'His Dark Materials' Episode 8 Preview: Lord Asriel Is Back

Lord Asriel (James McAvoy), the man who started the journey against the Magisterium, will be back in “His Dark Materials” episode 8. A preview video of the finale shows the long awaited war between the two sides will finally begin.

According to the official plot synopsis, Lyra (Dafne Keen) will learn more about Lord Asriel’s rebellion. She will help him in the fight, as the Magisterium closes in with its forces, but that help will come at a great personal cost for her.

A preview video of the next episode shows Lord Asriel assuring someone off-screen that this is a war they are in. A battle of this scale means that there are bound to be casualties.

Mrs. Coulter (Ruth Wilson) knows that Lord Asriel will be waiting for them when they attack. However, Father MacPhail (Will Keen) is confident of their victory because he knows they have enough firepower for the assault and they have strong belief in their cause.

Iorek Byrinson (Joe Tandberg) will also be back in “His Dark Materials” episode 8. He and his army of polar bears will face the forces from the Magisterium. Since this is the finale episode, the fans can expect some dramatic turn of events that can setup the plot of the next season.

Another preview video of the next episode shows an interaction between Lord Asriel and Lyra. He will reveal details about his plans with his research about Dust to the girl.

Dust has the ability to cross into other worlds. Lord Asriel wants to use this to build a bridge into these other worlds and travel there. Lyra finds the idea of travelling to different worlds intriguing.

Meanwhile, HBO has released a featurette of a discussion between executive producers Jane Tranter and Jack Thorne ahead of the finale. In the video, Tranter said that she has seen some of the finest acting, writing and “feats of technical brilliance” on the show.

“His Dark Materials” episode 8 is titled “Betrayal.” The finale airs on Dec. 23 at 9 p.m. EST on HBO.