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‘A Series Of Unfortunate Events’: Netflix Hits Another Homerun

By Krista Clark
Published on: 08:24 PST, Jan 14, 2017

A Series of Unfortunate Events is the latest in a string of hit series from Netflix. Although they have had numerous original series before, this is the first time they have produced one that is appropriate for all ages. Previous efforts at Hollywood feature films of ASOUE have had less-than-stellar results, but fans are raving about Season 1 of the streaming series and are sharing their praises on social media.

The 2004 film version included Jim Carrey as Count Olaf, but those who have seen both the film and the Netflix series are loving Neil Patrick Harris in the role.

Buzzfeed is calling this version of A Series of Unfortunate Events a masterpiece and call Neil Patrick Harris “creepy yet satisfying.”

The people at Market Watch report that the explosion of successful original programming by the streaming provider has resulted in a decision to increase hours of original programming from 600 hours in 2016 to 1,000 in 2017. A Series of Unfortunate Events accounts for just some of those hours.

Barry Sonnenfeld directed Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events and is a huge fan of the books. The first season of the streaming version covers the plot of the first four books in Lemony Snicket’s 13-book series. Entertainment Weekly reports that Season 2 is already in development, which hopefully means we will be treated to binge-worthy versions of the entire series. In case you aren’t familiar with the story, ASOUE is a good vs evil tale about Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire who learn that their parents have died. They spend the next few years moving from one household to another and trying to avoid Count Olaf, a distant relative eager to abscond with their wealth. As the story progresses, the conflict grows from one that impacts just the three to children to one with global implications.

The real name of the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events is Daniel Handler. He attributes the high-quality Netflix production in part on an enthusiastic team.

“Netflix put together a bunch of people who were really enthusiastic, and I think that’s made all the difference. It’s really nice to be in a room with people who are all excited about what they’re doing and who want to bring something specifically to life and don’t need to be sold on it.”

Handler was very involved in the writing process and says that the series stays true to the overall plot of the books but does vary in some ways, saying, “the destination is the same, but the route is different.” He also spoke about creating the mystery of A Series of Unfortunate Events on the page compared to creating it for television. He described putting in a sentence here and there in the books in order to create the mystery and the need to show the mystery on screen.

“In television, you either have to make a mystery or you don’t. You can’t say, ‘I hope that people look under the table.’ They won’t look under the table unless the camera looks under the table for them.”

Handler says that he is literally working at his dining room table with a team of writers on Season 2 and hopes to get the go-ahead for Season 3. The lead characters of the series are children so they are working as quickly as possible to finish writing before the actors grow too much to remain appropriate for the roles. Season 2 of Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events will include 10 episodes and will take us through the next five books, ending with The Carnivorous Carnival. Season 3 would cover the rest of the series.

[Featured Image by Netflix]

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