Woe Is the Loneliest Number

Woe woe woe your boat (or canoe) very aggressively and belligerently down the stream (or lake), un-merrily, savagely, combatively, with hostility, nightmares are so much better than dreams (especially if you inflict them on others).

Wednesday's visions plague and swarm, uncertain what they'll reveal or misinform, especially now that Rowan has miraculously reappeared, although it's quite a shallow presentation, with a transformative veneer; the Poe Cup race seeks to add to the distraction, with a Merman tilting scales, through a reflective buoyed refraction, while conundrums are un-riddled making way for exploration, and the darkness doth descend, with very little exclamation.

Edgar Allan Poe, Pilgrims, Witchcraft, 1950s Monster-craze, Black Metal, musical and visual references to The Addams' legacy,.. I don't know if it's just that I am in the correct mindset to be watching this show, still clinging to the Halloween mood I always get even one month it has passed and I'm trying to delay the overwhelming early Christmas they try to smother me with (in spite of how I love Christmas also); but this show knows exactly how to harness that 1990s' goth Tim Burtonesque aesthetic and vibe of morbid and grotesque German Expressionism melded with a common-yet-well-executed "teen arrives to a new quirky school" narrative backdropped in a normal American town.

Friendship, quirky characters with strong and varied traits that make them not only all be different but also fit in and work with one another quite well; the common folk who fear the school and yet it makes it plausible for both to coexist. The perfect blend of cartoony over-the-top tropes and good mystery drama with great dialogue and characterisation. And the performance and writing of Wednesday Addams, who is obviously the highlight of the show as she is tenacious, strong and feisty but also caring, empathetic and flawed that don't diminish her strength and determination but enhances her persona by having more layers than a cynical joke-machine with no heart. A perfect strong female character to praise and fear. All her fighting skills, wisdom and other skillset she may have don't make her a Mary Sue at all, they provide her with the tools she needs to take on the dangers of this world as she also remains flawed when it comes to expressing her feelings and working with others. Couldn't have asked for a better characterisation myself, one to be used as a great example of how to write them.

The No-rules race and picturesque dress up, prophecies and visions, school secrets, student secret societies, Hidden traps, suspicious murders all across town... The Harry Potter influence is palpable yet most welcomed as it doesn't come across tired or copycatted. It is delightful to see the many influences of the show in an aesthetic and narrative way from Tim Burton, like Batman 1989, Beetlejuice, Sleepy Hollow and more from him; Harry Potter's friendship and magical-world-building-vs-a-normal-world influences, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina's teen-mystery-oriented plots featuring quirky characters that aid her or antagonize her amidst the social cliques that exist in the school... With tropes inspired by detective shows, high school dramas and even cartoons, the show has every ounce of entertainment as it has a production value believed to have been almost lost in Netflix. It's very easy for a franchise like the one this show may very well begin (I mean, other than the Addams Family one it's already backdropped in) given its popularity, subject and legacy; to fall into the mainstream, quantity-over-quality-level of production that some famous IPs have become nowadays.

So lets see where this show leads to and I really really hope they maintain the same care in the filmmaking, framing, editing, characterisation and narrative that this show has because I believe it is truly special and unique. And each story thread that opens up or reveals itself adds only more value to the world building of this wonderful world. I always enjoyed the Addams Family world but I've never seen a more grounded and layered yet still comedic version as this one. Keep it up!

Wednesday investigates the mystery relating to Rowan.

This is a strong episode that mixes intrigue and character moments.

This chapter drip feeds certain information nicely before finishing on a compelling moment that makes you want to find out what happens next. Generally, it involves a number of interactions between Wednesday and other characters, plus the central event of the Poe Cup, which are all quite entertaining.

The tone of the episode is firmly established as Addams characters in a very Hogwartz type environment, with a nice amount of tributes and reference to the writings of Edgar Allan Poe. Nothing feels original, but it still works well for me.

So far, I find certain characters more interesting than others, but Jamie Ortega's Wednesday carries it well enough to keep me watching. What I preferred about this one is that it focuses on using her intelligence to resolve problems, as opposed to the obligatory Hollywood martial arts and spectacle.

Again the visuals are excellent, with cinematography and art design that is very memorable.

In this episode, the story makes you curious about the mysteries that appear one by one. I really enjoyed the storyline in this episode. Found an answer, but the answer even gives more mystery. So story-wise there is no decline from the previous episode. The jokes that are made are also quite intriguing when watching with good timing.

Overall the visuals look well and good. I like the color grading, the cinematography is also good. There is one shot that feels lacking, namely the moment when the POV camera for our main character, Wednesday, is going down the stairs. It felt forced through an instant and somehow tucked in.

Episode 2 of Wednesday season 1 starts with police officers led by the sheriff looking for Rowan's body in the woods. Unfortunately, they are not able to find it. The sheriff does not believe Wednesday's statement about a monster attacking Rowan and thinks that it was a student at Nevermore. The principal is convinced that Rowan ran away and is not happy about the sheriff's accusations. After taking Wednesday's statement, the Principal wishes the sheriff would leave but Wednesday asks to speak to him privately. The principal eventually agrees to let them talk privately, on the condition that everything Wednesday says is off the record. Wednesday tells the sheriff that she thinks someone is trying to cover Rowan's death. An officer disrupts their conversation and opens the door, allowing Rowan to step into the room. Behold, he is alive! This occurs much to the shock of everyone, especially Wednesday. During her therapy session, the therapist wants to understand why Wednesday lied about witnessing a murder. Wednesday is sure she saw Rowan being killed by a creature but no one believes her. The therapist tries to get through to Wednesday but she is not willing to open up or lose the battle. After her session, she meets Tyler who is shocked to learn she is legally required to go to therapy. Tyler says she believes what she says she saw in the wood before he receives a message and leaves. Later, Wednesday sneaks into Xavier and Rowan's room to look for the book. She finds a mask and before she can leave Xavier returns to the room. She hides under the bed and he gets a visit from Bianca. She overhears the conversation between them and it seems that Xavier was worried that Rowan was planning to hurt Wednesday. She also overhears Bianca's plans to crush Enid in the upcoming competition. Bianca sabotaged Enid, leaving her without a copilot in the competition. Wednesday decides to help Enid so that she can take Bianca down. The next day, Wednesday and Enid team up for the competition. As there are no rules, it is all fair game and Bianca is using this to her advantage. During the contest though, Wednesday has another vision. This time she sees a version of herself and it tells her she is the key. Wednesday continues on, and they use Bianca's underhand methods against her to win. Wednesday decided to stay to solve the mystery in the school. As a fiction mystery writer, it is clear she couldn't resist the urge to go sleuthing. It also looks like she and Bianca will continue to have bad blood through this season.