Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
A Netflix Original Series
Premiere Date Jan 13, 2017
I will begin by saying that when I first heard that Netflix was doing an adaptation of this book series I was, for lack of a better word, overjoyed. When A Series of Unfortunate Events, the books, first came out they were something I had never been exposed to before. There were truly, dark, witty and utterly entertaining. Disaster after disaster the Baudelaire children had you rooting for them again and again. You were desperate for someone, anyone to finally be able to help them and no matter how often things went wrong, they never lost their fight. They were truly heroes, an example of perseverance and strength.
While the 2004 film was certainly entertaining, I remember leaving with a sense of disappointment (as one often does when your favorite books are adapted to film). For this it had been the speed in which they had torn through the dark story. They had squished the first three books into one film and cut out so much of the story that I was left wondering what had happened. That and Jim Carrey's portrayal of the frightening Count Olaf was more on the absurd side than the truly terrifying.
So a series provided the outlet much needed for this story to be told. Several episodes over which their journey could begin to be spread out. Time to grow and really get to know the characters. I had extremely high hopes.
I was not disappointed. Tackling this story as a series was exceptional. The proper time and care given to introductions to each character. As I began to watch this series I was thrown directly back into the books. Things I hadn't thought about in fifteen years suddenly came flying back into my memory.
It is truly the vision. Every set piece, every character and minor detail were given exactly the amount of attention it needed to bring the story to life exactly as my mind had imagined. There were certain additions that were not mentioned in the books that added additional intrigue to the story! The show is dark, but not darker than the themes of the books.
Overall, this show met, and exceeded my expectations. Netflix has done a fantastic job at bringing this vision to life. I have not yet finished the series but what I have seen so far has me wanting to binge the remainder!
If you were a fan of this book series I urge you to check the show out!
Though fair warning as they tell you at the very beginning
"What you are about to see is extremely unpleasant. It tells an unhappy tale about three very unlucky children. Even though they are charming and clever, the Baudelaire siblings lead lives filled with misery and woe." - Lemony Snicket
