His Dark Materials is officially coming to HBO this November

The highly anticipated television adaptation of fantasy series His Dark Materials has an official air date, and it’s sooner than you think.

F i n a l l y. After what feels like an age of waiting, there’s finally an official airdate for HBO’s take on fantasy classic His Dark Materials. This splashy prestige adaptation of Philip Pullman’s best-selling series features an all-star cast, high-end CGI and a lot of industry buzz.

Is this the next Game of Thrones? Maybe. And it’s coming to our screens sooner than we thought.

His Dark Materials will officially premiere on HBO on Monday, November 4 at 9pm ET.

The series’ first season will adapt the first novel in Pullman’s trilogy, entitled The Golden Compass. The story follows the story of Lyra, a young girl who lives in a parallel universe in which science, theology and magic are entwined. There are witches, and polar bears that wear armor and all kinds of fantasy weirdness. Oh, and everyone also has a animal “daemon” companion, which is basically your soul walking around outside your body and it can talk to you and do things.

(It’s a lot less creepy than it sounds, I promise. Daemons are the best.)

Lyra’s search for a kidnapped friend uncovers a sinister plot involving stolen children, and turns into a quest to understand a mysterious phenomenon called Dust. She is joined on her journey by Will, a boy who possesses a particular magical knife that becomes kind of important later on in the story. They ultimately find themselves caught up in a battle against celestial powers that spans many worlds.

Though it’s plot is ridiculously difficult to summarize succinctly, the His Dark Materials trilogy, the novels have sold over 17 million copies worldwide and been translated into 40 different languages. Just in case you need convincing that it’s great.

The series has tons of heavy hitters in the cast, including Logan’s Dafne Keen as Lyra, James McAvoy as Lord Asriel, Ruth Wilson as the villainous Mrs. Coulter and everyone’s favorite human being, Lin-Manuel Miranda, as aeronaut Lee Scoresby. And if their recent San Diego Comic Con panel is anything to go by, every single one of these actors is utterly enraptured by their characters and this story.

Basically, get ready for your next water cooler obsession.

His Dark Materials premieres on HBO this November.