From the theme song to the scenery to Neil Patrick Harris’ wonderful acting, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events turned Netflix Series is a work of cinematic art. It is easy to predict that if Netflix is producing a show, that it will be good.
1. "Holy crap. The theme song is sung by NPH?????"
2. "THE BEATRICE DEDICATIONS!!!!!"
One of the first great throwbacks to the books happens to be the Beatrice letters that Lemony Snicket writes in each dedication for the books. The episodes cut the books in half so The Bad Beginning has two episodes and so forth. For each new book, a typewriter clicks and words appear on the screen dedicating the writing to Beatrice. This element of the series, as well as the inclusion of Patrick Warburton as Lemony Snicket, gives the episodes a very real feel of the books--so much happening behind the scenes other than the children becoming orphans.
3. "Wait, which one is the man/woman character?"
The only complaint that I will draw for this series is the fact that henchman with an indeterminate gender was not what I expected, at first. Matty Cardarople does a wonderful job of maintaining an air of ambiguity throughout the series. The entire troupe of henchmen do a really outstanding job. The white-faced women, though older than imagined, play the role perfectly. The group of misfits are mean, volatile, and just the right amount of stupid to pull off the job.
4. "If I were 'into' movies, I would totally be nerding out about the juxtaposition of the first scenes to the last."
Between the beginning of the story and the ending of the story, it is evident that the producers knew what they were doing in the scenery department. Riding the trolley to Briny Beach and visiting Justice Strauss' house, there seems to be way too much light and happiness in the shots. By the time the orphans arrive at Prufrock Academy, there is little joy in each scene.
5. "Are those the...parents? Is this a flashback? Are they alive? WHAT IS HAPPENING???"
Cobie Smulders and Will Arnett play "Mother" and "Father". At first, it is not revealed whose parents they truly are. All shots lead to the parents escaping in the tunnels to Peru, discussing VFD, and talking about getting back to the children. It is revealed at the end of the season that they are the Mother and Father of the Quagmire triplets. During the Austere Academy episode, their house catches fire from a spyglass, and Duncan and Isadora find themselves on the other side of the bench from the Baudelaires. The backstory of the Quagmires creates suspension and a side-by-side comparison of the two sets of orphans.
7. "Dang, NPH, you look good in drag."
Each costume that Count Olaf wears only creates further layers to his character. As his deception grows, it becomes more and more evident that Count Olaf will go to whatever lengths to get to the Baudelaire's fortune. Just like in the books, Count Olaf becomes more sinister as they go further into the unfortunate events. Compared to the silly movie with Jim Carrey, the Netflix series shows the true darkness of the Count.
8. "Dr. Montgomery Montgomery is literally the only guardian that deserves goodness in this world."
Though he attempted to get the children out of town as fast as possible (due to believing Stephano, his new assistant, is going to steal his research), and failed, he still fought against the white-faced women and received a message from VFD agents. The message he received gave a glance into the world of VFD, something that not even the books truly did.
9. "That cannot be it. I NEED MORE."
When is the new season coming? Are they filming yet? Who plays Nero? ESME?
