I suppose the same could be said for the Redwall series by Brian Jacques--the plots tend to be exactly the same, but they're still fun to read because they have such a great cast of characters. Also, not all the characters are the same from book to book (similar to Narnia), but the character Martin is always a sticking point. The Abbey itself is a draw, too.

Something else to consider is the fact that Joss Whedon really, really loves comic books. So, as we've been saying, Narnia needs a director that eats, sleeps, and breathes Narnia, fantasy, and the like.

So, to sum up this thread, what Narnia can learn from the Avengers is that the owners of the properties should be in control of the movies, the director/production team should be a fan of the books and the companies involved should be committed to the entire series and not play it by ear.

We can dream, right?

Okay, I noticed something about what you said Badger. It seems the people who made the Avengers movies could make a variety of changes from the comics, as well as mixing and matching them. Yet Stan Lee was okay with this. It's occurred to me that we have no idea what Lewis would have liked. We know what Douglas Gresham thinks he would have liked, but we don't know for sure. We know he didn't want Aslan to look like a cartoon, hence his aversion to the chronicles being made into a movie, but he never saw our modern technology. What I'm trying to say is, when the creator is still alive, they can be okay with changes, so I think we need to remember that if they make changes, we shouldn't criticize them just because they are different from the book, we should look at if they truly make it worse.

Okay, I noticed something about what you said Badger. It seems the people who made the Avengers movies could make a variety of changes from the comics, as well as mixing and matching them. Yet Stan Lee was okay with this. It's occurred to me that we have no idea what Lewis would have liked. We know what Douglas Gresham thinks he would have liked, but we don't know for sure. We know he didn't want Aslan to look like a cartoon, hence his aversion to the chronicles being made into a movie, but he never saw our modern technology. What I'm trying to say is, when the creator is still alive, they can be okay with changes, so I think we need to remember that if they make changes, we shouldn't criticize them just because they are different from the book, we should look at if they truly make it worse.

Definitely. Although, if the changes were for the better, I doubt so many of us fans would be having such a problem with it. Changes that help the stories are often forgiven, even unnoticed, by fans. The very fact that we get upset about them shows that it might not really be about the changes, though we often think it is. Rather, it stems from the fact that there's something in the movie that we believe was not beneficial.

When it comes down to it, it's not about the changes, or the money, or really anything but just plain good story telling. Something Avengers nailed and Narnia did not.

~Riella

True, Dinode. Changes that help stories aren't generally a problem, such as composite minor characters or even the blending of Deathwater and Dragon Island, which I didn't particularly mind. The problem arises when they make changes just for the sake of change, or because they're afraid the original isn't relevant any more (e.g., the green mist in VDT or Susan fighting in PC).