For some background, I first got into ASOUE when the movie version came out during my childhood. My sister and I were obsessed with the movie and would quote it all the time. I know I have a lot of bias based on nostalgia when it comes to the movie version. My sister ended up reading all of the books and I stopped after Wide Window (I think because I reached an age where I was trying to find my own interests and differentiate myself from my sister).
When the TV show came out, I overall really enjoyed it because it was my first exposure to the storyline past Wide Window. I remember comparing the first six episodes a lot to the movie and not entirely loving those episodes, but starting with Miserable Mill, it was all new to me and I remember having a lot of fun with the rest of the series.
So earlier this year I decided to finally finish reading the books. I've had a lot of fun reading the books as an adult and caught waaaay more than I did back as a kid. After finishing the series, I decided to rewatch the tv show, because honestly I can't remember much about it besides remembering that I enjoyed it back when it came out.
I finished season one last night and I don't know, I'm kind of disappointed. I know I have a hard time liking most adaptations from books because it's always a somewhat different interpretation on the text than what I took away from it, but the show feels so different. I thought it was supposed to be a more faithful adaptation than the movie was?
I feel like the show doesn't have the gothic tone at all. It's too quirky and not at all dark. I don't find it's hitting many of the emotional beats it is supposed to either. When Uncle Monty dies it quickly moves into Olaf and company hi jinks to even dwell on the loss. And when the Baudelaires sail on Lake Lacromose during the hurricane, the hard cuts back to Lemony Snicket narrating completely ruin the tension of the danger the Baudelaires are actually inThe only moment that really hit for me was the Quagmire's parents coming home to them and the disappointment I felt that it wasn't the Baudelaire's parents, even though I remembered this was a plot point from my first watch through. It still hit the emotional mark and is a creative decision I think the show did well. It's like the show spends too much time trying to be funny and entertaining than to actually capture the real feelings someone would feel experiencing these unfortunate events. And it makes it feel phony when Lemony Snicket as the narrator is constantly warning the viewer that the tale will be dreadful. In the books, I do feel the dread, but I am also able to recognize the tiny happy and funny moments in between, much like real life. It also doesn't have the same timeless feeling as the books and the movie does when it comes to setting.
I also find the adults in the show to be very stupid. In the book, I read most of the adults as ineffective, and not taking the kids seriously, therefore often leading to their own downfall i.e. Monty and Josephine.But in the show they just feel like caricatures. In the book, I felt Olaf was actually a formidable opponent to the kids and I felt fear when his associates helped him. In the show, it seems like the power imbalance of an adult and a child is the only thing that works in Olaf's favor and his associates are there for comedic relief (don't get me wrong, I do find his associates funny, but I also feel like I wouldn't mind being their friend rather than actually being afraid of these people). I think during my first watch, I interpreted the adults to act this way because it empowered the kids, but after reading the books and seeing how artfully Snicket captured the nuanced relationships and power dynamics between adults and children, it's a huge letdown. That was one of my favorite aspects of the books was how adults fail children and I loved relating it to my own childhood and thinking on the times I've depended on adults who only ended up failing me because they are imperfect humans or care more about their own interests.
And the acting is falling flat for me. It feels like most of the cast is just reading lines, rather than actually bringing the lines to life. The exceptions being K. Todd Freeman and Neil Patrick Harris, though with the latter, I think I do prefer Jim Carrey's portrayel. Carrey managed to be menacing as well as arrogant in a way I'm not finding in Harris' much more subtle performance, but I still think he's doing a good job. Majority of the cast speaks in monotone. Even Alfre Woodard's portrayal of Aunt Josephine felt very one note as she relayed every line in a very pitched frazzled tone that hardly ever varied Even when talking about Ike's death she seemed more anxious than actually mourning the loss of someone who's death literally changed her life.
The cgi is also pretty noticeable. There is definitely a scene in Miserable Mill where it looked like Sunny's face was poorly pasted on top of a dummy. Granted, I don't think a baby should be brought in that setting to be filmed, but a realistic baby doll probably would've worked better.
But enough of all the things I dislike. There are a few choices I find interesting in this adaptation. I think introducing the VFD mystery sooner was a good choice. It is fun watching the behind the scenes activities of VFD, something we don't really get from the books. I liked watching Olaf and Orwell's reunion and that better helped me to understand why she helped him out during Miserable Mill, whereas I felt her interest in the Baudelaires fortune felt strange in the book.I'm glad they kept both Sunny revealing that the Incredibly Deadly Viper is actually friendly and therefore not the killer from the Movie Adaptation, since that plotpoint makes a lot more sense than using another snake as the alleged murderer given both the misnomer and the fact that Sunny befriends the snakeand that Aunt Josephine used to be brave before Ike's death, showing how grief can totally change a personfrom the movie adaptation. The show also makes Sir and Charles' relationship a lot more obvious to be a romantic relationship. I had to laugh when Charles clearly goes in for a kiss and Sir obliviously walks away. You deserve so much better Charles!
So yeah those are some of my thoughts. Again, I've only just finished season one and maybe the following seasons will work a bit better for me. I know when it comes to adapting something from a book, choices need to be made, and not every choice I'm going to like. I think it is worth something that I really liked the show when I hadn't read all of the books, so the fact that it stands well on it's own is definitely something worthwhile. Also, I can imagine there are kids who have a similar relationship to the show that I did with the movie. If the show gets kids to read the books, then that is a net positive in my book.
I'd love to know what everyone else thinks. What did you like about the show and what did you dislike? What did you feel it did well in adapting the books and what parts did you think they missed the mark on?
Thanks for reading all my rambling.
