A Series of Unfortunate Events

A Series of Unfortunate Events was a book series that played some role in very many children’s lives, mine included. While I never read every single book, I read a good portion of them and found a great deal of enjoyment for them. The aesthetic of this particular series is very memorable and distinct, and this show’s adaptation of this melancholic aesthetic perfectly captured that of the original series. With lighting, color schemes, and vocabulary that reeks of hard times, this adaptation successfully took me back to those autumn days in elementary school reading through this unfortunate series.

While watching this show, it’s hard not to get a the same vibes that can be had from watching Edward Scissorhands, Sweeney Todd, or Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children. In other words, the Tim Burton aesthetic. The darkness of the story in conjunction with the cinematic darkness of the show worked together very well to create the dreadful atmosphere of this show. The employed lighting techniques and color schemes had a profound effect on this show.

The filming strategy that I noticed most was the color scheme. Mostly every scene in the show is set against a dark, gray-washed, monochromatic color scheme to constantly reinforce the concept that everything is horrible and unfortunate. However, the children are always contrasted with their background because of their clothing. The children are are always dressed in bright pastel colors, which doesn’t seem to fit with the story. While reading the books, it always seemed that the children should fit in with their grim surroundings, wearing dark, colorless clothes. This considered, seeing them on screen with bright clothes was a bit of a shock, though an understandable costume decision. Having the children in bright colors makes the scenes more interesting to observe, almost substituting as a spotlight. Regardless, it is still a bit distracting, and I wonder if the color scheme of the children’s clothes will change as the series progresses.

Casting Neil Patrick Harris as Count Olaf was an interesting choice. Olaf is quite clearly meant to be an elderly man. I found NPH at times to be a bit more lively than I would expect from Olaf’s character. Perhaps the age of Olaf could have been altered for this particular adaptation or an older man could have been cast.

One thing to appreciate about this adaptation was it’s near agelessness. I could see myself enjoy it as a child as much as I enjoyed watching it now. The portrayal of adults in the show were very fitting of how a child would perceive adults, which gives the viewers a youthful perspective on the on-screen events. Simultaneously, some of the small jokes and concepts were sophisticated enough to gain the attention of more mature viewers. I definitely think that this adaptation was made not only for current children, but older millennials who feel like revisiting their childhood.

Despite the off putting casting of Olaf’s character, viewing the first episode of the series

was an interesting event. The mood of the story is very enjoyable, despite how unfortunate it is. I can definitely see myself going on to finish this series.