2. Learn From Other Fantasy Adaptions
I've already discussed this at some length, so this really is a summary of all the points I have made before. Think about why Game of Thrones endures while Legend Of The Seeker didn't make it past two seasons. Think about where fantasy has been successfully incorporated into other shows; Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Merlin, even Doctor Who. And look at films too. Why did the Harry Potter series do so well while the Chronicles Of Narnia series didn't have the same measure of success? Harry Potter did particularly well when it didn't focus so heavily on adapting every element of the source material. The same can be said for the Lord Of The Rings trilogy. Tom Bombadil wasn't needed, whereas Smeagol / Gollum was given much greater depth. The makers of the Shannara TV series shouldn't go into this blind. Fantasy has finally had the resurgence it needed thanks to the ability of film makers to faithfully adapt beloved sequences to screen, have the effects to do the stories justice and treat the source material seriously. Let's hope Shannara learns from both the mistakes and the failures if it is to endure.