A change of plans on what I wanted to review next means a delay. In the meantime, check out the creativity during this time of quarantine, such as Devo Spice’s parody, “Everything is Cancelled!”
Another look at a RWBY adaptation this week. The web series is well on its way to being the first web-based franchise, and the series itself is still going strong. Last time with RWBY, Lost in Translation looked at the manga adaptation by Shirow Miwa published by VIZ. Today. a different manga adaptation, the Official Manga Anthology.
Released by VIZ in 2017, the four volume series is less about an ongoign story and more about character studies of each of the main characters. Each volume focuses on a different character, with Ruby featured in volume 1, Weiss in volume 2, Blake in volume 3, and Yang in volume 4. The stories inside are short, no more than ten pages, and each volume features a number of creators.
The character studies look at different facets of the characters, bringing out what the creators see in them. Ruby comes across as a determined young woman, one who wants to be a hero while still caring for her friends. Weiss is shown as having an icy exterior, caring deep within, and pushing herself more than anyone else could. Blake has her faunus nature and her past as a White Fang terrorist contrasted with her new friends and new role as a huntress-in-training. Yang is the big sister, the tomboy who likes frilly things. WIth a wide range of contributors, there are a wide range of interpretations.
With anthologies, the stories aren’t going to be long, complex, and epic. Instead, they are cute, poignant, subtle, brash, and insightful. Each volume has almost twenty different views of the feature character, a contrast to the manga by Shirow Miwa. Each view is valid, as no two people are going to agree on details, even if they agree overall about the character. The results may vary, but readers get to choose how they vary by their own personal tastes.
The manga anthology takes a different approach to RWBY, one that allows for a deeper look at the characters. The artwork for the most part is lush and the characters are recognizable. For an adaptation, that is expected, yet many adaptations can’t hit that. The anthologies continue by exploring the personalities seen on screen, with each member of Team RWBY in the spotlight and none out of character. The series is a good addition to the RWBY franchise.
Lost in Translations tends to avoid parodies. The nature of a parody means that the original won’t be necessarily recognizable in the final product. There are exceptions; Airplane! is a parody of 70s airplane disaster film while being an adaptation of Zero Hour!, using the original film as a scaffold to hang all the jokes and gags. So why look at The Orville, a gentle parody of Star Trek?
Let’s take a step back before answering that question. Science fiction is known for tackling subjects in the time it was written despite moving the problem to the future. Star Trek is known for this, with episodes like “Let This Be Your Last Battlefield” pointing out the insanity inherent in racism and “The Trouble With Tribbles” exploring the dangers of removing a species from its natural habitat. The later Trek series continued in the same vein, exploring issues that appeared in eras they debuted in. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine may have been somewhat prophetic, predicting social issues that came about during the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq years after DS9 finished.
Why look at The Orville, then? The Orville, created by Seth MacFarlane, set out to be a gentle parody of Trek, adding a layer of comedy to the proceedings. While the original series had a number of light episodes, such as “The Trouble With Tribbles”, “A Piece of the Action”, and “Shore Leave”, later series had trouble finding the touch needed. The goal of The Orville was to pull back from the grim and gritty direction science fiction was taking and show a bright potential future because and despite of humanity. The series also looks at today’s social issues through the science fiction lens.
The series stars MacFarlane as Captain Ed Mercer, commander of the mid-level exploratory vessel Orville; Adrianne Palicki as Commander Kelly Grayson, first officer and Ed’s ex-wife; Scott Grimes as Lieutenant Gordon Malloy, the ship’s daredevil helmsman and Ed’s best friend, Penny Johnson Jerald as Doctor Claire Finn, the ship’s chief medical officer; Halston Sage as Lieutenant Alara Kitan, the ship’s chief of security who hails from a high gravity world, Peter Macon as Lieutenant Commander Bortus, the second officer who comes from a single sex species, J. Lee as Lieutenant John LaMarr, navigator and, later, chief engineer, and Mark Jackson as Isaac, science officer and an artifical life form on board to study humans. The make up of the crew is more inspired from Star Trek: The Next Generation than from the original Trek. Indeed, the uniforms wouldn’t look out of place on board the USS Enterprise-D.
The Orville herself is a shiny ship, brightly lit, with familiar amenities including the bridge, crew quarters, a lounge, a shuttle bay, even a holodeck. Missing are transporters and a quantum drive replaces the Trek‘s warp drive. The Orville acts as home for the crew during the mission, a base of operations, and a way to get to the adventure, much like the Enterprise in Trek. Uniforms are colour coded by department. Someone unaware of The Orville‘s creation would be wondering why things are different on a Star Trek series.
There are differences. Characters on The Orville are as likely to screw up as people are today.. Little mistakes, major mistakes, it’s what the characters do afterward that counts. The characters are also more likely to use less high-brow entertainment. Where on Star Trek, characters would listen to classical music or read classic literature, Picard’s preferences for Dixon Hill notwithstanding, the crew of the Orville are listening to classic rock, reading popular literature, and enjoying a few drinks in the crew lounge. On The Orville, humanity can reach the stars and still listen to a rocking tune.
The Orville, even with the comedy aspects, does tackle the social issues of today. from cultural differences to social media use. One episode, “Mad Idolatry” examines Trek‘s Prime Directive, the non-interference with pre-warp cultures, and the nature of cultural contamination, with the result being that, while Kelly did influence a young society, the society itself realizes that it didn’t matter who or what happened, the conflicts would have occurred one way or another; Kelly’s portrayal as a god wasn’t a catalyst. Being science fiction and being part comedy allows The Orville to examine the issues, poke and prod them, and present them in a way that the audience can take and mull over. The presentations aren’t heavy-handed, unlike “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield”, but do leave the audience thinking.
As a parody, The Orville may be doing Star Trek better than current Trek offerings. The series hearkens back to both The Original Series and The Next Generation, with episodes that explore characters while still examining today’s social issues. The series provides a change of pace from grim and gritty, allowing its audience to see a future of hope, much like Star Trek pioneered in.
Lost in Translation has looked at fan works in the past. When reviewing a fan work, the quality isn’t as important as the understanding of the source works. Crossovers add a wrinkle, as two or more sources are being brought together and something has to give to make the story interesting. Crossing four or more sources is a challenge to have everyone involved have a role while keeping each source unique. Along comes “Galactic Battles”. It’s easier to watch it than to read a synopsis, so go ahead an watch the short film. Keep watching past the credits.
“Galactic Battles” brings together four separate sources, two film series – Star Wars and the JJ Abrams Star Trek reboot – and two video game series – Halo and Mass Effect. Each of the settings is obvious. The main setting, from Halo, gets the narrator explaining the newfound peace, thanks to the Master Chief. The Normandy from Mass Effect and the Enterprise from Star Trek have appropriate lighting, complete with lens flares for the latter. The Millennial Falcon gets the Star Wars wipes at the beginning and end of the ship’s appearance.
The creators did their homework. They are well aware of the details of each setting. The music blends the themes of all the sources, melding them as the camera switches view. The controls for each ship are unique and recognizable. The costumes are appropriate. Bonus points for having Garrus, one of the aliens, specifically, a Turian, from the Mass Effect series. The Master Chief’s armour is well done, too. Everyone is recognizable, from red, gold, and blue uniforms on the Enterprise to Joker and his baseball cap from Mass Effect.
The little details matter. The circle wipe when Star Wars first appears, how Shepard enters and leaves a scene, the lens flares on the Enterprise‘s bridge, the view from the Master Chief’s HUD, all add to the feel of the sources. Getting Mark Meer, who played the male Shepard in Mass Effect to reprise his role also helped. Details can make or break a major studio’s adaptation. With fan works, they are necessary, and “Galactic Battles” delivers.
The short is a visual masterpiece. Jupiter hanging in space as the battle rages on provides colour to what would normally be just black space and metal ships. The special effects, sound as well as visual, matches each setting’s contribution. Phasers sound like phasers, not like TIE fighter lasers or Reaper cutting torches. There’s care taken to make sure each element looks and sounds appropriate, even in the post-credits sequence.
The key issue with making a crossover meant to appeal to fans each original source is making sure characters from each one has a hand in solving the problem. With “Galactic Battles”, the solution starts with Spock, but Shepard, Master Chief, and Han all have a role to play in putting the solution in action. The breakneck pace doesn’t let up as they put the daring plan into action.
“Galactic Battles” is a fun fan short to watch. It handles each original source well, keeping the little details that define the originals.
And for those interested, there is a behind the scenes look to “Galactic Battles”, showing what it took to make the short.
With the weather being unstable in my neck of the woods, I haven’t been able to get a column together this week. Instead, here’s a link to a previous review, Starship Excelsior, as a hint to the next review.
RWBY is turning into a franchise, possibly the first franchise from a web series. A few months ago, Lost in Translation looked at the first RWBY novel, EC Meyers‘ RWBY After the Fall. A follow-up novel, RWBY Before the Dawn by the same author, is due out July 2020. Merchandise is available, including Funko Pop! figures. Add on to this a video game, a comic mini-series from DC Comics and two separate manga lines. One of the manga lines is a series of anthologies, each volume focusing on a different character on Team RWBY. The other is a 2015 release by Shirow Miwa and published by SHUEISHA. VIZ then received the English language rights to the manga in 2016.
While RWBY is up to its seventh series, interest in the show began early. The 2015 publication of Miwa’s manga came between seasons 2 and 3 of the series. The manga picks up on some threads left by the trailers – Red, White, Black, and Yellow – and season 1. Team RWBY doesn’t just have to deal with Grimm. There’s also rivals at Beacon Academy and mobster Roman Torchwick to deal with. Team RWBY isn’t alone, though. Team JNPR – Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, and Ren – are there to help.
With a series early in its run, getting details right is key. Character design is the first thing audiences will notice, especially when going from one visual medium (animation in this case) to another (manga). Helping the transistion between media is RWBY having an aesthetic similar to /anime/, Japanese animation. Fans are already prepared for the art style. The personalities of Team RWBY are brought over without problems, as well. Ruby is young, unprepared, but is willing to step up to be a hero. Yang is boisterous, ready for action. Blake is reserved, slowly opening up with her new friends. Weiss is warming up to her teammates as well, though her icy exterior comes from different reasons than Blake’s. The four are recognizable in appearance and action.
In fact, all the characters are recognizable, even those with limited screen time in the manga like Penny. Even the Grimm behave as expected, though with a nice twist to challenge Team RWBY and Team JNPR. After all, there has to be a surprise or two.
The manga gives more details about dust, the magic powder used to power the weapons used by Huntresses and Hunters. Weiss, being the heir to the Schnee Dust Company, provides most of the info, as is fitting. Not everyone wants to hear it, but the info is out there for readers. The first part helps fill in details that audiences of the animated series might not have received.
Miwa’s RWBY is very much RWBY, especially as it was in 2015. A snapshot of a series that continued to evolve. The manga may not reflect what RWBY is now, it is a reflection of what it was and is still worth a read.
Movies based on TV series can go in one of two routes. The first is the remake, where a TV series is used as the basis of a movie. CHiPS and the Mission: Impossible series of movies are a good example. Sometimes the remake works; sometimes it doesn’t. The other approach is to either continue a TV series or give the series an ending. Typically done with the same cast, the movie provides fans a chance to see the characters at least one last time. Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Serenity, and Veronica Mars are examples here. Of course, there are movies based on TV series that don’t fit into either category. Batman (1966) was created to advertise the TV series in the new markets it was going to. And then there’s The Simpsons Movie.
The Simpsons began as a feature on The Tracey Ullman Show in 1987. The popularity of the shorts increased their frequency over the run over The Tracey Ullman Show, leading to the creation of the TV series in 1989. The Simpsons has been running for thirty-one seasons as of this writing with no signs of stopping. The series had a short time being aired on Thursdays, defeating NBC’s powerhouse, The Cosby Show, in the ratings, before being moved to Sundays. The series is now the longest running American prime time series, live action or animated. Soap operas and sports broadcasts are the only TV series that have lasted longer. There are people watching The Simpsons that were born after the series started.
The Simpsons have been around long enough that anything that they could parody has long since ended. The show is now the media standard it made fun of in the past. What more can the Simpson family – Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie – get up to? America’s animated nuclear family, with a mother, a father, and 2.3 kids, has been through a lot, including moving their hometown of Springfield due to pollution. The series has a loose continuity. Big events tend to have echoes in later episodes, but other events are remembered when convenient.
A typical episode has one of the Simpsons, most likely Homer or Bart but even Maggie has instigated a plot or two, coming up with a scheme that backfires horribly. The rest of the episode has the cast trying to clean up the mess. The series has a large supporting cast thanks to being a long runner. It’s very possible now for a season to focus on a different character each episode and run out of time before running out of characters.
The year 2007 was twenty years after the first appearance of the Simpsons. The characters had evolved a lot in their animation style since their Tracey Ullman days. The only thing left was to go full CGI. The Simpsons Movie broke that barrier in glorious 2-D. With the same cast and crew as the TV series, the movie could easily keep to the core of what makes The Simpsons tick. It’s just a matter of what goes into the movie.
To no surprise, really, The Simpsons Movie plays as an extended episode of the TV series, just bigger thanks to the size of a movie screen. Things go horribly wrong yet again thanks to Homer. The fate of Springfield and all its inhabitants is sealed when Homer thinks with his stomach and makes the city’s already terrible pollution worse. The EPA cuts off Springfield from the rest of the world with a dome, with only the Simpsons able to escape.the city, just ahead of a lynch mob.
The movie plays with the idea of being based on a TV series, with screen crawls and a fade to black with “To Be Continued” on screen. Any character who appeared in the TV series appears in the movie with the possible exception of Side Show Bob. There’s an extended “Itchy & Scratchy” short to open the film before the opening credits, a more orchestrated version of the TV show’s credit sequence but ends with Green Day instead of a couch gag. The movie is The Simpsons, with more time to let the story idea play out and all the extras, such as cameos, that are expected.
The Simpsons Movie is just that, The Simpsons as a movie. The differences are in the budget, allowing for better animation for the bug screen, a fuller orchestration of the soundtrack, and higher stakes. For those expecting more than that, disappointment awaits. However, The Simpsons Movie delivers on the expectations set by The Simpsons.
Crossovers can be an odd lot. When done within the same setting, characters from two or more sources, typically series, meet and work out a way to solve a problem they have in common, whether the problem is medical, social, or villainous. Crossovers become events in comics and on TV; casts appearing outside their own title does draw an audience but the writing has to take into account the new personalities. Cross-corporate crossovers are an oddity. Normally found in the realm of fanfiction, where negotiations between companies about how their property appears isn’t a thing, the cross-corporate crossover does occur from time to time and is treated as an event by all companies involved. Examples of successful cross-corporate crossovers include JLA/Avengers, bringing DC and Marvel’s premier super teams together, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, bringing together cartoon characters from Disney and Warner Bros.
Archie Comics, though, tends to have the more interesting crossovers in the comic industry. Among the crossovers are The Punisher Meets Archie, Archie Meets KISS, Archie vs Predator and Archie vs Sharknado, the latter being an official crossover written by the Sharknado creators. Archie is the little black dress of comics; he goes with everything, no matter how odd the pairing seems on first glance.
DC, in the meantime, has been continuing some if the older TV series based on their characters, notable Batman ’66, based on the Adam West series, and Wonder Woman ’77, based on the Lynda Carter show. Both series aim to capture the feel of the original series. And this is where Archie comes in. Archie Comics has a timelessness thanks to being around since 1939. Their titles have reflected a wholesome image of teenagers ever since, with the characters remaining a constant despite changes in culture and society over time. The company’s digests have featured current and older stories, with the only real difference being art style and fashion. This makes dropping Archie and his friends into a specific era easy to do.
Archie Meets Batman ’66 is not an unusual crossover for Archie. The Adam West Batman series shows a more wholesome version of Gotham City, a Gotham terrorized by villains foul, that wouldn’t look out of place beside Riverdale. Archie fits into that setting without any need to shoehorn details.
The comic ran as a six issue mini-series in 2019, then later released as a trade paperback collection. It begins in Gotham City as Poison Ivy terrorizes the World’s Science Fair with her snapdragon, only to be thwarted by Batman, Robin, and Batgirl. But Ivy provides the distraction Bookworm needs for he and his henchwoman, Footnote, to steal an electronic book. Elsewhere, the United Underworld – Catwoman, Joker, Penguin, and Riddler – comment on Ivy’s efforts, The Riddler realizes that Gotham isn’t where the United Underworld should start its world domination. Batman is just too difficult to overcome. It would be easier to take over a city that doesn’t have a superhero. Riverdale has everything Gotham has – a chief of police, a rich millionaire – and no Batman. Very low crime rate, even. Perfect for striking.
Hiram Lodge is the first victim of United Underworld’s mind control scheme. However, the scheme only affects grown men. With coerced help from Riverdale technical genius Dilton Doiley, the villains manage to get all the adults, but teenagers are still a random element. Riddler finds a protege in Reggie Mantle, while the Joker needs effort to turn Jughead into a junior version. Catwoman’s alter ego Miss Kitka gets most of the teenaged boys on board, leaving Veronica, Betty, and the other teenaged girls, plus Kevin Keller, to figure out how to stop the United Underworld. Fortunately, Batman is on the case. It takes a combined effort from Batman, Robin, Batgirl with Archie and his friends to defeat the United Underworld and save Riverdale.
With crossovers, characters from both sources need to be equally active in the plot, at least to the point of believability. Having one set of characters be in the backseat of the plot, being dragged around from plot point to plot point, does them a disservice. The spotlight’s on all the characters, not just the ones from one of the sources. Archie Meets Batman ’66 does this. While Archie and his friends aren’t trained crime fighters, they do pitch in. They may not fight, but they are willing to be distractions. Likewise, Batman, Batgirl, and Robin don’t stand alone against the villains in Riverdale. They accept the help offered.
Details are also important. DC’s Batman ’66 is based on the Adam West Batman, not the regular continuity. A Batman that works only in black and really dark gray wouldn’t fit in. The colours are bright, suiting both the 1966 series and Archie Comics. Even the smaller details help. United Underworld is pulled straight from the movie, as is Miss Kitka. The Joker has Cesar Romero’s mustache under the whitepaint. The Batusi makes an appearance as does The Archies’ hit single, “Sugar Sugar“, albeit three years too early.
There are scenes, though, when the soundtrack starts playing in your head. Fight scenes have the appropriate written sound effects, none repeated in the run of the mini-series. The narrator, who in most comics serves to remind readers of past events, takes on the voice of the TV series’, with alliteration during the cliffhangers at the end of chapters 1-5.
Archie Meets Batman ’66 manages to meld the two sources, combining Archie Comics’ timelessness and wholesomeness with the 1966 Batman TV series’ sense of fun and camp. The two merge seemlessly, a crossover long overdue. Both sources come through shining.
The History of Adaptations
Twenties
Thirties
Forties
Fifties
Sixties
Seventies
Eighties
Nineties
Aughts
Wrapping Up
Now that the Teens are done, it’s time to look at the breakdown of popular movies by originals and adaptations. In 2015, Lost in Translation looked at the decade up to that year to wrap up the History of Adaptations series at the time. With five more years gone by, things have changed. Once again, I’m using the compiled list at Filmsite.org.
2010
Toy Story 3 – sequel. Pixar’s most popular series of films.
2011
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 – sequel and adaptation. The last of the Harry Potter movies based on the first seven books.
2012
Marvel’s The Avengers – adaptation.
The Dark Knight Rises – sequel of adaptation, The Dark Knight.
2013
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire – sequel and adaptation. Covers the second book of The Hunger Games trilogy.
2014
American Sniper – adaptation of American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History by Chris Pyle.
2015
Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens – sequel. The first Star Wars movie released after Disney bought Lucasfilm.
Jurassic World – adaptation. It’s a tough call, as it was marketed as a sequel but doesn’t share much between the original Jurassic Park movies or the book. It’s more, “What if Jurassic Park didn’t have the dinosaur break-out shown in the book and movies?”
Avengers: Age of Ultron – sequel of adaptation. The Marvel movies that led up to this release didn’t make the list.
2016
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – spin off. The first of several films meant to look at other parts of the Galaxy Far Far Away that aren’t part of the main Skywalker saga.
Finding Dory – sequel of original. The second Pixar film on the list for the Teens.
2017
Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi – sequel.
Beauty and the Beast – remake of adaptation. Part of Disney’s series of live action remakes of their animated classics.
Wonder Woman – adaptation. The second DC property to make the list.
2018
Black Panther – adaptation. Diversity matters.
Avengers: Infinity War – sequel of adaptation.
Incredibles 2 – sequel. Another Pixar film, this time fourteen years after the original.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom – sequel of adaptation.
2019
Avengers: Endgame – sequel of adaptation
The Lion King – remake. Computer animated remake with photo-realistic characters.
Toy Story 4 – sequel of original and fourth of the series to be mentioned in the History series.
Captain Marvel – adaptation.
Disney is a big winner, with fifteen films listed above. The list breaks down to six adaptations, six sequels of original movies, five sequels of adaptations, two movies that are both sequels and adaptations, and one spin-off. There are no original movies on the above list, the worst showing for any decade. Since popular movies tend to stay in the pop subconscious, the backlash against adaptations has a point. That’s not to say that there hasn’t been popular original movies. Us was knocked out of the top ten of 2019 by The Rise of Skywalker in the final weeks. If anything, the Teens was the decade of the blockbuster, big budget films.
Superhero films were popular, with nine total in the list, including the one not based on any comic book character. Superhero films are filling the niche that Westerns once had, becoming almost ubiquitous. The trend of adapting Young Adult novels that heralded the start of the decade faded; few YA novels ever had the buzz that Harry Potter and The Hunger Games had.
Gone from 2015’s list are Alice in Wonderland, Iron Man 2, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, The Hunger Games, Iron Man 3, Frozen, Despicable Me 2, Guardians of the Galaxy, Inside Out, and Furious 7. The Teens’ top grossing movies come mainly from the latter half of the decade. Part of the losses were to be expected; as the decade continued, more movies had opportunity to outperform what had already come. But the latter half of the Teens had more blockbusters, more record breaking grosses than the first half. Some of it can be chalked up to Disney’s marketing department. The rest of the explanation needs some further study.
As the new Twenties dawn, adaptations hold ground. At this point, it’ll take a sleeper hit to get studios to put the money they do for adaptations behind an original, untested work. Risk avoidance means original works won’t have the spectacle of an adaptation. It may take a well-known name to get an original work done to the same level at this point. For the next few years, expect adaptations to get the lion share of budgets and marketing.
Lost in Translation has pointed out that television is the better medium for adapting longer form stories, such as novels. Of late, movies are better with mind blowing, budget breaking action scenes, but are limited when allowing a story to develop. Television doesn’t have the budget, but a good accountant can find ways to spread the costs over the run of a season. The catch with TV, though, is ratings. A series that can’t find an audience fast enough is often cancelled. The days where series like M*A*S*H and Cheers would be allowed time to grow an audience. Today’s television is not only competing among the networks and cable stations but also streaming services.
The key to adapting a novel is knowing just how much time can be filled. The Expanse took seventeen episodes to adapt the first book of the series, Levianthan Wakes, all of season one and the first seven episodes of season two. If the series wasn’t picked up after the first season, The Expanse would have ended at a natural break point, leaving the main plot still unfinished but giving the characters an end of sorts for their arcs.
Season lengths tend to be set for American network productions; thirteen or twenty-two episodes, giving allowing for reruns and holiday breaks. British television, though, is not beholden to the format. Seasons run as long as needed, no more, no less. This gives a bit more freedom when it comes to adaptations. There’s no need for filler episodes as seen in long running anime or even original TV series on American television. Being able to set the length of a series adapting a novel means the showrunner can figure out what can be kept and what can be dropped without losing the core of the original work.
The 2019 adaptation of Good Omens is perhaps the best use of a limited series to adapt a novel. Based on the novel Good Omens: A Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, the series co-produced by the BBC and by Amazon took on the task of adapting the book nicely. The main catch to the novel was the narrative. The narrator provided a lot of extra information and footnotes that would be difficult to replicate. Tone is also crucial; the original novel is a comedy about the End of the World.
Published in 1990, the novel takes the idea of the Antichrist as seen in such movies as The Omen and asks the key question, “What if the Antichrist didn’t have angelic or demonic influences?” The novel also looks at the question of nature versus nurture, ineffability, and the nature of humanity. All while an angel and a demon rebel against their own sides to save the world.
How does the Antichrist get misplaced, though? One would expect that the angelic hosts and demonic hordes would keep a close eye on the bringer of Armageddon. However, while God does not play dice with the universe, God is also not beyond a little Three-Card Monte, by adding a third baby to the mix. Not only is the wife of the American ambassador giving birth at St. Beryl’s Order of Chattering Nuns, but Mrs. Young is as well. The demon Crowley passes the Antichrist off to one of the Satanic nuns who gets confused on who is the American ambassador and switches out the wrong baby. While Heaven, represented by the Principality Aziraphale, and Hell, with Crowley coming in, try to influence young Warlock, the Antichrist, named Adam, is growing up in Tadfield, England.
Add into the confusion Anathema Device, a professional descendant of Agnes Nutter, and the owner of the only copy ever published of Agnes’ book, The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch; the Witchfinder Army, consisting of Witchfinder Sergeant Shadwell and new recruit Newt Pulsifer, descendant of the man who burned Agnes at the stake; the Four Horsepersons of the Apocalypse with new recruit Pollution replacing the retired Pestilence; Adam’s gang, Them, with Pepper, Wensleydale, and Brian; and a Bentley where every cassette morphs into The Best of Queen over a fortnight. Gaiman and Pratchett keep the story moving along and a good pace as Adam starts realizing that he is more than what he appears as his eleventh birthday approaches. Ultimately, Adam shows that he is neither good nor evil, just human.
Being adapted can be seen as winning the lottery by some writers. It takes writers with experience and pull to be able to control how their stories are adapted. Neil Gaiman is one such author, with experience working in television and enough best sellers to make studios notice. Gaiman became the showrunner for the 2019 adaptation of Good Omens. His familiarity with the story and his respect for his co-writer Pratchett comes through with the results. Gaiman also wrote the script and, working with the BBC and with Amazon’s streaming service, was able to get the novel out without being rushed, without losing key ideas, and without having to cut corners.
The series starred Michael Sheen as Aziraphale and David Tennant as Crowley, with Adria Arjona as Anathema, Jack Whitehall as Newt, Miranda Richardson as Madame Tracey, Michael McKean as Witchfinder Sergeant Shadwell, Sam Taylor Buck as Adam, and Ollie as the cutest Hellhound ever, Dog. The six episodes follow the events in the novel closely, losing only a few bits and characters due to limitations. To new viewers, though, these losses don’t leave a visible hole, so the second set of Four Bikers of the Apocalypse aren’t muddling the flow of the plot onscreen. Likewise, the reason Queen is used as the soundtrack is never explained, but it’s a soundtrack featuring Queen. The fate of the third baby isn’t revealed, leaving the question dangling of what just happened after the swapping at St. Beryl’s. At the same time, the series expands on how the Arrangement between Aziraphale and Crowley came about, where they cover for each other when one gets stuck elsewhere.
The narrator is handled by having Frances McDormand be the voice of God, narrating as needed, giving the extra explanations the narrative in the original novel does. The Metatron, the Voice of God, though, is played by Derek Jacobi. By having God narrate, the little asides that come up in the book can carry over to the series, giving the audience the information needed to understand where the story is going and why.
Casting was critical. The chemistry between Aziraphale and Crowley had to work. Fortunately, Sheen and Tennant were more than capable in recreating the forbidden camaraderie of two people who have known each other over 6000 years. Sam Taylor Buck plays Adam as a normal kid who isn’t all that normal, one who just wants to enjoy his time at home, neither good nor evil. The cast, in short, was perfect, even with the minor characters like Jon Hamm’s Gabriel, portrayed as an out of touch middle manager who doesn’t have to deal with the front line.
Having Gaiman as showrunner ensured that the adaptation stayed true. The parts and characters that were removed weren’t needed in the overall plot and would have taken up time needed elsewhere. Good Omens remained faithful to the original novel, keeping the tone and the themes that helped make the story popular.
