The Addams Family has had several adaptations to the small and the big screen over the years. Very mythical are both the television series from the 60s and the two films starring Anjelica Huston and Raúl Juliábut the famous characters created by Charles Addams They have continued to reappear from time to time with greater or lesser success, but always focusing on the whole family.
That changes with the arrival on Netflix of ‘Wednesday’ this coming November 23. Here the weight falls entirely on the characteristic character that many viewers inevitably associate with the actress. christina ricci. She also appears here, but with another character, since the Addams daughter here has the face of a sensational Jenna Ortega.
Tim Burton’s little touch
Another of the hooks of ‘Wednesday’ is that it is the first series in which Tim Burton is so directly involved, because He has been in charge of directing 4 of the 8 episodes of its first season, also working as executive producer. Here I am not going to deceive you and tell you that the best version of the legendary director is recovered, but he does prove to be someone who understands very well the special sensitivity of his protagonist, thus giving an extra touch of energy to the visual elements called to reinforce the personality of the.
Beyond that, it is clear that those responsible for ‘Wednesday’ wanted Burton, but more like the icing on the cake than one of the main elements of the series. At the moment I have been able to see three episodes and without a doubt the first is the one in which the director of ‘Eduardo Scissorhands’ feels most comfortable, since it is also where the greatest emphasis is placed on black humor -the moment in the pool is priceless- and in the Addams family itself, to the point of leaving you wanting a series dedicated to them.
And it is that ‘Wednesday’ is the story of how the main character ends up in a rather particular Academy after having repeatedly demonstrated that he does not fit into a traditional Institute. This does not mean that the fun resource of the fish out of water is lost, but it does qualify it quite a bit, since all the students in the place have some curious peculiarity.
The first episode does its job very well, playing on contrasts with the rest, especially with her new roommate. This is maintained in later episodes, but the series introduces a very important suspense subplot that leads its protagonist to become an impromptu investigator. Interestingly, that’s where the series feels somewhat more conventional. Not enough to lose interest, but to give a bit of the feeling of trying to stall for time.
Quite a few more virtues than paste
Luckily, the black humor never completely disappears, not even when certain situations that Miércoles faces lead to the series openly flirting with being a somewhat more commonplace youth series. I understand that it is to reach a larger audience, but I hope that it is not something that ends up cannibalizing everything else, because as the episodes went by I did notice that, so to speak, it was becoming more and more normalized.
With this I do not mean that ‘Wednesday’ has a brilliant start only to then lose gas at a forced march, since Alfred Gough and Miles Miller -the same duo behind ‘Smallville’-, creators and showrunners of the series, show they understand its protagonist very well and hit the target when it comes to capturing that personality between the cutting and the hurtful that we all associate with the daughter of the Addamses.
Also, Ortega proves to be an absolute casting triumph. Already in the first images it conveyed being a perfect choice, but it is even more so in motion, and not even the presence of Ricci inevitably reminding us of his incarnation of the same character eliminates the idea that the also protagonist of ‘The Fallout’ shines with its own light.
The rest of the cast is also very well chosen, especially the adult characters. I’m obviously looking forward to seeing more of Catherine Zeta-Jones like Morticia already Luis Guzman like Gomez, but Gewdoline Christie, Ricki Lindhome or Ricci herself comply with ease. Somewhat less stimulating is the rest of the youthful cast, where the one that works best is Emma Myers as Wednesday’s roommate, diametrically opposed to her.
Finally, ‘Wednesday’ would have benefited from a higher presence of black humor with macabre touches, since there are times when it is reduced to cutting phrases to get out of trouble before channeling everything along more traditional paths, but at least they do without betraying the personality of its protagonist and reinforcing it when it fits what they propose in that situation.
In short
‘Wednesday’ has everything to become the new Netflix bombshell. It may not be the best possible version of the series that it could be, but it is a remarkable approach to the figure of the character played by Ortega. Without her it would be a curious and entertaining proposition, but with the Addams daughter it becomes a remarkable pastime that leaves you wanting more.
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