodgson. Gelfling The characters from the 1982 cult fantasy film The Dark Crystal series were created by puppeteer Jim Henson and concept artist Brian Froud . Most of

6845-555: Is extracting the vitality from other life forms by exposing them to reflected beams from the Dark Crystal, a process that originally destroys the victims before it was refined enough to reduce them into nearly mindless drones which the Skeksis keep as slaves. The life force is collected in a liquid form that restores a Skeksis' youth and vitality, the Emperor eventually making law that only he can partake of it. Gelfling were originally used for this purpose until their near extinction forced

7030-546: Is performed and voiced by Steve Whitmire in the film. In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , he is performed by Olly Taylor and voiced by Mark Hamill . Whitmire based skekTek's voice loosely on that of Peter Lorre . Hamill's voice for skekTek is noticeably raspier and gives him an added stertor. Also known as the Gourmand and the counterpart to the urRu urAmaj the Cook, skekAyuk is a gluttonous Skeksis who uses his status as

7215-537: Is performed by Frank Oz and voiced by Barry Dennen . In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , he is performed by Warrick Brownlow-Pike and voiced by Simon Pegg . Also known as the Garthim-Master or the second General, the counterpart to the urRu urIm the Healer. SkekUng serves as the main antagonist of the original 1982 film, where he succeeds skekSo as Skeksis Emperor after his death. He does not appear in

7400-416: Is the pet of Kira: resembling a dog in voice and manners, but unlike a dog in that his facial features are tiny and his entire body is represented by a brown/red/gray ball of fur. Fizzgig moves by rolling, though he does appear to have at least two legs. His mouth, when open, appears to encompass most of his size and possesses two sets of sharp teeth. He is fiercely loyal to Kira, has an aggressive temper, and

7585-407: Is twice seen using these wings to slow a fall. Kira was designed by Wendy Froud (Nee Midener) and her design and fabrication supervisor was also Wendy Midener. The Vapra Clan are a Gelfling clan that reside in the city of Ha'rar within the snowy high mountains and appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , having ruled the other Gelfling tribes for ages. They are experts on camouflage. Among

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7770-458: Is wary of unfamiliar things. Fizzgig is at first wary of Jen, but becomes his friend. Fizzgig later made a cameo in the Fraggle Rock episode "Gobo's Discovery", as one of the background cave creatures. Fizzgig was designed by Brian Froud and his design and fabrication supervisor was Rollie Krewson . In relating media and prequels, Fizzgig is the name of the species as well. Fizzgig is

7955-863: The Whitby Gazette and the Oxford Critic . Most of this output was humorous, sometimes satirical, but his standards and ambitions were exacting. "I do not think I have yet written anything worthy of real publication (in which I do not include the Whitby Gazette or the Oxonian Advertiser ), but I do not despair of doing so someday," he wrote in July 1855. Sometime after 1850, he did write puppet plays for his siblings' entertainment, of which one has survived: La Guida di Bragia . In March 1856, he published his first piece of work under

8140-518: The Chamberlain , the counterpart to the urRu urSol the Chanter. SkekSil is the Skeksis's chief secretary of state and next in line as Emperor of the Skeksis, being part of skekSo's Diplomatic Allegiance which also consisted of skekEkt and skekOk. However, skekSil is despised by the other Skeksis for his wheedling voice and underhanded nature, most notably by skekUng. During the events of Legends of

8325-597: The Dodo in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , referring to his difficulty in pronouncing his last name, but this is one of the many supposed facts often repeated for which no first-hand evidence remains. He did indeed refer to himself as a dodo, but whether or not this reference was to his stammer is simply speculation. Dodgson's stammer did trouble him, but it was never so debilitating that it prevented him from applying his other personal qualities to do well in society. He lived in

8510-557: The Tractarian movement , and did his best to instil such views in his children. However, Charles developed an ambivalent relationship with his father's values and with the Church of England as a whole. During his early youth, Dodgson was educated at home. His "reading lists" preserved in the family archives testify to a precocious intellect: at the age of seven, he was reading books such as The Pilgrim's Progress . He also spoke with

8695-616: The West End musical Alice in Wonderland (the first major live production of his Alice books) at the Prince of Wales Theatre on 30 December 1886. The two volumes of his last novel, Sylvie and Bruno , were published in 1889 and 1893, but the intricacy of this work was apparently not appreciated by contemporary readers; it achieved nothing like the success of the Alice books, with disappointing reviews and sales of only 13,000 copies. The only known occasion on which he travelled abroad

8880-657: The word ladder puzzle (which he then called "Doublets"), which he published in his weekly column for Vanity Fair magazine between 1879 and 1881. In 1982 a memorial stone to Carroll was unveiled at Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey . There are societies in many parts of the world dedicated to the enjoyment and promotion of his works. Dodgson's family background was predominantly northern English , conservative , and high-church Anglican . Most of his male ancestors were army officers or Anglican clergymen. His great-grandfather, Charles Dodgson , had risen through

9065-618: The "Mystics", the urRu are benign counterparts of the Skeksis and embody the urSkeks' redeeming qualities yet are mostly indifferent and rarely act. After two of their own are killed by a rogue Skeksis, they learn that they are still linked with their counterparts, and most of the urRu take refuge in the Valley of the Standing Stones, leaving the Skeksis to their devices. While initially lean and fairly agile creatures, nearly identical to

9250-408: The "Son of Aughra", Raunip was born from the organic material of a meteorite that landed on Thra which Aughra brought to life. Unlike the more reserved Aughra, Raunip is more outgoing and with an adventurous curiosity, allowing him befriend Gelfings and other members of Thra's races. But Raunip earned the urSkeks' ire, his distrust of them playing a factor in the events that splintered the urSkeks into

9435-498: The 'Trial by Stone' duel, while a provoked skekSil single-handedly slammed pilaster rock onto protagonist Jen. The Skeksis are the corrupt rulers of the planet Thra, having inherited it from their benevolent urSkek predecessors, and embody the knowledgeable, yet unrestrained aspects of the urSkeks' behavior. The Skeksis culture favors repetitive flamboyance, emotional pettiness, and a wasteful attitude toward life. Though they are capable of alliances, each acts only of self-preservation to

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9620-617: The Age of Division, resembling Gelflings enveloped in flame, the Firelings adapted to their environment with their physiology altered to the point that they are unable to survive on Thra's surface without assistance and with exposure to water weakening them. While they resemble Gelflings, the female Firelings lack wings and the older members of the race had fin-like ears and sported a pair of antennae on their foreheads. Firelings also possess an ability similar to dreamfasting called "firefasting", that enabled them to learn of events and emotions from

9805-507: The Cantini photo's authenticity, the BBC's failure to tell participants of the found photo, and several factual errors. Wakeling draws attention to the irregular "trimmed" nature of the photo itself, and no trace of Dodgson's writing. The inscription on the back of the photo, attributed "lewis Carroll" in pencil, "is an unknown hand... so it could have been written by anybody" . The photo negative

9990-520: The Chamberlain, brought forth to the Emperor and Scientist the idea of Soldiers that would be soulless yet loyal: these would later become the Garthim. However, with skekVar gone, all the Skeksis, in particular the Scientist, would later lay claim to their creation. skekVar first appeared in the two volume manga Legends of the Dark Crystal by Tokyopop, the three volume series The Dark Crytal: Creation Myths by Archaia Comics, and other media created by

10175-543: The Chamberlain, while secretly withholding Gelfling essence for himself and using skekVar as a scapegoat. He appeared in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , performed by Helena Smee and voiced by Awkwafina . Known as the Hunter and the counterpart to the urRu urVa the Archer, skekMal is a Skeksis introduced in the J.M. Lee novel Shadows of the Dark Crystal . He also appears in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , wearing

10360-526: The Christ Church library, where his office was close to the Deanery, where Alice Liddell lived. The young adult Charles Dodgson was about 6 feet (1.83 m) tall and slender, and he had curly brown hair and blue or grey eyes (depending on the account). He was described in later life as somewhat asymmetrical , and as carrying himself rather stiffly and awkwardly, although this might be on account of

10545-821: The Crystal Desert where they waited for the Gelfling Rian, Brea, and Deet so they could give them the Crystal Shard that was concealed in the Dual Glaive sword they forged. skekGra eventually became rather boisterous and eccentric, describing himself as a fun Skeksis. He and urGoh became skilled at the art of puppetry. In Age of Resistance , skekGra is performed by Damian Farrell and voiced by Andy Samberg . Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson ( / ˈ l ʌ t w ɪ dʒ ˈ d ɒ d s ən / LUT -wij DOD -sən ; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll ,

10730-481: The Crystal with the restoration of the urSkeks as consequence. When the Skeksis learned of this, they attempted to deter the Gelflings with Shard fabrications before using the newly created Garthim to wipe out the entire Gelfling race. At the start of the film, skekUng succeeded skekSo as Emperor with only nine Skeksis remaining before skekTek was killed. Toward the end, protagonists Jen and Kira reunite them with

10915-416: The Dark Crystal . In the film, Aughra is portrayed primarily by Frank Oz in costume. Oz also voiced Aughra originally (similar to a combination of Fozzie Bear , Yoda , and Miss Piggy ); but her lines were redubbed by Billie Whitelaw . Aughra appears in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . She awakens from her journey to find that the Skeksis have corrupted Thra. She gave up her life essence to help

11100-521: The Dark Crystal , Archaia Comics The Dark Crystal: Creation Myths and Dark Crystal Author Quest , various Skeksis and Mystics were introduced which provides the identities of some of the deceased urSkeks (Skeksis/urRu), but thanks to The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , alongside the J.M. Lee novels, these are the canon 18 UrSkeks: The Podlings , also known as the Pod People , are a species of gentle "earth-people" native to Thra and affiliated with

11285-461: The Dark Crystal , skekSil attempted to trick the Gelfling into distrusting the urRu while protecting his right of succession when it was being threatened by skekLach. In the first season of Age of Resistance , skekSil is revealed to have influenced skekTek in developing essence extraction and the creation of the Garthim. He also is the driving force behind the events of the show, from turning most of

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11470-532: The Dark Crystal: Creation Myths 2, two Skeksis are seen: In the Dark Crystal Author Quest novels, two more Skeksis appeared. Both were referenced in the ninth episode of Age of Resistance : In Tokyopop's OEL manga Legends of the Dark Crystal vol. 1 and 2, two more Skeksis are introduced. Since later novels and the TV series, these characters are no longer canon: More commonly known as

11655-399: The Darkening that affects the planet's lifeforms. skekTek, with skekSil's help, developed a means to polarize the Dark Crystal's life-giving properties to extract life essence from Thra and its life forms to prolong their own lives. When the Gelfling learned of this and rebelled, they devised a prophecy revealing that one of them would end the rule of the Skeksis by restoring the broken Shard to

11840-657: The Drenchen Clan's location in their consensus. Among the known members are: The Sifa Clan are a sea -faring Gelfling Clan that appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . They reside in coastal villages along the Silver Sea where they work as fishermen and sailors . Among the known members are: The Dousan Clan are an elusive Gelfling Clan that reside on the Crystal Sea desert . They appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . The Dousan Clan navigate

12025-523: The Garthim soldiers. Due to the accelerated decomposition of their bodies, the Skeksis constantly attempt to prolong their lives by using the properties of the Dark Crystal itself. Their primary method is absorbing sunlight channeled through the Dark Crystal, its potency dependent on Thra's three suns. Another method is a form of acupuncture, in which power lines laid on their castle channels the planet's energy to them and feeds back noxious pulses, resulting in their kingdom's wasteland appearance. A third method

12210-536: The Garthim. During the film, skekTek sided with skekUng after he became the new Emperor and convinced him to let him drain Kira of her essence, but Kira persuaded all the laboratory animals skekTek experimented on to attack him, resulting in him losing his footing and falling down the Crystal Shaft into the magma below with urTih incinerated as a result. skekTek has appearances in Legends of the Dark Crystal . He

12395-650: The Gelfling Kensho. Her return home after the crisis saw her confront Nita, a rival claimant to her position as Ember Queen, though the two eventually joined forces in order to stop the Fire That Stays from finishing what the Great Dim had started. She subsequently ruled Mithra jointly with Nita and Fiola. The Myth-Speaker (voiced by Sigourney Weaver ) is the narrator of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . Vliste-Staba (voiced by Theo Ogundipe)

12580-470: The Gelfling coexisted with the Skeksis before learning of their malevolent actions in using the Dark Crystal to drain the surrounding lands of their life essence to prolong their lives while using the extracted essence of their enslaved kinsmen for rejuvenation purposes. This started the events of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , which reveals that the Gelfling were organized as seven matriarchal clans who made their homes in areas of Thra consisting of

12765-401: The Gelfling's tribute. Appearing in the first season of Age of Resistance , skekLach is killed by exploding in a pile of pus when Deet uses her powers to redirect the Darkening's energy back at the Skeksis. His design and personality has differed in his various appearances: in the comics depicted with a mechanised arm, elaborate coat, and a scarred face, been more cunning in a battle of wits with

12950-410: The Gelfling. In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , the Gelfling puppets require only two puppeteers thus permitting greater freedom of movement. Also, while the animatronic components of the original film's Gelfling puppets were controlled via cables, the mechanical parts of the new Gelfling were remotely operated via a modified Wii controller. Jen is a young male Gelfling and the protagonist of

13135-458: The Gelflings against Rian and each other, to securing the downfall and death of skekVar after he is replaced as the Emperor's closest advisor. In the film, skekSil's confrontation with skekUng over succession resulted in his exile, the removal of his robes, and he attempts to regain his position by capturing a Gelfling. Of all the Skeksis, skekSil's intentions are never fully revealed and seem contradictory, most notably when he forcibly brought Kira to

13320-450: The Gelflings, named for the giant seed-pods in which they live. In their own language, they referred to themselves as apopiapoiopidiappididiapipob , which translated as "master gardeners who live in bulging plants." The Podlings are dwarf -like in stature yet with very rounded, circular-shaped, bulbous potato-like heads and small round eyes. They have a love of music and parties. In tune with nature, they can speak to Thra's wildlife and Kira

13505-627: The Gelflings, noting that he, like skekSa the Mariner, would be "useful in a fight." In the film, he is performed by Mike Quinn and voiced by David Buck . Also known as the Treasurer , the counterpart to the urRu urYod the Numerologist, and administratively skekSil's subordinate, skekShod is incapable of acknowledging anyone's presence unless offered some gift. Due to his limited vocabulary and excessive material desires, he frequently bribes

13690-586: The General and the counterpart to the urRu urMa the Peacemaker, skekVar is a loyal but violent and short-tempered military leader who killed All-Maudra Mayrin when she learned of her people being used by the Skeksis to prolong their lives. When skekVar was named the Emperor's new council in place of skekSil, he ended up being secretly murdered by skekSil in a scheme to regain their Emperor's trust while destroying skekVar's reputation. Before his death, he along with

13875-680: The Herbalist, skekNa is the supervisor and disciplinarian of the Skeksis' slaves. He is described in The World of the Dark Crystal as "purely and openly evil from the beginning" and in The Dark Crystal novelization as having "no imagination and no nobility at all." He has a hook for a left hand and an eye patch to hide his missing right eye. He dubiously claims to have an ear for music, and takes it upon himself to select specific slaves for skekTek to experiment upon. Along with skekTek, he

14060-629: The Jim Henson Company, though his role in the story was slightly altered. His first on camera appearance was in the Netflix prequel series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , performed by Kevin Clash and voiced by Benedict Wong . Also known as the Collector and the counterpart to the urRu urSen the Monk, skekLach is a sickly and jaded Skeksis who is also known for his role in overseeing

14245-482: The Lewis Carroll pen name, which Dodgson had first used some nine years earlier. The illustrations this time were by Sir John Tenniel ; Dodgson evidently thought that a published book would need the skills of a professional artist. Annotated versions provide insights into many of the ideas and hidden meanings that are prevalent in these books. Critical literature has often proposed Freudian interpretations of

14430-507: The Mystic Master and the Podlings, respectively. They also bred the sentinel Crystal Bats , which were used as "eyes in the sky", scavenging above the landscape, and working closely with the Garthim, to locate potential targets. Originally, Jim Henson thought of having the Skeksis communicate through noises, though he later shot the film showing the Skeksis speaking a constructed language, based on Ancient Greek and Egyptian, devised by

14615-401: The Podlings into aged and mindless slaves who submit to the Skeksis' commands. At the end of the film, the enslaved Podlings are restored to their original selves. The unnamed Podlings in the film are performed by Dave Goelz, Jim Henson, and Frank Oz and voiced by Barry Dennen , Patrick Monckton, and Sue Weatherby. The creature and costume designs for the Podlings were done by Brian Froud and

14800-469: The Skeksis and the urRu/Mystics. Helping Aughra search for the lost shard, fruitlessly gathering similar shards, Raunip learned the Skeksis have enlisted the Gelflings to repel the invading Makrak horde in his absence. Raunip attempted to convince the Gelfling elder Carn of not trusting the Skeksis, only to be rebuffed and accused of abandoning the Gelflings in their time of need. Raunip left Carn's village with her daughter Thall, who shared his suspicion over

14985-426: The Skeksis have only one functional pair as the other has become vestigial . This second pair of arms were, initially, wing -like before eventually withering and atrophying ; however, skekMal is one of the few Skeksis to utilize these extra arms in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. Despite their frail appearance, Skeksis are physically powerful, as skekUng mustered his strength to cut through solid stone during

15170-407: The Skeksis heal skekMal. When urVa jumps to his death, skekMal dies and Aughra is reconstituted. Her designer was Brian Froud and her design and fabrication supervisor was Lyle Conway. The fabrication team for Aughra included: David Barclay , Jeremy Hunt, Paul Jiggins, Graeme Galvin, and Steve Court. The Skeksis are the central antagonists of The Dark Crystal franchise: the ten dark versions of

15355-432: The Skeksis learned of this, they attempted using fabrications to deter the Gelfling before resorting to genocide with the newly created Garthim. By time of the events of the first film, only Jen and Kira had survived one such massacre as the former seeks to fulfill the prophecy. At the end of the first film, the two are entrusted with the Crystal by the urSkeks. In the original film, it required four puppeteers to operate

15540-556: The Skeksis to use Podlings instead, with the youth-inducing effects of the resulting elixir created from their life force lasting for a few seconds. The Skeksis created the Garthim through grafting corpses of Arathim and Gruenak which are then animated by the Dark Crystal. Upon the discovery of a Gelfling prophecy which foretold the end of their power, the Skeksis used the Garthim to exterminate almost every single Gelfling on Thra, until only two, Jen and Kira, survived, to be raised by urSu

15725-459: The Skeksis until he and his urRu counterpart urGoh the Wanderer both received a vision of the eventual reunion of their races into their original selves. Both desired to merge back into the urSkek GraGoh, but skekGra was cast out by the Skeksis as "The Heretic" for his attempts to convince them to rejoin their urRu counterparts. skekGra and urGoh were forced to live together in self-imposed exile in

15910-416: The Skeksis walking or running, actors of short stature were sometimes used as doubles. skekSil the Chamberlain's puppet, operated primarily by Frank Oz , was built with over 20 mechanical components. Similar to Big Bird of Sesame Street , the lead puppeteer inside the Skeksis costume would wear a television monitor around their waist to gain a better sense of vision. The Skeksis hands were operated using

16095-542: The Skeksis were initially a vibrant and jovial race as they tricked Aughra into a deep sleep to metaphysically observe the universe. Unopposed, they ruled Thra over a thousand years and kept the Gelfling tribes divided while presenting themselves as their lords and protectors. But the dynamic changed as the Skeksis aged into haggard shells of their former selves as the Dark Crystal is unable to properly prolong their lives due to its connection to Thra, causing an epidemic called

16280-460: The Skeksis' motives. Taken to Valley of the urRu by urGoh where he is reunited with Kotha, Raunip tried convincing the urRu to stop the Skeksis from taking the Gelfling to war. When the Makraks reached the Valley the following day, Kotha's translation of their language allows Raunip to understand that Makraks were forced from their underground home with the destruction they caused motivated by fear of

16465-481: The Skeksis' rituals and leader of the Religious Allegiance. Until the story of the film, skekZok "fancied himself skekSo's closest adviser, and sought to control the other Skeksis through false prophecies and apparitions, although they distrusted his divinations and practised their own." Though a contender for the throne after skekSo's death, skekZok sides with skekUng. Though he assists in the search for

16650-456: The Skeksis' robes was supervised by British artist and painter Sarah Bradpiece. The robes were fabricated with expensive materials (silks, furs, velvet, etc.) and exotic feathers, and decorated in jewels made from melted toy soldiers; skekTek the Scientist's bionic eye was made from a die-cast TIE fighter model's cockpit. To give the Skeksis their grubby appearance, the robes were then ripped and stained with fake dirt and paint. According to Froud,

16835-464: The Skeksis, the urRu aged differently from their counterparts as they began using walking sticks to move around while gradually losing their memories. During the course of the film, after urSu allowed himself to die to place the remaining nine Skeksis into disarray, urZah leads the urRu towards the Castle to fulfill the prophecy and merge with their Skeksis counterparts back into the urSkeks. The urRu have four arms, elongated heads, white hair, and tails, in

17020-500: The Skeksis. The Garthim are crustacean -like creatures that skekTek animated with the Dark Crystal to serve the Skeksis as their enforcers following the Gelfings' war declaration, each pieced together from the corpses of the spider -like Arathim and the humanoid Gruenaks in a form resembling sea creatures native to the urSkeks' world. The creation of the Garthim, as depicted in the first-season finale of Age of Resistance , led to

17205-852: The Stonewood Clan, the Spriton Clan, the Vapra Clan, the Grottan Clan, the Drenchen Clan, the Sifa Clan, and the Dousan Clan. Each of the Gelfling Clans is led by a leader called a "Maudra" and the ruler of all the clans is named "All-Maudra". Eventually, the Gelfling learned that one among them was destined to find the Shard and restore the Crystal to its natural state alongside the urSkeks during an upcoming Great Conjunction. When

17390-642: The Suns. Once Lore accomplishes his mission, Lore is deactivated by skekGra and remains in the Circle of the Suns for the duration of the first season. The Arathim are a spider -like race that appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , all connected by a hivemind known as the Ascendency. The Arathim initially lived in the Caves of Grot until the Skeksis drove them into the wilds for refusing to submit and fought

17575-816: The Tithing Allegiance (skekLach, skekOk, skekEkt) who collect tributes from the Gelfling clans, and the Security Allegiance (skekVar, skekAyuk, skekZok) who command the Gelfling castle guards. But following the Garthim War and before events of the movie, the Skeksis reorganized themselves into the Diplomatic Allegiance (skekSil, skekOk, skekEkt) who maintain the castle to the Emperor's liking, The Religious Allegiance (skekZok, skekShod, skekAyuk) who oversee daily routines, and Military Allegiance (skekUng, skekTek, skekNa) who oversee

17760-456: The aftermath of the Garthim War, Aughra keeps the Shard safe in her observatory until Jen arrived to obtain it, but the Garthim destroy Aughra's home while attempting to capture Jen, bringing her to the Castle where she rebukes the Skeksis before being locked away in skekTek's Chamber of Life until she is freed and witnesses the urSkeks' restoration. Aughra makes a return appearance in the comic book sequel to The Dark Crystal , titled The Power of

17945-580: The alleged photo until editing of the documentary was underway. Edward Wakeling's paper/review "Eight or nine wise words on documentary making" [1] appeared in March 2015 as part of the Lewis Carroll society newsletter Bandersnatch . Wakeling also echoed Woolf's assertions that he was not given time to talk about the alleged photo. Wakeling claimed, "The documentary knew I could authenticate [the photo] or not, but they chose to keep it from me as they anticipated my response." Wakeling further criticises in his paper

18130-455: The art and became a well-known gentleman-photographer, and he seems even to have toyed with the idea of making a living out of it in his very early years. A study by Roger Taylor and Edward Wakeling exhaustively lists every surviving print, and Taylor calculates that just over half of Dodgson's surviving work depicts young girls. Thirty surviving photographs depict nude or semi-nude children. About 60% of Dodgson's original photographic portfolio

18315-474: The attempt failed and resulted in the Crystal of Truth becoming the Dark Crystal and splintered the urSkeks into the urRu and the Skeksis, each member being spiritually linked to his counterpart. If any member of either species is wounded or killed, an equivalent suffers the same in the other. By the events of the film, the others having died of various causes, only eight of the urSkeks are reformed before they depart Thra soon after. In between TokyoPop's Legends of

18500-455: The author Alan Garner . The dialogue was later redubbed in English, as the original version proved unsuccessful in impressing test audiences. The original language is present in The World of the Dark Crystal and The Dark Crystal novelization, wherein (according to the former) it is "restricted to nouns, adjectives, and expletives", and has an object–verb–subject word order. The products of

18685-583: The author of his mathematical works". He also began earning quite substantial sums of money but continued with his seemingly disliked post at Christ Church. Late in 1871, he published the sequel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There . (The title page of the first edition erroneously gives "1872" as the date of publication. ) Its somewhat darker mood possibly reflects changes in Dodgson's life. His father's death in 1868 plunged him into

18870-551: The book as "a descent into the dark world of the subconscious ", as well as seeing it as a satire upon contemporary mathematical advances. The overwhelming commercial success of the first Alice book changed Dodgson's life in many ways. The fame of his alter ego "Lewis Carroll" soon spread around the world. He was inundated with fan mail and with sometimes unwanted attention. Indeed, according to one popular story, Queen Victoria herself enjoyed Alice in Wonderland so much that she commanded that he dedicate his next book to her, and

19055-500: The characters in the narrative are based on her. Information is scarce (Dodgson's diaries for the years 1858–1862 are missing), but it seems clear that his friendship with the Liddell family was an important part of his life in the late 1850s, and he grew into the habit of taking the children on rowing trips (first the boy, Harry, and later the three girls) accompanied by an adult friend to nearby Nuneham Courtenay or Godstow . It

19240-681: The county of Surrey, just four days before the death of Henry Liddell. He was two weeks away from turning 66 years old. His funeral was held at the nearby St Mary's Church . His body was buried at the Mount Cemetery in Guildford. He is commemorated at All Saints' Church, Daresbury , in its stained glass windows depicting characters from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , erected in 1935. A BBC documentary from 2015, The Secret World of Lewis Carroll , critically examined Dodgson's relationship with Alice Liddell and her sisters. It explored

19425-517: The court's gourmet expert to devise menus for the feasts, preferring strong flavors and living prey. He is occasionally seen alongside both skekEkt and skekShod, being hypocritical in belittling his fellow Skeksis. In Age of Resistance , he is the only Skeksis besides skekTek to understand that the Crystal's failures in giving energy for the Skeksis to take was due to their constant abuse. In the novel, both he and skekEkt are part of skekSo's faction and support skekSil before turning on him once he loses. In

19610-527: The design and fabrication supervisor was Sherry Amont. The design and fabrication team for the Podlings consisted of Bob Payne , Amy Van Gilder, Mike Quinn , Cheryl Henson , Marianne Harms, Nick Forder, Sarah Monzani, Peter Saunders, and Debbie Coda. Polly Smith, Barbara Davis, and Ellis Duncan were associate costume designers. There have been some named Podlings: The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance also features some unnamed Podling servants (performed by Warrick Brownlow-Pike and Louise Gold ) that work for

19795-494: The difficulty of performing as a Skeksis: There were days I could work 'inside' my Skeksis character, the High Priest (Ritual-Master), without noticing the weight. But if I was feeling the least bit tired or run down, it was as if a building had caved in on me. Conceptual designer Brian Froud designed the Skeksis as looking like "part reptile, part predatory bird, [and] part dragon," with a "penetrating stare." The design of

19980-489: The earliest modern use of a truth tree . Robbins' and Rumsey's investigation of Dodgson condensation , a method of evaluating determinants , led them to the alternating sign matrix conjecture, now a theorem. The discovery in the 1990s of additional ciphers that Dodgson had constructed, in addition to his "Memoria Technica", showed that he had employed sophisticated mathematical ideas in their creation. Dodgson wrote and received as many as 98,721 letters, according to

20165-550: The early Gelflings before the first Great Conjunction. While intersexed, Aughra is mostly female as her masculine side was burned along with her right eye as the result of directly witnessing the Great Conjunction up close. But she was saved from death by the urSkeks with their member TekTih teaching her of the inner workings of the universe while creating her observatory home on top of a mountain known as High Hill, Aughra providing information on Thra in return. Present at

20350-419: The events of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , although skekZok suggests recalling him to the castle as a "strong warrior" for their fight against the Gelfling. Being the second strongest of the Skeksis, he replaced skekVar as the General after his death. He had a bitter rivalry with skekSil, which culminated in a duel for supremacy. Though the other Skeksis admire his ferocity, his constant failure to capture

20535-582: The family of friend and mentor George MacDonald read Dodgson's incomplete manuscript, and the enthusiasm of the MacDonald children encouraged Dodgson to seek publication. In 1863, he had taken the unfinished manuscript to Macmillan the publisher , who liked it immediately. After the possible alternative titles were rejected – Alice Among the Fairies and Alice's Golden Hour – the work was finally published as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in 1865 under

20720-720: The few Skeksis to use his extra arms in a fight, with animalistic movement. Hired by skekSil to acquire Rian, skekMal's hunt brings him in conflict with urVa. When skekMal was badly wounded by urVa, he brought Brea back to the Skeksis' castle before collapsing. As the Skeksis worked to keep him alive, Aughra offered her lifeforce in order for skekMal to be saved. During the battle in Stone-In-The-Wood, urVa commits suicide by jumping to his doom in order to stop his counterpart for good. This enables Aughra to be reconstituted. In episode 8 of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , Aughra expresses some fondness for him, declaring that skekMal

20905-466: The field of mathematical logic attracted renewed interest in the late 20th century. Martin Gardner's book on logic machines and diagrams and William Warren Bartley's posthumous publication of the second part of Dodgson's symbolic logic book have sparked a reevaluation of Dodgson's contributions to symbolic logic. It is recognised that in his Symbolic Logic Part II , Dodgson introduced the Method of Trees,

21090-464: The film and novel versions) before turning on him once he loses. When the Crystal was restored, skekEkt was absorbed by urUtt as they reverted into their original urSkek form EktUtt. In the film, he is performed and voiced by Brian Muehl . In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , he is performed and voiced by Alice Dinnean . Also known as the Slave-Master and the counterpart to the urRu urNol

21275-444: The film, having been raised by the urRu Master urSu from infancy when his family was slaughtered by the Garthim. His upbringing by the lax urRu made him both deliberate and impatient. Jen wears a pale, cream-colored tunic. His skin has a brown complexion and his hair is dark with fair (almost silver) streaks, and grows to shoulder-length. He carries a flute around his neck, which he is shown playing at intervals, and an urRu token known as

21460-477: The film, he and skekShod ultimately support skekZok. When the Crystal was restored, skekAyuk was absorbed by urAmaj as they reverted into their original urSkek form AyukAmaj. In the film, he is performed by Louise Gold and voiced by Thick Wilson. In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , he is performed again by Gold and voiced by Harvey Fierstein . Also known as the Ornamentalist and the counterpart to

21645-576: The film, he is performed by Bob Payne and voiced by John Baddeley . In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , he is performed and voiced by Neil Sterenberg. Through the years various comics and novels were made which serve as prequels to the events of the film, introducing various Skeksis. Over the time their living number, names, positions and even counterparts were changed. This is evident since current canon claims there were 18 Skeksis to begin with yet throughout all forms of The Dark Crystal media there are around 20 individual Skeksis names. Also known as

21830-524: The film, he is performed by Jim Henson and voiced by Jerry Nelson . In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , he is performed by Victor Yerrid and voiced by Keegan-Michael Key . Also known as the Scientist and the counterpart to the urRu urTih the Alchemist, his obsession depraved to the point of amputating his two right limbs and replacing them with prosthetics and replacing his jugular vein with

22015-452: The first Garthim (performed by Daniel Dewhirst) following the fight at Stone-in-the-Wood. The conceptual designer for the Garthim was Brian Froud, who claimed to have had a fascination with lobsters , and Fred Nihda as the design and fabrication supervisor. As the suits were so heavy and prone to overheating, special harnesses were constructed to lift the performers in the Garthim suits and give them time to recover in between takes. Known as

22200-457: The following years, and would greatly influence his writing career. Dodgson became close friends with Liddell's wife, Lorina, and their children, particularly the three sisters Lorina, Edith, and Alice Liddell. He was widely assumed for many years to have derived his own "Alice" from Alice Liddell ; the acrostic poem at the end of Through the Looking-Glass spells out her name in full, and there are also many superficial references to her hidden in

22385-418: The hardships of the daily life would have been comparative trifles to bear." He did not claim he suffered from bullying, but cited little boys as the main targets of older bullies at Rugby. Stuart Dodgson Collingwood, Dodgson's nephew, wrote that "even though it is hard for those who have only known him as the gentle and retiring don to believe it, it is nevertheless true that long after he left school, his name

22570-508: The infected. Lore (performed by Damian Farrell) is a sentient rock construct created by skekGra and urGoh. Debuting in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , skekGra and urGoh placed him in a chamber beneath the Vapra Clan's throne room to await the Gefling that would revive him. Lore is awakened by Brea in "The First Thing I Remember is Fire," playing skekGra's recording to explain himself as her guide and protector in her journey to Circle of

22755-535: The information about specific characters and species names that were not mentioned in the film come from supplementary materials such as Froud's book The World of the Dark Crystal . The series expanded into books, comics, artwork, games , and the 2019 prequel series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . The Gelfling are the central protagonists of The Dark Crystal franchise. They are slender, elvish humanoids with protracted facial structures who originally populated most of Thra, having three long fingers and

22940-517: The known members are: The Drenchen Clan are an amphibious Gelfling Clan that live in the Swamps of Sog. They appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance where their town of Great Smerth is named after the enormous tree that is in the center. The Drenchen Clan have gills that enable them to survive underwater and the females use their wings like fish fins to swim. They are also powerful in combat and take pride in it. The Skeksis could not keep track of

23125-509: The known members are: The Grottan Clan, named after the Caves of Grot, are a secretive Gelfling clan that reside in the Cave of Obscurity, their tribe long thought to be extinct due to their isolation from most of Thra. The Grottan Clan have large ears and big eyes to help them move around in the dark, but are sensitive to sunlight causing them to wear special blindfolds to filter the light. They appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . Among

23310-537: The known members are: The Stonewood clan are a Gelfling clan that reside in the village of Stone-in-the-Wood within the Dark Wood and appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . They are strong and proud and most of them are employed as Crystal Guards at the Castle of the Crystal. The Stonewood Clan are also expert cobblers and farmers. Originally they were called the Woodland Clan or Woodland Folk. Among

23495-430: The main antagonist of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , which chronologically precedes the 1982 film, where he attempts to harness and control the energy of the Darkening, which causes his body to corrode at a quicker pace compared to the other Skeksis, leading to his eventual death shown in the original film's beginning. Once skekSo died, due to urSu willing himself to death to disrupt the Skeksis' hierarchy to give Jen

23680-418: The massacre of the Gelflings in the event referred to as the Garthim War. In the film, some are sent to capture Jen and end up bringing Aughra instead. The Garthim are instantly destroyed when Jen restored the Crystal, causing them to crumble along with the Skeksis architecture covering the Castle. In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , their origins are shown at the end of the first season as skekTek reveals

23865-597: The mathematics textbook that the young Dodgson used – still survives and it contained an inscription in Latin , which translates to: "This book belongs to Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: hands off!" Some pages also included annotations such as the one found on p. 129, where he wrote "Not a fair question in decimals" next to a question. He left Rugby at the end of 1849 and matriculated at the University of Oxford in May 1850 as

24050-450: The media's reactions to the UK's early 2010 Yewtree investigations. When problems about the documentary's conduct and research surfaced, The Times and The Telegraph reported it. The material in the documentary has come under intense scrutiny by Carroll scholars, including those such as Jenny Woolf and Edward Wakeling, who appeared in it. Woolf claimed that she was not told of the use of

24235-527: The most commonly used penny stamp, and one each for the other current denominations up to one shilling. The folder was then put into a slipcase decorated with a picture of Alice on the front and the Cheshire Cat on the back. It intended to organise stamps wherever one stored their writing implements; Carroll expressly notes in Eight or Nine Wise Words about Letter-Writing it is not intended to be carried in

24420-579: The name that would make him famous. A romantic poem called "Solitude" appeared in The Train under the authorship of "Lewis Carroll". This pseudonym was a play on his real name: Lewis was the anglicised form of Ludovicus , which was the Latin for Lutwidge , and Carroll an Irish surname similar to the Latin name Carolus , from which comes the name Charles . The transition went as follows: "Charles Lutwidge" translated into Latin as "Carolus Ludovicus". This

24605-503: The next year he failed an important scholarship exam through his self-confessed inability to apply himself to study. Even so, his talent as a mathematician won him the Christ Church Mathematical Lectureship in 1855, which he continued to hold for the next 26 years. Despite early unhappiness, Dodgson remained at Christ Church, in various capacities, until his death, including that of Sub-Librarian of

24790-505: The only major character represented in the film by a puppet with immobile eyes. The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance featured a named Fizzgig. Aughra , Keeper of Secrets and revered by the Gelflings as Mother Aughra, is an oracle who is actually an emanation of the planet Thra created long ago with the task of observing for the planet until she is reabsorbed back into it, having the ability to command plants and remove her eyes for an extended view of her surroundings. Aughra served in guiding

24975-401: The other Skeksis and refused to allow them to kill her. When Kira was brought to the Skeksis, skekUng had skekSil reinstated and his robes returned to him. When the Crystal was restored, skekSil was absorbed by urSol as they reverted into their original urSkek form SilSol. In the comic book sequel The Power of the Dark Crystal taking place a century after the events of the movie, skekSil and

25160-564: The other Skeksis into loaning him their personal possessions. While not appearing or even mentioned in Age of Resistance , skekShod appears in the comic book sidestory which reveals him to oversee the Spritons' tithes and caused Hup's exile from Sami Thicket when he provoked the Podling to hit him. Along with skekAyuk and skekOk, he is a supporter of skekZok following skekSo's death. When the Crystal

25345-461: The other Skeksis were reconstituted due to Thurma removing the Shard from the Crystal. Immediately ostracized by his comrades for causing their previous defeat, skekSil pursues Thurma and Kensho and use the Shard to force the other Skeksis to submit to him. But he ends up being destroyed by the restored Crystal as it reformed itself into the Prism, housing his spirit and urSol within it. In the film, he

25530-485: The other in the fairytale kingdoms of Elfland, Outland, and others. The fairytale world satirises English society and, more specifically, the world of academia. Sylvie and Bruno came out in two volumes and is considered a lesser work, although it has remained in print for over a century. In 1856, Dodgson took up the new art form of photography under the influence first of his uncle Skeffington Lutwidge , and later of his Oxford friend Reginald Southey . He soon excelled at

25715-469: The past through flame. Thurma was a female Fireling who lived during the Age of Power. She was the heir of one of Mithra's Ember Queens and the first Fireling to leave her homeland since the race's creation, heading to Thra's surface world in a misguided quest to retrieve a shard from the Crystal in order to stop the Great Dim. Her efforts resulted in a brief return of the Skeksis and Mystics while learning her race's true origins through her relationship with

25900-520: The point of immediate betrayals to benefit their personal agenda. Despite their few numbers, the Skeksis form shifting political parties that stabilize the Skeksis society despite some causing friction among them, especially if the Emperor greatly favours one party over the others. Before the events of Age of Resistance , the Skeksis were divided into the Imperial Allegiance (skekSo, skekSil, skekTek) which oversee their race's continuation,

26085-410: The possibility that Dodgson's rift with the Liddell family (and his temporary suspension from the college) might have been caused by improper relations with their children, including Alice. The research for the documentary found a "disturbing" full frontal nude of Alice's adolescent sister Lorina during filming, and speculated on the "likelihood" of Dodgson taking the photo. However, it was later revealed

26270-495: The public, having been reprinted seventeen times between 1876 and 1908, and has seen various adaptations into musicals, opera, theatre, plays and music. Painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti reputedly became convinced that the poem was about him. In 1895, 30 years after the publication of his masterpieces, Carroll attempted a comeback, producing a two-volume tale of the fairy siblings Sylvie and Bruno . Carroll entwines two plots set in two alternative worlds, one set in rural England and

26455-547: The ranks of the church to become the Bishop of Elphin in rural Ireland. His paternal grandfather, also named Charles, was an army captain fatality of the Irish rebellion of 1803 , when his two sons were hardly more than babies. The older of these sons, yet another Charles Dodgson , was Carroll's father. He went to Rugby School and then to Christ Church, Oxford . He reverted to the other family tradition and took holy orders . He

26640-549: The regeneration of the Gelfling population. When the Crystal was restored, skekUng was absorbed by urIm as they reverted into their original urSkek form UngIm, who leads the urSkeks back to their world. In the film, he is performed by Dave Goelz and voiced by Michael Kilgarriff . Also known as the Ritual-Master and the counterpart to the urRu urZah the Ritual-Guardian, skekZok is the high priest who oversees

26825-448: The robes were meant to reflect the Skeksis' unique personalities and functions within the castle. Each Skeksis puppet was controlled in the original film by as many as six puppeteers. The main puppeteer, wearing a heavy, robe-covered costume with a puppet head, would be assisted by a second performer operating the creature's right hand from inside the costume, and a team of four technicians in charge of its facial features. For wide shots of

27010-497: The roof of Tom Quad , created around 3,000 images, and become an amateur master of the medium, though fewer than 1,000 images have survived time and deliberate destruction. He stopped taking photographs because keeping his studio working was too time-consuming. He used the wet collodion process ; commercial photographers who started using the dry-plate process in the 1870s took pictures more quickly. He often altered his photographs through blurring techniques or by painting over them,

27195-472: The sands of the Crystal Sea by riding Crystal Skimmers, gather at an oasis in the Crystal Sea called the Wellspring, and hold ancient rituals that involve music. Dousan shamans are known to eat hallucinogenic berries in order to glimpse into the future and talk to Thra. Among the known members are: The Spriton Clan are a war-like Gelfling clan that appear in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance . They are

27380-422: The second Great Conjunction that splintered the urSkeks, Aughra attempted to calm down the nascent Skeksis before they cracked the Crystal of Truth and tricked her into entering a deep slumber to see the universe before she reawakens during the events of Age of Resistance . Upon learning what the Skeksis have done, Aughra regrets leaving Thra to them as she allies herself with the Gelflings during their rebellion. In

27565-531: The shadows. Most assuredly I accept to the full the doctrines you refer to—that Christ died to save us, that we have no other way of salvation open to us but through His death, and that it is by faith in Him, and through no merit of ours, that we are reconciled to God; and most assuredly I can cordially say, "I owe all to Him who loved me, and died on the Cross of Calvary." Dodgson also expressed interest in other fields. He

27750-472: The spacious rectory. This remained their home for the next 25 years. Charles' father was an active and highly conservative cleric of the Church of England who later became the Archdeacon of Richmond and involved himself, sometimes influentially, in the intense religious disputes that were dividing the church. He was high-church, inclining toward Anglo-Catholicism , an admirer of John Henry Newman and

27935-622: The success of the Alice books, Dodgson began to move in the pre-Raphaelite social circle. He first met John Ruskin in 1857 and became friendly with him. Around 1863, he developed a close relationship with Dante Gabriel Rossetti and his family. He would often take pictures of the family in the garden of the Rossetti's house in Chelsea, London . He also knew William Holman Hunt , John Everett Millais , and Arthur Hughes , among other artists. He knew fairy-tale author George MacDonald well – it

28120-552: The surface world. While the urRu convinced the Skeksis to not exterminate the Makraks, Raunip participated in the peace talks and suggested their relocation to the region known as the Field of Fire. Raunip offered himself to guide the Makraks, knowing that he would never return or survive the journey despite receiving protective clothing and amulets from Thall. After bidding farewell to Aughra, who wept silently after he left, Raunip succeeds in his mission despite half of his face burnt and on

28305-479: The surviving Gelfling fails to evoke the respect of his subjects. He is suspicious of skekZok's loyalty, and is constantly fearing a challenge to his authority. In the novel, after the Chamberlain returns to the castle with a kidnapped Kira to be drained of her essence, and subsequently returns to his position of power, skekUng begins to spiral further into paranoia, plotting to murder skekTek and unleash his Garthim soldiers on every single form of life on Thra, to prevent

28490-451: The surviving Gelfling with his Crystal bats , he is nonetheless distrusted and feared by skekUng. When skekSil arrived with Kira, he was annoyed at skekUng's commands to drain Kira of essence before killing her, as he insisted she must be killed immediately. Ironically, skekZok's impulse to kill Kira the moment she threw the Shard to Jen led to the Skeksis' downfall with skekZok absorbed by urZah back into their original urSkek form ZokZah. In

28675-692: The surviving Skeksis resulted in a Shard of the Crystal being broken off and lost. The urRu then left the Castle to the Skeksis, who began to modify the urSkeks' architecture with their own grotesque designs while attempting to create their own Crystal. The black rocks they created were reused as targets for the "Haakskeekah" rite, translated as "Trial by Stone", in which the loser is stripped of his position. The Skeksis have other means of punishment among their kin that include being maimed by an eye-gouging Peeper beetle. According to The World of The Dark Crystal and The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance series, possessing urSkeks' knowledge but lacking their restraint,

28860-453: The swamps outside the Podling village, accompanied by Fizzgig. She is soft-spoken and gentle as a rule. Kira wears a golden-brown dress and a brown cloak. She has a fair complexion; her hair is long and fair, almost white; and she is always barefoot. As a female Gelfling, Kira has segmented fairy or butterfly -like wings that unfold from her shoulders on command: a physical feature not shared by male Gelflings. Although not shown in flight, she

29045-400: The ten "good" urRu/Mystics (see below). The word "Skeksis" serves as both singular and plural form for this species, with the singular pronounced / ˈ s k ɛ k s ɪ s / and the plural / ˈ s k ɛ k s iː z / . They are described by concept artist Brian Froud as "part reptile , part vulture , part dragon ". Like their urRu counterparts, they have four arms; but in the Skeksis

29230-436: The text of both books. It has been noted that Dodgson himself repeatedly denied in later life that his "little heroine" was based on any real child, and he frequently dedicated his works to girls of his acquaintance, adding their names in acrostic poems at the beginning of the text. Gertrude Chataway 's name appears in this form at the beginning of The Hunting of the Snark , and it is not suggested that this means that any of

29415-616: The timeline for this research had more than met the eye. The photo currently exists in the archives of the Musée Cantini in Marseille , and was attributed to Dodgson by a currently unknown hand. It was subsequently revealed in early 2015 by the Carroll scholar Edward Wakeling that the photo first appeared in the 1970s, when it was owned by Parisian photo collectors. The provenance of the photo's link to Dodgson could be questioned. It

29600-403: The tributes given to the Skeksis by the Gelfling. He also "befriends" Brea for a while, and suggests summoning the rest of the Skeksis back to the castle after skekMal turns up nearing death. In the film, his loyalty is ultimately to skekSil. In the novel, his loyalty is to skekZok. When the Crystal was restored, skekOk was absorbed by urAc as they reverted into their original urSkek form OkAc. In

29785-479: The two lower arms have become weak and atrophied, and are rarely seen. The Skeksis have kept themselves from dying of old age by draining the vitality from other beings. In the film, the Skeksis are represented by full-bodied puppets engineered under the direction of Jim Henson. Henson has said that in the development of the Skeksis, the creators drew inspiration from the Seven deadly sins , in that each Skeksis represents

29970-509: The urRu and the Skeksis are derived, depicted as tall, luminescent beings of vaguely Gelfling -like shape. They sported large craniums and slim bodies. As revealed in The World of the Dark Crystal , their people considering both their moral imperfections and attempt of manipulating their homeworld's Crystal intolerable, the eighteen urSkeks were banished to Thra through the Crystal of Truth until they have learned to master their dark aspects. Once on Thra, presenting themselves as "light bringers",

30155-547: The urRu to recreate the urSkeks who depart Thra. Also known as the Emperor and the counterpart to the urRu urSu the Master, skekSo is described in The World of The Dark Crystal as originally being an energetic ruler who enjoyed lavish festivity and winning at sporting events but age made him paranoid and spiteful to even his fellow Skeksis, elevating individuals to high positions only to depose them afterward. SkekSo appears as

30340-545: The urRu urUtt the Weaver, skekEkt is the more effeminate of the Skeksis and wears elaborate clothing that reflects his vanity. Despite possessing a genuine gift as a fashion designer , skekEkt is nonetheless described in The World of the Dark Crystal as an extremely vain and callous character who would gladly cause the death of countless animals for the sake of fabricating one cloak. According to skekSil's thoughts in The Dark Crystal novelization, skekEkt's uncharismatic depravity

30525-482: The urSkeks spend the next thousand years hastening the development of the planet's people while exploiting Aughra's interest in the universe to acquire the Crystal of Truth from her. By the time of the second Great Conjunction, the urSkeks created a mirror network around the Great Crystal to trap the light of the next Great Conjunction for their use in returning to their world while purging their imperfections. But

30710-471: The verge of death. He was last seen with a Fizzgig whom he recounting his tale to, resolving to live as long as he can while hoping to be remembered by those he left behind. The Firelings , also known as the U-Mun , are an offshoot of the Gelfling race that reside in the underground region of Mithra where they are ruled by a council of three Ember Queens. Descended from Gelfling exiles that came to Mithra during

30895-471: Was "the most beautiful of the lot" despite his scent of death. In The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , skekMal is performed by Kevin Clash , in-suit performed by Nick Kellington , and voiced by Ralph Ineson . Two additional puppeteers in blue screen suits operated skekMal's retractable arms. Previously known as the Conqueror , eccentric in personality, skekGra originally served as a militant leader in

31080-445: Was a member of the Church of England , but "doubt[ed] if he was fully a 'High Churchman ' ". He added: I believe that when you and I come to lie down for the last time, if only we can keep firm hold of the great truths Christ taught us—our own utter worthlessness and His infinite worth; and that He has brought us back to our one Father, and made us His brethren, and so brethren to one another—we shall have all we need to guide us through

31265-785: Was a trip to Russia in 1867 as an ecclesiastic, together with the Reverend Henry Liddon . He recounts the travel in his "Russian Journal", which was first commercially published in 1935. On his way to Russia and back, he also saw different cities in Belgium, Germany, partitioned Poland and Lithuania, and France. In his early sixties, Dodgson increasingly suffered from synovitis which eventually prevented him walking and sometimes left him bed-ridden for months. Dodgson died of pneumonia following influenza on 14 January 1898 at his sisters' home, "The Chestnuts", in Guildford in

31450-465: Was accordingly presented with his next work, a scholarly mathematical volume entitled An Elementary Treatise on Determinants . Dodgson himself vehemently denied this story, commenting "... It is utterly false in every particular: nothing even resembling it has occurred"; and it is unlikely for other reasons. As T. B. Strong comments in a Times article, "It would have been clean contrary to all his practice to identify [the] author of Alice with

31635-524: Was an English author , poet , mathematician , photographer and Anglican deacon . His most notable works are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass (1871). He was noted for his facility with word play , logic, and fantasy. His poems Jabberwocky (1871) and The Hunting of the Snark (1876) are classified in the genre of literary nonsense . Some of Alice's nonsensical wonderland logic reflects his published work on mathematical logic . Carroll came from

31820-542: Was an early member of the Society for Psychical Research , and one of his letters suggests that he accepted as real what was then called "thought reading". Dodgson wrote some studies of various philosophical arguments. In 1895, he developed a philosophical regressus-argument on deductive reasoning in his article " What the Tortoise Said to Achilles ", which appeared in one of the early volumes of Mind . The article

32005-404: Was considered excessive, even by the standards of the Skeksis, to the point where it would never command their obedience. He has the responsibility of giving the final say in the selection of experimental Podling slaves modified by skekTek for ritual choruses. He is occasionally seen alongside both skekOk and skekAyuk. Interestingly, skekOk and skekAyuk are loyal to skekSil like skekEkt (depending on

32190-403: Was deliberately destroyed. Dodgson also made many studies of men, women, boys, and landscapes; his subjects also include skeletons, dolls, dogs, statues, paintings, and trees. His pictures of children were taken with a parent in attendance and many of the pictures were taken in the Liddell garden because natural sunlight was required for good exposures. Dodgson also found photography to be

32375-596: Was exceptionally gifted, and achievement came easily to him. In 1852, he obtained first-class honours in Mathematics Moderations and was soon afterwards nominated to a Studentship by his father's old friend Canon Edward Pusey . In 1854, he obtained first-class honours in the Final Honours School of Mathematics, standing first on the list, and thus graduated as Bachelor of Arts. He remained at Christ Church studying and teaching, but

32560-614: Was left to the Musée de Cantini. There was no link to Dodgson, and no link to the Liddell family. This was not explained in the documentary. The documentary raised suspicions about Dodgson being a "repressed paedophile", as one of the interviewees, Will Self , put it. This aspect was leaked to The Telegraph a week in advance. When reviewing the documentary, papers sought to link the 19th-century Carroll with 21st-century sexual conduct revelations about recent paedophiles. This attempted link could be considered an act of scapegoating inspired by

32745-419: Was mathematically gifted and won a double first degree, which could have been the prelude to a brilliant academic career. Instead, he became a country parson . Dodgson was born on 27 January 1832 at All Saints' Vicarage in Daresbury , Cheshire , the oldest boy and the third oldest of 11 children. When he was 11, his father was given the living of Croft-on-Tees , Yorkshire, and the whole family moved to

32930-402: Was on one such expedition on 4 July 1862 that Dodgson invented the outline of the story that eventually became his first and greatest commercial success. He told the story to Alice Liddell and she begged him to write it down, and Dodgson eventually (after much delay) presented her with a handwritten, illustrated manuscript entitled Alice's Adventures Under Ground in November 1864. Before this,

33115-465: Was ordained a deacon in the Church of England on 22 December 1861. In The Life and Letters of Lewis Carroll , the editor states that "his Diary is full of such modest depreciations of himself and his work, interspersed with earnest prayers (too sacred and private to be reproduced here) that God would forgive him the past, and help him to perform His holy will in the future." When a friend asked him about his religious views, Dodgson wrote in response that he

33300-399: Was remembered as that of a boy who knew well how to use his fists in defence of a righteous cause", which is the protection of the smaller boys. Scholastically, though, he excelled with apparent ease. "I have not had a more promising boy at his age since I came to Rugby", observed mathematics master R. B. Mayor. Francis Walkingame's The Tutor's Assistant; Being a Compendium of Arithmetic –

33485-482: Was reprinted in the same journal a hundred years later in 1995, with a subsequent article by Simon Blackburn titled "Practical Tortoise Raising". From a young age, Dodgson wrote poetry and short stories, contributing heavily to the family magazine Mischmasch and later sending them to various magazines, enjoying moderate success. Between 1854 and 1856, his work appeared in the national publications The Comic Times and The Train , as well as smaller magazines such as

33670-461: Was restored, skekShod was absorbed by urYod as they reverted into their original urSkek form ShodYod. In the film, he is performed by Tim Rose and voiced by Charles Collingwood . Also known as the Scroll-Keeper and the counterpart to the urRu urAc the Scribe, skekOk is the smallest and most deceptive of the Skeksis who prides himself in his writing skills and owns a private library in the castle depicting numerous secrets. skekOk uses his talents as

33855-402: Was taught this skill by her adoptive mother Ydra. With The World of the Dark Crystal revealing that many were initially lured to the Castle, the Podlings were abducted from their homes by the Garthim so that skekTek can extract their vital essence for a youth serum reserved for the Emperor. While the serum's effects are temporary compared to the essence extracted from Gelflings, the process turns

34040-662: Was the enthusiastic reception of Alice by the young MacDonald children that persuaded him to submit the work for publication. In broad terms, Dodgson has traditionally been regarded as politically, religiously, and personally conservative. Martin Gardner labels Dodgson as a Tory who was "awed by lords and inclined to be snobbish towards inferiors". William Tuckwell , in his Reminiscences of Oxford (1900), regarded him as "austere, shy, precise, absorbed in mathematical reverie, watchfully tenacious of his dignity, stiffly conservative in political, theological, social theory, his life mapped out in squares like Alice's landscape". Dodgson

34225-445: Was then translated back into English as "Carroll Lewis" and then reversed to make "Lewis Carroll". This pseudonym was chosen by editor Edmund Yates from a list of four submitted by Dodgson, the others being Edgar Cuthwellis, Edgar U. C. Westhill, and Louis Carroll. In 1856, Dean Henry Liddell arrived at Christ Church at Oxford University , bringing with him his young family, all of whom would figure largely in Dodgson's life over

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