6. Allanon. Get Him Right
Now let's assume the show starts with the original trilogy; there is one central character that runs through all three novels - the last of the druids, Allanon. Get him right and he will be the character audiences identify though each season. Get him wrong...and he's immediately the one character audiences will immediately dislike no matter what the latest story is. Allanon is essentially, the Gandalf of the series, mixed with a little Strider; he is the powerful guide that kick starts our heroes' quest, serving as the catalyst for the whole story. However, what I found most interesting about him is that he is much darker than the usual wizard guides we're used to reading. Gandalf in Lord Of The Rings, Zedd in The Sword Of Truth series, Moiraine in The Wheel Of Time; they all have a softer edge under that mighty exterior. Alannon is not so warm. With his grim background (all his fellow wizards have been wiped out by the warlock Brona) and his rough and ready persona, it will take an actor of much presence and charisma to get him right. Yet you need to feel for Alllanon, as mysterious and brooding as he might be. If he is too mysterious, too hostile to our protagonists, then audiences won't have any connection to him. Allanon does have a softer side; it's just harder to get at that than Gandalf ever was. It should be earned by the characters. And it needs to be earned by the audience too. But as what will surely serve as a central figure to the series (including an Obi-Wan Kenobi-style ghost sequence in Talismans), then he must be a mesmerising and relatable performance.