If you are interested in an article with a happy ending, that article is elsewhere. This review has no happy ending, no happy beginning and very few happy things in the middle.

A Series of Unfortunate Events was officially added to Netflix on Friday, January 13. Like all other members of the Netflix Original family, it definitely upholds the reputation of being “binge worthy.” Violet Baudelaire (Malinda Weissman), Klaus Baudelaire(Louis Hynes), Lemony Snicket (Patrick Warburton), Count Olaf (Neil Patrick Harris) and all the other kooky characters make it impossible to tear your eyes away from the screen.

The series is based off the children’s novels A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. In these eight episodes, the audience ventures through the first four books: The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, The Wide Window and The Miserable Mill.

Each episode exposes the evil Count Olaf’s devious plan to snag the Baudelaire orphans’ inherited fortune. The children have to use their special skills of inventing, library sciences and sharp teeth to fight the Count and his dastardly theatre troop. The orphans soon come to find their late parents may have left more behind than just an enormous inheritance.

Netflix does a much better job of capturing the essence of each character as Snicket wrote them. The series was casted flawlessly. The 2004 full length film adaption had adequate roles, but left the audience wanting more. Weissman, Hynes, Warburton and Harris provide the performance we have been longing for.
Harris’ performance in particular stretches the bounds of Netflix Originals. Along with being the villainous Count Olaf, he also sings the series’s theme song. He brings an edge of quirk to Olaf, which Jim Carey lacked in the film.

The main surprise from this series is how it sets itself apart from not only the 2004 film adaption, but also the original book series written by Lemony Snicket. In this case, the typical review of, “it wasn’t like the book,” is actually a good thing.

However, there are some flaws to the series. The audience does not develop the same type of hatred toward the adult characters; it buzzes through the first book in nearly thirty minutes; and, it reveals a lot about both the secret organization and the Baudelaire family as a whole rather early in the series. These flaws can easily be overlooked. The series is far more similar to the original novels than the movie was in the way that matters most: Lemony Snicket. Unlike the dark and blandness of the 2004 adaption, this series truly screams, “Lemony!”

The dark humor, endless action and bold irony of the Netflix series portray Snicket’s books flawlessly on screen. The monotone narration contrasted with the eccentric sets and costumes bring an underlying tone of uniqueness to the whole series that sets it apart from other adaptions of the Baudelaire’s story. The series even included Snicket’s dedications to Beatrice Baudelaire as they are written in the beginning of the novels. These quotes express all the humor-ridden darkness of Snicket in only a few short words: “For Beatrice- My love for you will live forever. You, however, did not.” “To Beatrice – my love flew like a butterfly, until death swooped down like a bat.”

All in all, I would rate this series nine hook hands out of 10 hook hands (which would be 45/50 fingers if you are lucky enough to have kept all of yours intact and safe from the Lake Lachrymose leeches). So hop in those comfy PJs and get your binge on, Crusader Nation!