On a Witch, a Bear, and Wanting Revenge.

Those who’ve been reading this blog for the past few weeks will remember that I was hoping to meet Serafina Pecula tonight. She’s the leader of the warlike witches in His Dark Materials.

And so I did, and she disappointed me. In all physical respects save one she looked the part: lean of form, fair of face, dark of hair and countenance, but lacking the uncompromising fierceness of eye which defines the great lady’s strength. Her dress wasn’t up to much either (come to think of it, neither was it down to much, if you see what I mean. You probably don’t.) And then she spoke. Oh dear. She’s supposed to be a wild and mysterious denizen of the Carpathian Mountains (or somewhere thereabouts), but she sounded more like a reject from Roedean School.

But ample compensation was to come. Tonight we were treated to my favourite scene from the whole series of books – Iorek Byrnison, the great white bear, galloping across the icy waste with young Lyra Belacqua on his back. I confess to a slight watering of the eyes. I delight in reporting that what vascular system I still own coursed with the flow of recognition. ‘This is home,’ I rejoiced. ‘This is my reality. This is me.’ (Yes, I know I said I hate snow but that isn’t the point.)

And then Lyra got kidnapped by the ne’er-do-wells and there the episode ended. I didn’t like that bit. I don’t think it’s really good for my soul to want the nasty Church people to be savagely torn apart and eaten by a great white bear.