Wednesday (2022)
Netflix’s new series, Wednesday seems like the total package, right? Produced by Tim Burton, the grand pumbah of ironic macabre comedy, it’s got a great cast and Christina Ricci shows up. While it may not be exactly what we’ve come to expect from the Addams Family universe, it respectfully forges new territory for these characters.
The basic plot is this: Wednesday Addams has been kicked out of one too many schools and as a last resort her parents send her to their alma mater, Nevermore, where she finds herself embroiled in a mystery. Nevermore students and residents of the nearby town of Jericho have been forbidden from going into the local woods because there’s a mysterious creature slashing victims to death. Wednesday is on the case, and in the process she learns more about herself and her family than she bargains for. She also gets down on the dance floor with her date, Tyler and bonds with her roommate, Enid, who’s as colorful and effervescent as Wednesday is dark and moody.
Again, this isn’t the Addams Family of the TV show. It’s not even the Addams Family of the movies, animated or otherwise. The best way to sum it up is Harry Potter-meets-X-Men-meets-Goosebumps-meets-Lemony Snicket-meets Clue-meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I’m not going to give any spoilers, but the series loves the bait-and-switch.
Jenna Ortega is perfect as Wednesday in my opinion. She seems sullen on the surface but emotes through her eyes like Buster Keaton. This approach doesn’t come out until after the first episode, which is a lot of darkness punctuated by a lot of references to the patriarchy. It’s a good thing her character softens the way it does because the series would have been depressing otherwise. There are only a few times when she loses her deadpan face but I’m not going to say when.
The series’ character development game is on point. Our first impressions may not be our only ones, and what’s really cool is watching the teenagers challenge each other to be better people. There’s also a sense of honor among the Nevermore students. If anyone seems shady, they’re not automatically condemned, but they are regarded with respectful suspicion. Adults aren’t off the hook either; during Parents’ Weekend Morticia and Gomez take a trip down Memory Lane with some of their classmates but it’s air-clearing rather than sentimental.
Wednesday’s music is ear bait for classic rock fans. Among other Easter eggs a string section plays Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters” and there’s a torrid piano arrangement of the Stones’ “Paint It Black,” not to mention Wednesday plays a mean cello. There’s also some Fleetwood Mac because Nevermore’s principal is a major fan.
One song we don’t hear is the famous theme, but the snaps are still around. Sort of. No, I’m not going to say where.
The only place where the series slightly misses the boat is that it doesn’t have room to play up the ironic camp that made the series so enjoyable, although we still get plenty. Granted, there really isn’t time for more because there’s too much to do, but half the fun of The Addams Family was watching the characters turn convention on its head while still being entirely likeable. That’s quite the balancing act.
On the other hand, the series feels as if there’s more story to tell, and as long as they build on what worked here as well as what’s worked in past iterations, they’ll have a lot of room to groove. I sincerely hope there are more seasons.
Wednesday is currently streaming on Netflix. Rated TV-14.
My grade: A
Principal Cast: Jenna Ortega, Gwendoline Christie, Ricki Lindholm, Christina Ricci, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzman, Jamie McShane, Hunter Doohan, Percy Hynes White, Emma Myers, Joy Sunday, Georgie Farmer, Isaac Ordonez
Directed by: Tim Burton, James Marshall and Gandja Monteiro
Written by: Charles Addams (creator), Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Kayla Alpert, April Blair, and Matt Lambert