His Dark Materials

Dafne Keen excels at capturing some of the most notable characteristics of the character Lyra Belacqua.

In particular, she shows the extent to which Lyra yearns for a mother’s love, even as she also has to contend with the reality that her own mother is quite capable of evil. Indeed, he is one of the most steadfast allies in her life, and Keen shows a genuine warmth whenever she addresses Pan. She is the type of person who draws everyone into her orbit, whether they want to or not. In fact, Lyra’s bravery is something that Keen manages to capture in perfect detail. Lyra, like all residents of her world, has a powerful bond with a being known as a dæmon, which is their soul. It’s to Keen’s tremendous credit that she manages to capture so much of Lyra’s complicated relationship with her mother. This becomes particularly true in season 3, when it becomes clear how tormented Lyra is about what happened to Roger at the hands of her father. What’s more, she is often able to appraise a situation at a glance, a skill she seems to have inherited from both of her parents (Lord Asriel and Mrs. Keen manages to show viewers a character who moves through the world as if she owns it (which is no small thing, considering her youth. It is the type of fantasy that makes the viewer think differently about the world. In particular, Dafne Keen astonished audiences with her ability to capture the character of Lyra Belacqua, the young girl destined to become the new Eve. As the series reaches its conclusion, it’s worth taking a closer look at just which of Lyra’s mannerisms Keen manages to capture and why she has become such a beloved part of fantasy television.