Sfdebris.net

Let's be honest, the Addams Family hasn't had the best luck in terms of adaptations lately. After the second film (which I have mixed feelings about) it's just been one long string of "Eh" films. We had the third film which I don't think ANYONE has actually seen and the two animated films which just come off as weirdly lazy.

So, when was announced that Tim Burton would FINALLY be making something Addams Family related I was honestly kinda curious. His films have been mostly mixed the last few years but the more I learned about this show the more I found myself getting interested in it. The cast looked good, it had that Addams Family feel and while it was going outside the series comfort zone (in this case by putting the characters in their element of the Supernatural instead of them interacting with the regular world) it seemed to retain the spirit of the series. By that I mean while Wednesday is in a place with people who are clearly supernatural she and her family are still the strangest people in the room.

And when the show was released it was honestly a lot of fun. Not perfect but nothing bad enough to write home about.

To get the negatives out of the way first I felt that the romance in the show was rather weak. I was honestly more invested in Wednesday's relationship with her roommate Enid and her rival Bianca then with any of the "Love Interests". It's not something I'm alone in as even professional critics noted that the more interesting elements of the show came from the mystery and Wednesday's relationships with the characters I just mentioned and that the romance felt rather tacked on.

But besides that the show was a lot of fun, with funny dialogue and overall engaging characters and even Tyler and Xavier, the aforementioned "Love Interests" aren't bad just not as interesting as they could be.

I'm honestly surprised that it took this long for Burton to do something with the Addams as they seem to fit together rather nicely. Both are dark and yet there is this charm to them that makes it work despite all the things that said it shouldn't. This is also a nice return to form for Burton as most of his other films seemed to be trying to be to lighthearted and mainstream. They lost that Burton touch but it returned in full force in this show.

Enid as a character is rather interesting as she's basically a good guy version of Amanda Buckman from the second film. They even look similar but with Enid being a genuinely good person who wants to be real friends with Wednesday and the chemistry between the two is just fantastic. Also, just a personal note, this show does away with something that I never liked in the first two films, namely it's not as mean.

Re-watching the first two films I find it a bit harder to get engaged with the Addams as they're kinda needlessly cruel to everyone outside their own social circle. Like how Gomez keeps golfing at his neighbors house or how they seem to have rather rude comments towards other people (unintentional but still rather off putting).

In the show they're still odd and say things that can make you uncomfortable but it's more to do with how weird they are. And this time around the people they hurt are ONLY the ones that kinda a deserve it and nothing really gets THAT dark (except the bit in the opening but that works because it's so over the top that ti comes right back round to being funny and the guy still lives).

So, on the whole, really good show, highly recommended and hope we get a second season that gives us more what I liked in the first season with less of the things I didn't enjoy as much (basically more Wednesday and Enid relationship, more Bianca and more mystery with less force romance).

One thing that bugged me: it's established early that Wednesday does not have a cell phone or computer, but you'd think after the first time nobody believed her because evidence was gone she'd invest in a camera. Or at least by the third.

hammerofglass wrote: ↑Thu Dec 01, 2022 2:34 pm One thing that bugged me: it's established early that Wednesday does not have a cell phone or computer, but you'd think after the first time nobody believed her because evidence was gone she'd invest in a camera. Or at least by the third.

She DOES seem like a girl who'd own an old Nikkon and a makeshift dark room at the manor. The shots are all of dead trees, nocturnal animals... and the occasional family function.

I am kind of wondering if the show was written with more episodes planned and got cut down late in production. For instance they spent all that time establishing Wednesday and her therapist share an obscure hobby but the characters never find out and there's no payoff. Or the cult Bianca escaped from, it gets mentioned twice and then dropped.

hammerofglass wrote: ↑Fri Dec 02, 2022 12:52 pm I am kind of wondering if the show was written with more episodes planned and got cut down late in production. For instance they spent all that time establishing Wednesday and her therapist share an obscure hobby but the characters never find out and there's no payoff. Or the cult Bianca escaped from, it gets mentioned twice and then dropped.

I got the impression that Bianca's cult was meant to be a sequel hook that's supposed to set up a conflict for next season (if there is one).