[V2] How do you think Season 2 will handle the quieter parts of Faceless?
I decided to reread LOtM while thinking about how the story will be adapted into the donghua. (It's been about 3 or 4 years since I last read it) I'm currently around chapter 479, and as I go further into Volume 2, I'm wondering how some of the material from the novel will actually be adapted.
Vol 2: Faceless has a LOT of content, and not all of it is made up of major action scenes or important plot events. A lot of the volume is Klein building relationships, investigatios with the other detectives in Backlund, and becoming part of the Backlund society. So it makes me wonder how much of that material we'll actually get to see in Season 2.
The Great Smog is probably the part I'm most curious about.
A lot of what happens during thispart of the novel is told through Klein's inner monologue and the narrator's exposition, rather than actual dialogue. It works because we have direct access to Klein's thoughts and can follow his observations and deductions.
But how do you adapt that into animation without either having a huge amount of narration or cutting down the internal aspects of the story?
I also want to see how they handle the emotional aspects of the deaths during this arc. With characters such as Talim, Kohler and Liv's family. Klei/Sherlock interacted with many of them repeatedly, and in some cases had developed genuine relationships with them, like Talim and Kohler.
Talim especially. Klein actually spent quite a bit of time with him, so his death has a different impact compared with the death of an unnamed character. Will they show the interactions they had?
How much of Klein's Backlund life will we actually see?
This is another thing I'm wondering about.
There are a few smaller storylines and relationships throughout Volume 2 that aren't necessarily essential to the main plot, but they help make Klein's life in Backlund feel like an actual life or point that will be expanded upon in later volumes.
For example we have:
\- Klein's interactions with Mrs. Sammer
\- The job involving Mary
\- His relationship with Talim
\- Doctor Aaron and Will Auceptin
\- Old Kohler
\- Liv and her family
\- The various smaller investigations and interactions he has throughout Backlund
\- The ebola spirit in Baron Pounds previous property
\- The statues in the underground ruin and the statues found in the land of silver
\- As well as others I can't remember currently
If the donghua has to prioritize the major plot points, I can understand some of these being shortened or removed. But at the same time, removing too much of this material could change how the Great Smog itself feels, because some of its emotional impact comes from having already met and spent time with the people affected by it.
Given the pacing of Season 1, I'm curious whether Season 2 will have enough time to let these relationships develop properly.
And then there's 0-08...
There are also some specific things I'm really looking forward to seeing animated. For example, 0-08 actually writing things into existence. I'm really curious about how they'll present this. Will we see the writing appear on screen while a narrator reads what is being written? Will we hear Zangwill's thoughts? Or will the donghua find some completely different way to portray it?
And one random question I've always had: What exactly does Zangwill do while 0-08 is writing? Does he just stand there and stare at it? 😂
I can't remember what he actually did
Because from an animation perspective, I feel like this could actually be a really interesting scene depending on how they choose to present it.
So I'm curious what everyone else thinks
How do you think the donghua should handle the light dialogue and heavy narration parts of Faceless?
Do you think they'll preserve most of Klein's relationships and interactions in Backlund, or do you expect a lot of them to be condensed in order to focus on the main plot?
And how do you think they'll handle the Great Smog specifically?
Also, has the number of episodes for Season 2 been officially confirmed yet? Because that seems like it could make a huge difference in how much of Volume 2 they can actually adapt.